Womens Basketball Bounce Back From First Loss of The Season
The Maryland Terrapins got back on track in front of a star-studded crowd featuring the 2006 Women’s Basketball National Championship in an 82-67 win over the Indiana Hoosiers Sunday Evening.
The Terps came into Sunday evening’s game looking to shake off their 73-70 loss to the Illinois Fighting Illini, which was the team's first of the season.
It was a one-sided game from the jump, with the Terps maintaining their lead for most of the game.
The first half saw the Hoosiers put up quite the fight, gaining a lead for a brief moment during the first quarter, but early foul trouble for key players Zania Socka-Nguemen (4), Edessa Noyan (3) and Shay Ciezki (2) ultimately helped the Terps secure their 39-32 lead heading into the half.
The second half was a different story, as the Terps put their foot on the gas pedal and put their B1G rival to rest.
Oluchi Okananwa, who’s been making a serious case for B1G Women’s Player of the Year, erupted for a career-high 34 points, which was 8 points shy of the Maryland women's 42-point record shared between Brionna Jones (1/11/17) and Marissa Coleman (3/28/09).
A career night for Oluchi AGAIN‼️@oluchi_okananwa x #faMily 🐢 pic.twitter.com/b0aPisJAYk
— Maryland Women’s Basketball (@TerpsWBB) January 5, 2026
Okananwa’s impressive performance extended beyond points scored, as she also contributed another game-high 3 steals.
She wasn’t alone in her scoring efforts, as the Terps also saw a double-digit contribution from Isimenme Ozzy-Momodu with 12 points on efficient shooting, going 7 for 8 from the field.
On top of an efficient scoring night, Ozzy-Momodou also bounced back from a 4-rebound game against Illinois, posting a season-high 15 rebounds, which marked her second double-digit rebound performance and her second double-double of the season.
While Indiana ultimately walked away from the contest with a loss, not all was bad for the Hoosiers, as Maya Makalusky and Shay Ciezki both posted impressive scoring outputs with 20 and 17, respectively.
In her efforts, Makaslausky matched her season-high of 6 three-pointers.
Key Team Stats
- The Terps outrebounded the Hoosiers 32-26.
- Maryland’s bench outscored Indiana’s 17-4.
- Indiana’s 21 turnovers matched their second-most turnovers this season.
- Indiana’s 1 steal marked their lowest amount og the season.
- The Hoosiers failed to record a block for the second time this season
- The Terps scored 25 of their points off turnovers
Up Next:
The Terps will head up to New Jersey to face the Rutgers Scarlet Knights (8-7), while the Hoosiers will continue their road trip with a stop in Nebraska against the Cornhuskers (13-2).
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Temwa is a sports communicator and storyteller with experience in college athletics, digital media, and game-day communications. He began his journalism work covering local sports before taking on roles with the University of Maryland Athletics Department and the Baltimore Orioles, where he contributed to content creation and media operations. Temwa also builds his own sports media presence, creating coverage that highlights athletes, teams, and their communities.