Box Score MINNEAPOLIS – Maryland's Big Ten Tournament run ended in the semifinals, losing to No. 5 seed Nebraska, 78-68, on Saturday at Target Center. The No. 8 seed Terps were the lowest seed to make it to the semifinals since Illinois in 2011
after beating top-seed and No. 4-ranked Ohio State on Friday.
Maryland (19-13) scored efficiently throughout the contest, but Nebraska (22-10) shot 13-for-28 from beyond the three-point line, including 10 makes in the first half, to mount a halftime lead. The Huskers held on despite the Terps coming back from as many as 13 points and tying the game at 51-51 with 4:42 in the third quarter.
Five Terps scored in double-figures in the game.
First Team All-Big Ten honoree Shyanne Sellers stuffed the stat sheet with 15 points, seven assists and six rebounds.
Graduate Faith Masonius also shined with an all-around performance. She recorded 14 points, nine rebounds and five assists.
Graduate Brinae Alexander scored 10 points and shot 2-of-2 from the three-point line. Junior
Allie Kubek netted 11 points.
All-Big Ten Honorable Mention Bri McDaniel added 10 points before fouling out.
Jaz Shelley scored a career-high and game-high 30 points and added nine assists for Nebraska. Alexis Markowski also notched nine points and 13 rebounds.
Breaking Down The Action
- Nebraska sparked an 11-0 run to end the first quarter with a 25-12 lead. Jaz Shelley scored all 11 of the points. She drilled three straight three-pointers and a layup as she already reached double-figure scoring.
- Shyanne Sellers drilled a three-pointer to cut the lead to single digits, but the Huskers responded with a three of their own at 8:08 in the second stanza. Both teams were scoring effortlessly, but the Terps sparked a brief 6-0 run to trail 32-27 at 6:07.
- The Huskers led 47-40 at halftime despite the Terps' efficient start on offense. Nebraska knocked down 10 three-pointers in the half and Shelley was up to 17 points. Faith Masonius and Sellers were in double figures for the Terps.
- Jakia Brown-Turner converted an and-one in the third quarter to cut the lead to 49-47 and Bri McDaniel's layup at 4:42 tied the game at 51-51. The Huskers wouldn't allow the Terps to break the tie though. Brinae Alexander knocked down a three-pointer and the Terps entered the fourth quarter down just one at 60-59.
- Nebraska mounted a nine-point lead with five minutes remaining. Maryland was searching for a few stops on defense to close the gap. Allie Kubek's three-pointer helped, as the Terps cut the deficit to 72-64 with under three to play.
- Shelley connected on a fadeaway runner to take an eight-point lead and secure the win for Nebraska.
Coach Frese's Take
"Love how we played the last three days," head coach
Brenda Frese said. "We fought, and we battled both ends of the floor. We have a locker room full of a lot of competitors that have fought and stuck through a lot of adversity this season. You see that they're built for March, and we're ready to take on the next tournament."
From The Girls
"I just thought we were right there,"
Shyanne Sellers said. "I thought we just didn't make a shot when we needed to push over that hump. I feel like, if we would have grabbed that lead, we probably would have never looked back."
Double-Figure Factors
- Shyanne Sellers scored 15 points and has scored double-figures in 25 of 31 games she has played this season. It was also the 66th in her career scoring in double-figures.
- Faith Masonius recorded 14 points for her sixth double-figure game this season and 27th in her career as a Terp.
- Allie Kubek scored in double-figures for the 14th time this season with 11 points. She scored 10-plus points in 47 career games with 33 coming at Towson before transferring to Maryland.
- Brinae Alexander netted 10 points for her 14th game this season in double-digits. She scored in double-figures for the 69th time in her career.
- Bri McDaniel tallied 10 points for her 20th game this season and 22nd of her career in double-figures.
All-Big Ten Honors
- The Terps had four players earn Big Ten honors for the 2023-24 season.
- Junior Shyanne Sellers was named to the All-Big Ten First Team by the league's head coaches and media.
- Graduate Jakia Brown-Turner was named to the Second Team (coaches) and First Team (media) and
- Sophomore Bri McDaniel earned Honorable Mention honors from both groups.
- Freshman Riley Nelson earned a Big Ten Sportsmanship Award.
Records & Milestones
- Maryland has four 1,000-point scorers on its roster. (Brown-Turner - 1,700; Alexander - 1,453; Briggs - 1,396; Sellers - 1,212).
- With two three-pointers in the game, Alexander has made 147 in her two years as a Terrapin which is No. 11 in program history. She needs to make four more to pass Shay Doron (2004-07) and enter the top-10.
- Sellers is the No. 32 all-time scorer in Maryland's program history with 1,212 points. She scored 15 today and is just 22 points away from passing Bonnie Rimkus (1991-94).
- Sellers broke a tie with Lisa Brown (1985-88) and sits at No. 15 with 390 assists in her career. She's 13 assists from passing Marcia Richardson (1982-84).
Numbers To Know
- 5: Five Terps scored in double figures during the game.
- 7: Maryland has a strength of schedule of No. 7 in the country according to WarrenNolan.com.
- 8: Entering the matchup, the Terps were No. 8 in the country and led the Big Ten in free throws made per game.
- 25: Shyanne Sellers scored in double-figures in 25 of 31 games this season.
- 500: Bri McDaniel eclipsed the 500-point mark for her career.
- 2011: The Terps were the lowest seed to make it to the semifinals since Illinois in 2011.
Up Next
- Maryland awaits a selection to the NCAA Tournament. Selection Sunday is March 17 at 8 pm ET. The selection process will be televised on ESPN. Announcements will also be made on Twitter @TerpsWBB and UMTerps.com.
