Langhorne Scores, Defense Soars

Terps Advance With Dominant Win Over Vandy: Maryland 80, Vanderbilt 66

SPOKANE, Wash., March 29 -- The Maryland women's basketball team really believed once it left College Park the pressure would be off, allowing the Terrapins to return to the carefree team they once were. For one night, at least, they did.

Top-seeded Maryland, looking much like the national championship team of two years ago, took control of Saturday night's Spokane Region semifinal from the outset and never relinquished it. The Terrapins' 80-66 victory over No. 4 seed Vanderbilt advanced them to Monday's region final at Spokane Veterans Memorial Arena. They will play the winner of the late game between second-seeded Stanford and No. 6 seed Pittsburgh.

"I just really loved our defensive intensity and our hustle throughout the game," Maryland Coach Brenda Frese said. "I thought that we came out really inspired."

Maryland was led by Crystal Langhorne, who came one rebound short of her third consecutive double-double. Langhorne finished with 28 points and nine rebounds. Marissa Coleman added 19 points for the Terrapins.

For two tournament games, Maryland (33-3) had dithered with its opponents, allowing them back into game instead of putting them away. This time, the Terrapins seized control of the game and never gave any hope to Vanderbilt (25-9).

The smattering of Maryland fans who had braved the cross-country journey and surprise spring snowstorm in eastern Washington were treated to one of the Terrapins' best defensive efforts of the season. Vanderbilt, which finished third in the Southeastern Conference, had lost to just two opponents since Dec. 30 -- Tennessee and LSU, a No. 1 and No. 2 seed, respectively. Yet, not once did the Commodores appear comfortable operating against Maryland's smothering defense.

The Terrapins clogged passing lanes, took away open shots and frustrated Vanderbilt's ballhandlers. The Commodores missed eight of their first nine shots and turned over the ball five times to start the game. The team that had made 10 three-pointers against Tennessee made just five against Maryland. Overall, Vanderbilt shot 38.7 percent and had 14 turnovers.

"We just wanted to make a conscious effort to go out there and get stops, especially from the guards' end," Coleman said. "Tonight, it was one through five. Whoever was in the game, we communicated well, and we executed our game plan and got stops after stops."

Playing in the round of 16 for only the second time in 16 years, Maryland built a 34-16 lead without one of its top scorers taking a shot. Kristi Toliver, who averages 16.8 points per game, was too busy setting up her teammates to bother shooting.

"I felt like [New England Patriots quarterback] Tom Brady," she said. "Everybody was just connecting, and we had great chemistry."

Toliver had six of the Terrapins' 11 first-half assists. Her first shot attempt didn't come until 18.3 seconds remained in the first half. She made a layup and was fouled. Her only other shot before halftime came as time was about to expire, a 23-footer that circled around the rim and popped out. Toliver finished with eight points and eight assists.

Langhorne, who went 12 of 18 from the field, was nearly unstoppable underneath the basket. The senior all-American scored eight points as Maryland surged to an 11-2 lead. Her high-percentage shots were a big reason the Terrapins made 56 percent of their shots in the first half. They shot 51 percent for the game.

With Langhorne drawing attention below the rim, freshman Marah Strickland was free to do what she does best on the perimeter. Strickland's shot hadn't been falling in a long time, six weeks to be precise. After making just four three-pointers in the last seven games, she sank two in the first 12 minutes and had 10 points at halftime. Stickland made three three-pointers for 13 points, as many as she had scored in the past four games combined.

Maryland, which never trailed, made sure that Vanderbilt didn't have any scoring runs in it. Even when the Terrapins became sloppy in the second half, they never allowed the Commodores to capitalize on their miscues.

"We didn't want to lose our focus and we wanted to play a complete 20 minutes" in the second half, Frese said. "We really talked about it in that last time out. It was just great to be able to see the focus and the intensity that we had on the defensive end."