Jan. 17, 2009

Under the Shell kicks off its fourth season Sunday morning

COLLEGE PARK, Md. - The Maryland women's basketball team has been one of the best at home over the past two seasons, but they have built the bulk of their 14-3 record this season on the road. The Terps, who are 27-0 over the last two years at Comcast Center, will play just their seventh home game of the season on Sunday when they take on Virginia Tech at 4 p.m. The game will air on Comcast SportsNet and will be available to listeners on the Terrapin Sports Radio Network and WMUC Sports.

Sitting at 2-1 in the ACC, Maryland will face a Virginia Tech team still searching for its first victory in the conference. The Hokies (8-8, 0-3) did throw a scare into No. 4/10 Duke on Friday night, but in the end fell to the Blue Devils, 57-52 in Blacksburg.

Maryland (14-3, 2-1) rebounded from a tough loss at Duke on Monday night to grind out a 65-56 victory at Clemson on Thursday. After being outrebounded 56-39 at Duke, Maryland pulled down 11 first-half offensive rebounds and claimed a 50-35 overall advantage in that category. The Terps also got to the free throw line 25 times, hitting 20, a major improvement from a 2-for-6 showing at Duke.

Sunday's game promises to be a memorable one for two of the most decorated players in Maryland women's basketball history. Senior Marissa Coleman sits at 1,789 career points, just 11 shy of 1,800. Coleman would be the fourth Terp ever to reach that milestone.

Meanwhile, senior Kristi Toliver is just five points shy of 1,700 in her illustrious career. An AP All-American and the Nancy Lieberman Award winner last season, Toliver is again having a fantastic season as the Terps' point guard, leading the ACC with 5.1 assists a game. In addition, she has found the time to lead the Terps with 16.4 points a game. Toliver, who has put up at least five in all but one of her appearances this season, would be the fifth Terp to ever reach 1,700 career points.

Maryland and Virginia Tech will tip it off at 4 p.m. Sunday. Coverage will be aired on Comcast SportsNet, with Mike Hogewood and Debbie Antonelli providing analysis of the action. The game will also be carried by the Terrapin Sports Radio Network (flagship stations 105.7 FM and 1300 AM), and on WMUC Sports at www.WMUCSports.com. It will also be aired on ACC Select at www.ACCSelect.com.

-TERPS-