Women's basketball prepares for matchup against Maryland tonight in NCAA tournament
Nick Filipowski
Issue date: 3/25/08 Section: Sports
Following its first NCAA Tournament win since 1998, the Nebraska women's basketball team is set to face No.1 seed Maryland in the second round of the Big Dance this evening.
It is only the third time the Cornhuskers have advanced to the second round of the tourney. They hold a 3-7 all-time record in NCAA Tournament play.
Nebraska (21-11, 9-7 Big 12 Conference) will face the Terrapins for the first time. NU Coach Connie Yori said the team will have its hands full defending Maryland's potent offense. She said defending the Terps is a classic case of "pick your poison."
"They're experienced, talented and an exceptional offensive team," Yori said, according to NU Media Relations. "I think an interesting stat is when you shoot better from the 3-point line than your opponents shoot from the field, I think that says something about how good you are offensively."
The Terps (31-3, 13-1 Atlantic Coast Conference) are shooting 38.5 percent from distance, are led by senior center/forwards Crystal Langhorne and Laura Harper and junior guard/forward Marissa Coleman, and junior guard Kristi Toliver.
Langhorne dropped 25 points in the team's first-round victory over 16-seed Coppin State.
Along with their 3-point shooting percentage, the Terps boast a dangerous inside game. While the Huskers may be outsized down low, Yori expects the squad's four post players to perform well and plans on utilizing NU's depth to give the team a chance to compete and be physical.
"(Langhorne) shoots such a high percentage, which is a concern," Yori said. "She's just a really good athlete. She has great hands and she posts up big."
Despite being outsized, Nebraska's senior forward Danielle Page said the Big 12 has prepared the Huskers for their match-up against Maryland.
Page said the Big 12 schedule prepares the squad with rigorous, physical play night-in and night-out, and prepares them for a tournament with "no easy games."
"The Big 12 does prepare us for the atmosphere that we are going to see tomorrow night," Page said. "You work all year on eliminating the small mistakes that cost you games and I think that's going to help us."
Teammate junior forward Kelsey Griffin agreed with the sentiments of Page and said one of the great things about conference play is that in the Big 12, opponents have really good fan turnout at schools like Baylor and Oklahoma.
"They bring in a really big fan base," Griffin said of Big 12 teams. "I am expecting a similar situation Tuesday night."
Griffin said the team stayed and watched a little bit of Maryland's first-round victory and referred to Terps fans as "almost like a sixth man," which the team is accustomed to encountering on the road during conference play.
The Terps, who were eliminated in the second round of last year's tourney, are focused on avoiding another early exit.
"It isn't the same team or the same season, and that's why I think it will be a different outcome," Maryland Coach Brenda Frese said. "This team is not worried about a year ago. They are worried about playing the best basketball that they can and that's the reason why we're 31-3."
Maryland players are using basketball analysis criticisms that the Terps didn't deserve a No. 1 seed to focus and prove it deserves its tournament ranking.
Langhorne said the criticism is upsetting, considering the team defeated Oklahoma, LSU, UCLA and lost only one non-conference game to Rutgers. During conference play the Terps defeated Duke twice, but lost to the Blue Devils in the ACC Tournament.
"I just think as a team, we're using that as motivation to prove a lot of people wrong, " Langhorne said.
Like Nebraska looking to contain Maryland's quartet of ACC "All Stars," Frese is concerned with containing Griffin.
"The fact that Lang and Harp will be on her, it's going to be defense by committee, and that's how we play," Frese said. "She is very talented. She can face up, she can drive from the high post, she has a variety of post moves, but I like our chances in the sense of how well we will play together."
Much like Frese, Yori expects NU to come out on all cylinders and compete like it has all season long.
"It will be a great challenge for us," Yori said. "But, at the same time, we expect to compete tomorrow night."
NICKFILIPOWSKI@DAILYNEBRASKAN.COM
It is only the third time the Cornhuskers have advanced to the second round of the tourney. They hold a 3-7 all-time record in NCAA Tournament play.
Nebraska (21-11, 9-7 Big 12 Conference) will face the Terrapins for the first time. NU Coach Connie Yori said the team will have its hands full defending Maryland's potent offense. She said defending the Terps is a classic case of "pick your poison."
"They're experienced, talented and an exceptional offensive team," Yori said, according to NU Media Relations. "I think an interesting stat is when you shoot better from the 3-point line than your opponents shoot from the field, I think that says something about how good you are offensively."
The Terps (31-3, 13-1 Atlantic Coast Conference) are shooting 38.5 percent from distance, are led by senior center/forwards Crystal Langhorne and Laura Harper and junior guard/forward Marissa Coleman, and junior guard Kristi Toliver.
Langhorne dropped 25 points in the team's first-round victory over 16-seed Coppin State.
Along with their 3-point shooting percentage, the Terps boast a dangerous inside game. While the Huskers may be outsized down low, Yori expects the squad's four post players to perform well and plans on utilizing NU's depth to give the team a chance to compete and be physical.
"(Langhorne) shoots such a high percentage, which is a concern," Yori said. "She's just a really good athlete. She has great hands and she posts up big."
Despite being outsized, Nebraska's senior forward Danielle Page said the Big 12 has prepared the Huskers for their match-up against Maryland.
Page said the Big 12 schedule prepares the squad with rigorous, physical play night-in and night-out, and prepares them for a tournament with "no easy games."
"The Big 12 does prepare us for the atmosphere that we are going to see tomorrow night," Page said. "You work all year on eliminating the small mistakes that cost you games and I think that's going to help us."
Teammate junior forward Kelsey Griffin agreed with the sentiments of Page and said one of the great things about conference play is that in the Big 12, opponents have really good fan turnout at schools like Baylor and Oklahoma.
"They bring in a really big fan base," Griffin said of Big 12 teams. "I am expecting a similar situation Tuesday night."
Griffin said the team stayed and watched a little bit of Maryland's first-round victory and referred to Terps fans as "almost like a sixth man," which the team is accustomed to encountering on the road during conference play.
The Terps, who were eliminated in the second round of last year's tourney, are focused on avoiding another early exit.
"It isn't the same team or the same season, and that's why I think it will be a different outcome," Maryland Coach Brenda Frese said. "This team is not worried about a year ago. They are worried about playing the best basketball that they can and that's the reason why we're 31-3."
Maryland players are using basketball analysis criticisms that the Terps didn't deserve a No. 1 seed to focus and prove it deserves its tournament ranking.
Langhorne said the criticism is upsetting, considering the team defeated Oklahoma, LSU, UCLA and lost only one non-conference game to Rutgers. During conference play the Terps defeated Duke twice, but lost to the Blue Devils in the ACC Tournament.
"I just think as a team, we're using that as motivation to prove a lot of people wrong, " Langhorne said.
Like Nebraska looking to contain Maryland's quartet of ACC "All Stars," Frese is concerned with containing Griffin.
"The fact that Lang and Harp will be on her, it's going to be defense by committee, and that's how we play," Frese said. "She is very talented. She can face up, she can drive from the high post, she has a variety of post moves, but I like our chances in the sense of how well we will play together."
Much like Frese, Yori expects NU to come out on all cylinders and compete like it has all season long.
"It will be a great challenge for us," Yori said. "But, at the same time, we expect to compete tomorrow night."
NICKFILIPOWSKI@DAILYNEBRASKAN.COM
Be the first to comment on this story