Maryland Hosts Terrapin Classic
12/26/2009 7:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
Dec. 26, 2009
Game Notes 
| Watch on TerpsTV | Purchase Tickets
COLLEGE PARK, Md. - Maryland will play host to Stony Brook and UNC-Wilmington during the Terrapin Classic this weekend. The Classic begins on Sunday, Dec. 27 with the Terps playing Stony Brook at 6 p.m. ET following the Maryland men's game at 2 p.m.
Following the men's game, campus traffic will be outgoing only until approximately 5 p.m., at which time any fans heading to Comcast Center for the women's game can gain access to parking. Maryland encourages the cooperation of all fans to effectively and efficiently direct traffic in and out of the area between games.
Live video of the game will be streamed online at umterps.com via TerpsTV. Fans can listen to Matt Noble and David Preston of the Terrapin Sports Radio Network who will be covering all the action with live play-by-play and color from Comcast Center. Following the game against the Seawolves all Maryland players will be signing autographs in Heritage Hall.
Maryland has three more games before they head into conference play, all at home. Tickets for games through the holidays, the 27th (Stony Brook), 29th (UNC-Wilmington) and Jan. 3rd (Saint Joseph's), are half price. Single-game and season ticket packages are available for purchase online at umterps.com or by calling the Terrapin Ticket Office at 1-800-IM-A-TERP.
This will be the first meeting between the Terrapins and Seawolves. Maryland looks to maintain its impressive number of consecutive home court wins. The Terps have won 44 straight home games which is the second longest running streak among schools today. Connecticut is in the lead with 48. Neither team has lost at home since the beginning of 2007.
Maryland (9-2) earned its first road win of the season taking a 75-64 win over American. Four players posted double-digits with strong performances by the Terps' post players. Forwards sophomore Lynetta Kizer and freshman Tianna Hawkins each recorded double-double with 20-plus point performances. Kizer put up a game-high 21 points and grabbed 13 rebounds while Hawkins notched 20 points and 12 boards. Hawkins was 8-for-10 in the field and improved her field goal percentage to an incredible 69.0 percent which leads the nation.
Maryland's points leader, freshman forward Diandra Tchatchouang, added 12 points against the Eagles. The La Courneuve, France, native averages a team-high 13.7 points per game. Also shooting in double-digits was sophomore guard Kim Rodgers who gave the Terrapins the lead against American with a flawless shot from outside the arc. She finished the game with 10 points including a perfect performance from the free throw line (4-for-4), extending her streak to 18 consecutive made free throws. Assisting the offense was freshman guard Dara Taylor who dished out a career-high 11 assists and committed only four turnovers. Taylor played a career-high 38 minutes and pulled down a career-best six rebounds.
As one of the youngest team's in the nation with nine freshmen and sophomores, Maryland has continued to find their stride against teams more veteran than themselves. They have outmuscled all but one team this season underneath the basket in rebounds and rank No. 2 in the ACC in rebounding margin (12.2) and 11th in the nation. Hawkins leads the team in rebounding, averaging 7.8 per contest.
Stony Brook (2-9) is coming off a close loss to Hofstra after battling back from a double-digit deficit. The Seawolves have recorded wins against Air Force and St. Francis (NY). Junior Kirsten Jeter leads the squad averaging over 14 points per game. Jeter has the opportunity to reach two career milestones this season as she enters the season 350 points shy of 1,000 and 179 rebounds away from 500. Six-foot-one center Destiny Jacobs has been key defensively for Stony Brook grabbing 7.2 rebounds per contest. The Seawolves were picked to finish seventh in the America East in the preseason poll.
Other games slated during the Terrapin Classic are Stony Brook vs. UNC-Wilmington on Monday, Dec. 28 at 4 p.m. ET and Maryland against UNC-Wilmington on Tuesday, Dec. 29 at 7 p.m. ET.
