It was a contrast of styles at the Smith Center last night as George Washington hosted the visiting Maryland Terrapins. Also on display were the differences between a team laden with youngsters and one with multiple upperclassmen. The Terps won this one going away to the tune of 69-30. Brianna Fraser scored 16 points (Pictured Above), Taylor Mikesell added 13 and Kaila Charles had 12 for Maryland. Leading George Washington was Kelsi Mahoney, she had 12 points.
Maryland used a 16-2 run to open things up in the first quarter, they were fueled by their defense as they raced out to a 40-15 lead at the half.
The more athletic Terps weren't able to run when the game first began, but George Washington couldn't take care of the ball. Maryland took advantage of those opportunities and also showed that they may be capable of playing at a slower pace in the half court as well. The Colonials struggled to run their sets offensively as they couldn't dislodge Maryland defenders from their ball handlers. Most of the screens just didn't make enough contact, the Terps were able to use their length to bother shooters and dominate the glass.
The Maryland defense was suffocating, Charles and Watson did a great job of communicating all night. They switched a ton on that end and it really hampered George Washington's ability to generate open looks. In the instances when they did get clean looks, the Colonials struggled to knock them down.
The third period was very rough for the home team. They turned it over seven times and shot just one-for-15 from the field, yet they kept competing to the end. Following the game, Coach Rizzoti mentioned Maryland's relentlessness as something she hopes her team can adopt and take from this contest. She also cited the importance of this yearly match-up with the Terps, it lets her know how far her team needs to go to be prepared not only for the A10, but the first round of the NCAA tournament. Last year the Colonials played Ohio State and Rizzoti wants her team to learn how to play those types of teams better.
Observations
Turnovers: This was one of the big differences in the game, George Washington turned it over 17 times to Maryland's 10. Both teams were trapping at times, the Terps guards just handled it better.
Rebounding: This wasn't an indictment on the Colonials. There were times where they had players boxed out, but the gap in athleticism allowed Terps bigs to just go up and get the ball. It was 52-37 on the glass and both teams had 13 offensive rebounds. For the Colonials it was a good test for some of their young bigs.
Fraser. The lone Senior for Maryland really had a good game, scoring 16 points and grabbing 6 rebounds. She did most of her damage in the half court, giving her team an option when GW didn't let them run.
