Nov. 28, 2008

CANCUN, Mexico -

FINAL SCORE

Drey Mingo hit two free throws to wrap up the scoring for Maryland as the Terps took the game and finished a perfect 3-0 at the Cancun Caribbean Challenge, defeating Illinois 79-52.

SECOND HALF

1:47: Now trying their hands at Illinois' game, the Terps have shown an ability of late to run down the shot clock and make their way to the free throw line. Most recently, Drey Mingo poured in two freebies to push the Terps' lead to 76-48.

3:37: At the final media time-out, Maryland has settled into a 25 point lead, 71-46. The pace has slowed a little, but Illinois has still been unable to solve the Terps' defense.

5:32: Illinois has gone on a mini-run, scoring the last eight points to pull to within 69-44. Maryland calls its second time-out.

8:03: Drey Mingo hits a three-pointer to get herself on the board. Marissa Coleman follows with an offensive putback to draw a foul, hitting the free throw for a three-point play. Maryland leads, 69-36.

9:49: Illinois has missed four straight free throws, no way to get back into things here in Cancun. Maryland leads, 63-32.

10:30: Two free throws from Drey Mingo put the Terps up 61-32, as they eclipse the 60-point plateau Illinois hopes to keep opponents under with more than half the second half to play.

11:43: Drey Mingo drew a foul from Illinois star center, Jenna Smith, her third. The Illini can't afford to have her miss much time if they want to have any hope of crawling back into this game. The Terps lead, 59-32.

12:54: Sa'de Wiley-Gatewood took the inbounds pass under the basket and put a nifty move on her defender to draw a foul. She converted on both free throws to push the Terps' lead to 59-29.

14:02: Marissa Coleman and Marah Strickland each converted on easy scoring opportunities as the Terps forced two straight Illinois turnovers. Coleman's points give her 11 for the game, making her the third Terp in double figures. Maryland leads, 55-27.

15:46: Lynetta Kizer has 16 points including eight in the second half as Maryland has jumped out to a 51-27 lead at the first media time-out of the second half. Maryland has grabbed seven boards in the period, compared with just one for Illinois.

16:46: The pressure has not let up for Maryland, which has gone on an 11-0 run since giving up the first points of the half. Lynetta Kizer just hit a 15-foot jumper to make the score 45-25, and Illinois called their third time-out.

18:31: Same starters on the court for both teams, as Illinois gets the ball first and misses on a long jumper by McCully. Macie Blinn gets the ball back and puts it home, though. Maryland's first points of the second half come courtesy of Lynetta Kizer who finished on a pretty pass from Marissa Coleman. Maryland leads, 41-25.

FIRST HALF BOX SCORE Here's a glance at the stats for the first half.

Illinois              Pts   Rebs  A   TO  PF
Lacey Simpson         2     4     2   1   0
Jenna Smith           7     2     0   2   1
Fabiola Josil         0     0     1   0   2
Lydia McCully         9     3     0   5   1
Macie Blinn           3     2     0   0   0
Eboni Mitchell        0     0     1   0   0
Chelsea Gordon        2     1     3   1   1
Lana Rukavina         0     0     0   0   0
TEAM                  23    16    7   9   5
Maryland              Pts   Rebs  A   TO  PF
Demauria Liles        4     7     0   0   1
Marissa Coleman       9     5     2   1   0
Lynetta Kizer         8     2     0   2   1
Marah Strickland      2     0     1   0   0
Kristi Toliver        11    0     4   1   0
Sa'de Wiley-Gatewood  3     0     0   0   0
Anjale Barrett        2     1     0   0   0
Yemi Oyefuwa          0     1     0   0   0
Drey Mingo            0     1     0   1   1
TEAM                  39    19    7   5   3

Perhaps the most exciting stat for the Maryland coaching staff is the five turnovers, half as many as the Terps had through the first period last night against Montana. Maryland has been playing an extremely fast-paced game but, for the most part, has been able to stay in control and get points out of their possessions. The Terps are hitting on 53.3% of their shots, while Illinois is converting on 32.1%. Both teams are doing a good job staying out of foul trouble, somewhat of a byproduct of the pace of play.

FIRST HALF

END OF THE FIRST HALF: After another Illinois three-pointer, Marissa Coleman drove to the hoop for two to settle the Terps down. Illinois could essentially play for the last shot, but missed on a three-pointer to end the half. Maryland leads at halftime, 39-23.

