Dressed in special pink and white uniforms for the Play4Kay Pink Game, the Illini took on the Terrapins for another competitive game in the State Farm Center. Offensive struggles led to the defeat of the Illini, going 21-66 from the field.
The game began with a familiar starting five lineup. Senior guards Genesis Bryant and Makira Cook, junior guard Adalia McKenzie, fifth-year center Camille Hobby and senior forward Kendall Bostic took to the floor to face off against the Terrapins.
Illinois began with the ball to start the game, and a shot by McKenzie got it on the board first. Maryland responded with its own shot and soon put up another one to grab the lead.
Maryland’s defense came out strong, and it was quick to get back in transition to score again. Bryant put up a three-pointer to get the crowd going, and a steal by Cook and a layup from Hobby got the lead back to Illinois (7-6).
Bryant picked up her second foul five minutes into the game, and freshman guard Gretchen Dolan took her place. The Illini were struggling to finish their shots initially, starting just 4-15 from the field. The Terrapins effectively got the ball inside the paint to score easy shots and stole the lead once again.
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Maryland slowed things down to round out the first 10 minutes, and it ended up with a five-point lead going into the second quarter (15-10). Illinois failed to make any field goals in the last five and half minutes of the first quarter and only shot 21% from the field.
Although the Illini scored the first points of the second quarter, their shots were still failing to go in the basket. They were taking clean looks when shots were available but could not finish. At this point, Maryland had turned the ball over 11 times, but Illinois did not profit from these errors effectively.
Head coach Shauna Green called her first timeout with about three minutes remaining in the first half. Maryland got up to a seven-point lead (23-16) after Illinois allowed it to grab offensive boards and score off these opportunities.
At the end of the first half, Maryland was leading 27-22. Illinois shot a troubling 26% from the field, with Hobby being the leading scorer with 12 points, seven rebounds and one steal.
The second half kicked off with a smooth layup from McKenzie. Maryland was still succeeding at getting in the paint for quick layups, but Illinois began driving to the hoop more as well, managing to cut the lead to three with six minutes left in the third quarter.
However, each time the Illini inched closer to the Terrapins, the Terrapins would make a strong play to further their lead. The third quarter concluded with one last possession by the Illini, but they were unable to score from that moment. The Terrapins remained on top, leading 44-37.
“We ran three different plays and had three turnovers, and that can’t happen, it’s absolutely unacceptable,” Green said. “You can’t turn the ball over on baseline inbounds; you got to get the ball in. I was extremely frustrated and not happy at all with that. It cannot happen.”
Dolan fouled out of the game with six and a half minutes to go, totaling six points, one rebound, one assist and one block. Maryland reached its largest lead at 10 points halfway through the final quarter (53-43). After this, Illinois began implementing a full-court press to intensify its defense.
Cook scored her first field goal of the night with a three-point shot, but Maryland responded with a three-pointer of its own, maintaining the lead at 10. The game continued to fall out of Illinois’ hands from there. Shots continued to fall for Maryland, while Illinois had difficulty finishing its attempts.
The final score of the game was 69-53, in large part due to Illinois shooting 32% from the field and being out-rebounded 47-33. The team travels to face off against Penn State this Thursday, hoping to get back to 0.500 on the season.
@tess_eken
