Bragging Rights to Maryland

Terrapins Assert Themselves and Pull Away From Colonials: Maryland 73, George Washington 48

It is a shame that Maryland and George Washington, two of the best women's basketball programs in the area, waited more than 12 years to renew their rivalry. Because for most of the first half yesterday, they played an entertaining and competitive game.

But in the end, the Colonials were unable to keep pace with the top-ranked Terrapins, who ran away with a 73-48 victory in the BTI Classic before 7,113 at Comcast Center. Maryland's tenacious defense and potent offense proved too much for GW, ruining the Colonials' best start in 11 years.

Maryland's dominance started, as it usually does, underneath the basket. Crystal Langhorne, who was selected the tournament's most valuable player, scored 20 points and grabbed 11 rebounds for her 36th career double-double. Laura Harper added 14 points and seven rebounds.

The Terrapins (5-0), who are enjoying their best start under Coach Brenda Frese, never trailed but GW (4-1) made them work a lot harder than their previous two opponents. For much of the first half, the Colonials forced Maryland to play a more deliberate, half-court offense rather than the up-tempo style the Terrapins prefer.

By the time Kenan Cole sank a jump shot to pull GW to 21-20 with 7 minutes 29 seconds remaining in the half, it appeared that Maryland was going to have a fight on its hands. Eventually, though, the Terrapins changed the pace of the game, forcing GW to play more quickly. After Cole's basket, the Colonials missed their next five shots and 10 of their last 11 in the half. Maryland closed out the half on a 15-2 run to take a 36-22 lead.

"We just weren't making the shots that we probably should have," said guard Kim Beck, who led the Colonials with 17 points. "We were missing layups and then they would get the rebound and run it right back at us."

The Terrapins had suffered second-half meltdowns in their last two games, but that wasn't the case against GW. Maryland made sure to avoid any late-game lapses by turning up its defense another notch after halftime. GW made only three field goals the first eight minutes of the second half as the Terrapins continued to build their lead. Maryland held GW to 33 percent field goal shooting and 23 points below its season scoring average. The Terrapins also outrebounded the Colonials, 53-30.

"Usually, when we have lapses it's on the defensive end when our offense isn't flowing, and we really wanted to not let that happen tonight and play a 40-minute game that included the defensive end," said guard Shay Doron, who had 17 points. "We're definitely stressing staying focused every time."

These teams hadn't met since Jan. 12, 1994, a 77-67 victory for GW. Frese said that she waited to play the Colonials, perennially one of the top teams in the Atlantic 10 Conference, until she had a team that could match up with them.

"We felt in our first couple years that we wanted to get a team that was going to be competitive, to be honest," Frese said. "I think it's great when we play all the teams in the area."

After joking that former Maryland coach Chris Weller still owes him three games, GW Coach Joe McKeown said he would be in favor of playing the Terrapins on a regular basis.

"I think it would be great for the city, great for the area," he said. "I think it would be a fun series to get going."