Fans of No. 9 Maryland women’s basketball had the team’s early-season matchup against Princeton circled as a measuring stick game for the team amid a relatively easy nonconference schedule.
The Terps certainly measured up on Sunday afternoon, beating the previously undefeated Tigers 84-68. Oluchi Okananwa led all scorers with 20 points, and Maryland shot almost 43% from beyond the arc on an efficient offensive outing that dismantled Princeton’s defense.
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Maryland wasted no time getting started Saturday afternoon, coming out in an aggressive full-court press that took the Tigers out of any rhythm they were hoping to establish.
With no Lea Bartelme — the team announced pregame that she would be out for the season with a torn ACL —- a minutes-restricted Kaylene Smikle and still no Bri McDaniel, Maryland’s offensive options were limited.
Fortunately for the Terps, Addi Mack and Saylor Poffenbarger were in full uniform and ready to go. The two led the charge in the first half, capitalizing off turnovers for easy layups, and knocking down threes.
Mack continues to blossom into a star and fan favorite in real time. Late in the first quarter, Marya Boiko missed a layup, and Mack grabbed the offensive board in a crowd of Princeton post players. Looking like she had no space to finish, Mack went to a one-handed reverse high off the glass, extending Maryland’s lead to 13.
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The Terps ended a dominant first quarter up 26-10, looking like they might make much easier work of the Tigers than many thought.
Instead, they experienced a valley in the second quarter due to the team’s most consistent issue: turnover problems. Princeton flipped the script, turning up the pressure on Maryland, who gave the ball away eight times in the frame.
Those turnovers allowed the Tigers to get going with some easy points in transition, disrupting any flow that Maryland’s offense had developed. Maryland lost the quarter 20-8, taking just a four-point lead into the locker room.
Maryland came out of the locker room with a seemingly different offensive priority, getting their scorers going downhill. Okananwa and Smikle, who both had relatively quiet first halves, began to take their defenders off the bounce. They combined for 14 third-quarter points.
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Smikle got back to her bread-and-butter, forcing defenders into fouls at the rim and capitalizing with eight free throws in the quarter. The offensive boost helped Maryland re-extend its lead to 61-48 going into the final frame.
From there, Princeton was unable to make Maryland feel any real danger again. The Terps cleaned up their execution, and Poffenbarger continued to knock down big shots whenever the game started to get relatively close.
Maryland is now an unblemished 5-0 on the young season.
Three things to know
1. The bench was quiet. There has been a lot of discussion about Maryland women’s basketball’s depth as a strength this season, but the scoring effort was much more concentrated against Princeton. Injuries have cut down the number of available players, and Frese has given fewer minutes to players like Mir McLean. Kaylene Smikle was the only bench player to score, and she will likely return to the starting five when fully healthy.
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2. Terps went small ball. Frese utilized a five-out lineup throughout Saturday’s game, and to great effect. The lineup featured Mack, Smikle, Okananwa, Poffenbarger and Yarden Garzon. It allowed Maryland to have shooters at every point around the perimeter and switch defensively. Frese could opt for this as a starting lineup going forward.
3. Efficiency. Maryland put together one of its most efficient offensive games of 2025. It shot 47.5% from the field, 42.9% from three and missed just one free throw, going 17-of-18 from the line.
