BLOOMINGTON, IN -- No. 9 Maryland fought hard all game in a tough defensive battle between two top-ten teams, but came up just short at the end, falling 68-61 to No. 6 Indiana.

After trailing for the entire half, the Terps made a big fourth quarter run and a Diamond Miller lay-up knotted the game at 50 with 6:12 left to play. However, Indiana immediately responded with a 9-0 run and Maryland was never able to get closer than five the rest of the way. 

Miller came alive in the second half, totaling 17 of her game-high 19 points in the final 20 minutes to lead the way for the Terps. She also grabbed a team-high six rebounds. Brinae Alexander scored 15 points off the bench, including three triples. Abby Meyers and Shyanne Sellers each added nine points. Meyers grabbed four boards while Sellers dished out a team-high four assists.

Maryland fell to 13-4 overall and 4-2 in the Big Ten while Indiana moved to 15-1 on the season and 5-1 in conference play. The Terps forced the Hoosiers into 19 turnovers, racking up 10 steals along the way. 

Brenda's Take

"Obviously, not one of our better games. I guess I'm encouraged to be able to see how close we were to keep it given that it was really an off night by a lot of players. I thought we came out well early, but the second quarter really hurt us, clearly. In conference play if you have a quarter like that, it's typically going to get you beat. Credit Indiana; I thought they were the more physical team for 40 minutes...Disappointing on our end, but there are areas that we can improve on and it was a great top-ten matchup for us to be able to learn from." 

Breaking Down The Action

• The two sides traded buckets in a first quarter that saw six lead changes. The Terps came out with a balanced offensive attack as six Maryland players scored in the frame, led by five from Sellers, and the Terps led 20-19 after one. 
• The Hoosiers went up 35-27 as Maryland struggled to score for large portions of the corner. Brinae Alexander converted a pair of lay-ups to break up a long Maryland scoring drought and keep the Terps within striking distance. Alexander had a team-high seven points at the half.
• Indiana opened up a 10-point advantage for their largest lead of the night midway through the third quarter, but the Terps responded by forcing four turnovers in a 2:09 span to get back within five. Indiana led 48-42 heading into the final ten minutes.
• Miller (10) and Alexander (five) combined for the first 15 Maryland points of the fourth quarter as the Terps hung tough until the end. 

1,000 Point Update

• Miller continues to stand 26th in career scoring at Maryland with 1,335. She is chasing No. 25 Stephanie Cross who scored 1,349 points from 1995-98.  
• Meyers now has 1,189 points in her career with 947 in her three seasons of action at Princeton before joining the Terps this season. 
• Lavender Briggs, who surpassed the 1,000-point mark in Maryland's game against Notre Dame, now has 1,070 overall. She netted 961 at Florida. 
• Alexander is approaching the 1,000-point threshold as she has 991 career points, with 841 coming at Vanderbilt. 
• Elisa Pinzan is also chasing 1,000 points as she has 981, for her career. She had 916 points at South Florida.

Double-Figure Update 

• With a game-high 19 points, Miller reached double-figures for the 15th time in 16 games played this season. She's recorded 10 points or more 70 times in her career. 
• Alexander notched 15 points, marking her seventh time in double-figures this season and 47th overall. 

Up Next

• The Terps will host Rutgers on Sunday, Jan. 15 at 1 pm. The game will air on B1G+.