MINNEAPOLIS — With Ohio State’s defense keyed in on Bri McDaniel during the first quarter of Friday’s Big Ten quarterfinal against Maryland women’s basketball, Faith Masonius ducked into the paint and positioned herself in the paint.

By the time the Buckeyes realized Masonius was open, she was already taking and making a layup.

Masonius finished the first half with 10 points and eight rebounds and shot a perfect 5-for-5 from the field, boosting her team to an eight-point lead. She put together one of the best games of her career in the Terps’ blowout win.

Masonius tallied her first double-double of the season and tied her season high with 15 points. She played 37 minutes and was a team-high plus-34.

“I just can’t say enough for Faith today,” coach Brenda Frese said. “She was our MVP and really allowed this team to stay the course, to stay confident with the way she fought.”

The Terps have long called the fifth-year veteran their team’s glue for her ability to assume whatever role is needed. She filled many on Friday.

[Maryland decimates top-seeded Ohio State, 82-61, advances to Big Ten tourney semifinal]

She showed off her passing skills and finished with four assists. In the third quarter, she signaled a play call with her hand in the air.

Masonius drew the defense’s attention, allowing Brinae Alexander to slip away and find an opening near the basket, Masonius passed her the ball for a layup.

Masonius’s vocalness on the court is “extremely beneficial” with so much to pay attention to on the court, Alexander said.

“Having that voice and having that safety net … it’s very helpful,” Alexander said. “I think that helps all of us play together and connected.”

On defense, a vocal Masonius shouted out instructions to her teammates. She effortlessly switched from Buckeye to Buckeye, guarding everyone from 5-foot-10 guard Jacy Sheldon to 6-foot-4 forward Rebeka Mikulášiková.

“Faith doesn’t get the credit that she deserves,” Sellers said. “A lot of the reason why our defensive intensity was so good was because of Faith. She does all the things that doesn’t show up on the stat sheet.”

[When Maryland women’s basketball’s stars struggled, its supporting cast stepped up]

Masonius was also one of the primary defenders on sophomore Cotie McMahon, who shot 3-for-17 from the field.

When Masonius had one of her few breaks for a minute at the end of the third quarter, the Buckeyes went on a 6-0 run. Frese quickly put her back in the game to “infuse that confidence” in the rest of the team.

Ohio State kept fighting, but Masonius remained a defensive force. She blocked Sheldon’s path to the basket and forced a travel on one possession and on the next, kept her arms in the air and forced a Taylor Thierry shot wide.

When Masonius wasn’t guarding the player with the ball, she helped Maryland finish with a 55-31 rebounding advantage by effectively boxing out. She grabbed a team-high 11 rebounds, five of them offensive rebounds.

“Before we left, Shy looked at me and she’s like “Just be up on the glass [today],” Masonius said. “I took that to heart and just got in there.”