Maryland women’s basketball coach Brenda Frese traveled to Toronto in summer 2015 to watch guard Shatori Walker-Kimbrough compete for the United States in the Pan American Games.
During her trip, she made the short journey to see Niagara Falls before continuing to Toronto. Frese was so impressed by the falls she made it a goal to give her team an opportunity to see them.
So she contacted Niagara University — located in New York about 15 minutes north of the waterfalls — and set up Sunday’s game against the Purple Eagles.
In addition to offering the team a chance to see the iconic landmark, the trip was the team’s first road test of the season. The Terps passed it, jumping out to a strong start and using 3-point shooting to secure a 96-64 win.
“It felt great,” guard Ieshia Small said. “I’m excited to see more away games to see how we come out and play.”
In Friday’s game against Mount St. Mary’s, the Terps struggled at the start. The Mountaineers stayed within a possession for much of the first quarter before Maryland pulled away in the final three periods.
The team wasn’t happy with what Frese called a “slow, sluggish” start and felt the 11 a.m. tipoff time was a factor. It also knew repeating that performance could prove more dangerous on the road.
“You can’t go into someone else’s arena, especially with six freshmen, and not be ready to play,” Frese said. “You have to come in with a better mindset in terms of [being] ready to start a game.”
Despite the game against Niagara also starting early at about noon, the Terps heeded Frese’s message.
Maryland opened an 8-0 lead Sunday thanks to lockdown defense in the first two minutes.
“We learned a lot from [Friday],” Small said. “It was a huge difference. We came out of the gate strong on Sunday. It was 10 times better.”
Guard Destiny Slocum, who scored 25 points against the Purple Eagles en route to a Big Ten Freshman of the Week honor, helped jump-start the team with two assists in the first five minutes.
“It’s a tough environment to play in someone else’s house,” Slocum said. “Not being where you’re used to shooting, different rims, different floor. I’d say that’s the tough part about being away.”
Despite the changes, Slocum appeared comfortable on the Purple Eagles’ court. She tallied 22 first-half points while shooting 7-of-11 from the field.
Slocum, combined with Niagara’s zone defense, helped the Terps to their best 3-point shooting performance of the year.
“[Slocum] couldn’t miss in the first half,” Small said. “That just motivated everybody to make shots.”
Slocum hit five of her 10 3-point attempts, Walker-Kimbrough went 4-for-6 from beyond the arc and Small made her lone long-range attempt.
The team made 11 3-pointers on 42.3 percent shooting, both season bests.
“We were shot-ready,” Frese said, “and made a lot of big plays.”
The Terps hope the experience they gained on the road will help this weekend when they travel to Las Vegas to play No. 23 Arizona State and Washington State, their first Power 5 opponents this season.
“We wanted to start here early to get so many new players into the fold and get them ready for what’s out ahead,” Frese said. “Now, it’s definitely time for us to get tested.”
