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No. 5 Terps Advance To Second Round Of The NCAA Tournament

The Maryland Terrapins women's basketball team handled business in the first round of the NCAA Tournament, beating Murray State to advance to the Second Round.
Jaden Golding|
Maryland vs. Murray State - First round NCAA tournament extended highlights
Maryland vs. Murray State - First round NCAA tournament extended highlights | March Madness

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Maryland TerrapinsMurray State Racers

The No. 5-seeded Maryland Terrapins women's basketball team took care of business, swiftly defeating No. 12 Murray State, 99-67, in the First Round of the NCAA Tournament at Chapel Hill, North Carolina, this afternoon. The Terps will advance to the second round, where they will await either No. 4 North Carolina or No. 13 Western Illinois, who are currently playing.

Murray State battled to try to keep the game close and competitive through the first three quarters. Still, a balanced offensive attack by the Terps that featured five different double-figure scorers: Kyndal Walker (20 points), Mir McLean (19 points), Addi Mack (18 points), Yarden Garzon (12 points), and Saylor Poffenbarger (10 points) kept any hopes at bay.

The most impressive part was the play of the freshmen Walker and Mack, who were both playing in their first career NCAA Tournament games but looked well-prepared for the moment and were the leading factors behind a dominant win.

Walker's 20 points were a new career-high; she shot 8-of-15 from the field, a perfect 4-for-4 at the free-throw line, while also grabbing five rebounds and dishing out two assists. Walker's 20-point performance ranks third-most among Terp freshmen in her first-career NCAA tournament game.

McLean was the x-factor for Maryland today, securing a 19-point, 14-rebound double-double performance, making her mark in the interior that the Racers had no answer for. McLean shot an efficient 8-of-10 from the floor.

The senior Poffenbarger was the second Terp to finish with a double-double, scoring 10 points and grabbing 11 boards.

In the first half, the Terps were led by their freshmen, who controlled the pace and created the looks they wanted offensively at will. Murray State relied on its top scorer, Hali Poock, to sustain the offense as she scored 12 of the Runners' 19 points in the opening quarter. But the Terps had an answer for the tough buckets made by Poock, as their size and length advantage dictated the rebound battle (51-21) and points in the paint (52-38).

The second quarter saw the Terps' lead grow to as many as 19 points, and by the time halftime rolled around, the Terps led 51-35, a lead they wouldn't relinquish.

Key Team Stats

  • Maryland shot 50% (37-of-74) from the floor in the game.
  • The Terps went to the free-throw line 22 times and held the Runners to only 10 attempts.
  • Murray State committed 13 turnovers, leading to 21 points scored by Maryland.
  • Maryland's reserves scored 33 points, and Murray State's reserves were held scoreless.

Up Next:

Maryland awaits their next opponent in the matchup between No. 4 North Carolina and No. 13 Western Illinois. The Second Round game is scheduled for Sunday, with a start time to be announced later.

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Jaden Golding
JADEN GOLDING

Jaden's sports journalism career began at the College of Southern Maryland from 2022-2023, where he was brought in to cover baseball, softball, basketball, soccer, and volleyball at CSM. In late 2023, he began interning at the University of Maryland Athletics Department as a contributing writer to help develop feature stories and game recaps. He also creates his own sports media content on professional Washington teams with LegacyMaker Sports Network.

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