Guard Katie Rutan guards a Notre Dame player during the Terps’ 87-83 loss to the Fighting Irish on Jan. 27, 2014 at Comcast Center.
After an 86-72 loss at Virginia a week ago, the Terrapins women’s basketball team didn’t want another team to generate as much offense as the Cavaliers did.
“After the Virginia loss, we were angry,” guard Laurin Mincy said. “We wanted to get better from our mistakes.”
At the time, it was the most points the Terps had allowed in a game before an 87-83 loss to Notre Dame on Monday night usurped that woeful defensive performance. In both games, the Terps allowed opponents to develop a rhythm and establish control early.
Now the Terps enter a two-game road stretch, starting tonight at No. 18 N.C. State, and they hope to get a fast start to bounce back from their first losing streak of the season.
“We knew when we got into conference play how difficult every opponent was going to be,” coach Brenda Frese said. “We don’t take two losses in a row any differently than two wins in a row. It’s just getting better and being ready to get back out on the road.”
Frese praised the Terps during the majority of their 14-game win streak for their consistent play. Fast starts helped the Terps build comfortable halftime leads in convincing victories.
But in recent contests, the Terps haven’t had control from the outset. In their last win — a 92-81 victory against Georgia Tech on Jan. 19 — the Terps trailed at halftime, 44-43, only the second game the Terps trailed during the half at the time. The other was a Nov. 15 loss to No. 1 Connecticut.
They held a 38-34 lead entering the break against Virginia but struggled to defend the three-point line, and the Cavaliers shot roughly 14 percent better than their season average from beyond the arc. Notre Dame shot better than 66 percent in the first half and cruised to a 12-point first-half lead.
“Definitely something we’ve addressed, we’ve shown on film,” Frese said of opponents’ fast starts. “There’s nothing more we can do in terms of emphasizing it any greater than what we’re doing. So the ownership has got to be in terms of the players being ready to play.”
Despite the film study and the effort that Frese has often lauded during practices, the Terps have yet to carry that same level of defense into their recent games. They have allowed more than 80 points in three straight contests. Against an N.C. State team that averages the most 3-pointers made in the ACC, the Terps will have to avoid lapses like the ones against Virginia and Notre Dame.
“We have great practices,” Frese said. “I think we’ve learned a lot from our mistakes, and so now it’s just taking them into the next element going to N.C. State.”
Still, Frese has been satisfied with the focused attitude the Terps have demonstrated despite the setbacks. During the postgame media conference after their loss against Notre Dame, she called on the upperclassmen to lead the Terps to quicker starts from the opening tip.
“We didn’t have time to mope,” Mincy said. “We have games to get prepared for.”
But the Terps still need to show they can get back on track in conference play, and a fast start against the Wolfpack would go a long way in showing their recent play has been an aberration.
“It will be interesting to see how we react to the challenge as far as being on the road twice,” Mincy said. “Hopefully, we can get it done.”