1:11: Two straight Illini possessions have left a player wide open in the corner for a three-pointer, and Illinois center Jenna Smith put in a layup on the next possession to make the score 37-20 and force Maryland to call its first time-out of the game.

3:28: The score stands 37-12 at the final media time-out before halftime. Maryland's defensive pressure has limited Illinois to just two points since the last time-out and five in over eight minutes. Maryland is shooting 60.0% overall, compared to 22.7% for the Illini.

4:33: Yemi Oyefuwa is into the game, meaning that every Terp in uniform has seen action already. Another Illinois turnover gives the ball back to Maryland with the score 35-10. Despite the lopsided score at this point in the game, Lynetta Kizer is reminding her teammates to play a full "40 minutes."

5:56: Lynetta Kizer has scored four straight points, drawing a foul and hitting two free throws and following that up with an offensive rebound and put-back for two. Maryland leads, 33-10 and just forced another turnover as Anjale Barrett makes her first appearance of the game.

7:39: Maryland is up 29-10 at the media time-out. Demauria Liles has four points and seven boards, while Kristi Toliver has supplemented her 11 points with four assists and just one turnover despite the torrid pace at which the Terps are playing. Illinois has not been able to get anything going offensively, and will definitely want to slow things down if they hope to come back as the game progresses.

7:52: The Illini finally reach double-digits, but it doesn't slow down the Terrapins' offense as Sa'de Wiley-Gatewood answers with a trifecta. Demauria Liles then strips her player and drives the length of the court for a layup, putting the Terps up, 29-10. Illinois called their second time-out.

9:53: Lynetta Kizer returns to the game with the Terps up, 24-8. Kristi Toliver is on fire, hitting on 4-of-5 five overall including 2-of-3 from behind the arc for 11 early points.

11:13: A media time-out finds Maryland up, 20-7. The Terps have been lead early on by Kristi Toliver, who just hit another three-pointer to give herself nine points in the game. Demauria Liles has pulled down five rebounds and blocked a shot to help keep Illinois struggling offensively early on.

11:48: Yet another transition hoop - this one an uncontested layup by Marissa Coleman - forced Illinois coach Jolette Law to call her first time-out. Maryland is up, 17-5

12:16: Maryland has jumped out to a double-digit lead thanks to a Kristi Toliver three-pointer. Sa'de Wiley-Gatewood replaces Marah Strickland for her first minutes of the day.

13:52: Drey Mingo sees her first action of hte game, replacing Lynetta Kizer after the freshman picked up the Terps' first team foul.

14:52: At the first media timeout, Maryland holds a 12-5 lead. The Terps have controlled the tempo early, scoring several high-percentage shots in transition, most recently a layup by Marah Strickland. Illinois seems flustered by the Terps' pressure defense. If this keeps up, it should be a good night for the Terps.

16:57: Kristi Toliver drove to the hoop and scored, drawing a foul and connecting on the free throw to get the old-fashioned three-point play. Maryland is clearly pushing the tempo, trying to wear out an Illinois team that likes to keep games in the 50s.

17:49: Maryland controlled the opening tip and, thanks to an offensive rebound by Liles, scored the first points of the game on a turnaround jumper by Kizer. Lydia McCully gave Illinois a brief lead with a three-pointer, but Marissa Coleman hit a trey of her own to put the Terps up, 5-3.

20:00: Here are some items to set the stage. Illinois will be the designated away team and is wearing its navy blue jerseys with orange lettering. Maryland will be the home team and is wearing its white jerseys. Starting for the Illini are freshman Macie Blinn, freshman Fabiola Josil, freshman Lydia McCully, junior Lacey Simpson and junior Jenna Smith. For Maryland, the starters will be freshman Lynetta Kizer, sophomore Marah Strickland, junior Demauria Liles, senior Marissa Coleman and Senior Kristi Toliver.

PREGAME: Fans, welcome back to UMTerps.com as the Maryland women's basketball team is set to take on the Fighting Illini of Illinois in their final game in the Cancun Caribbean Challenge. Live stats have not been available from the Moon Palace Resort, so updates will be provided throughout today's game right here. Tip time is set for 9:30 p.m. Eastern Time, so check back early and often to follow the Terrapins as they look to improve to 6-1.

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