Maryland women's basketball beats George Mason 81-62 for first win
Oluchi Okananwa scored 24 points as the No. 20 Terrapins bounced back from a season-opening loss in Paris.
MarylandCOLLEGE PARK, Md. -- Maryland women's basketball earned its first win of the season Sunday, beating George Mason 81-62 at XFINITY Center. Oluchi Okananwa scored 24 points for the No. 20 Terrapins, who improved to 1-1. Read more: Maryland women's basketball beats George Mason 81-62
Maryland had opened the year with a 101-93 loss to top-ranked South Carolina in Paris, the Associated Press reported.
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A slow first half, then control
Maryland led 21-10 after one quarter and 35-29 at halftime, according to the Maryland athletics recap. The Terrapins pulled away in the third quarter, outscoring the Patriots 28-18 with two 10-0 runs. They never trailed.
Okananwa shot 9 of 13 and added six rebounds. It was her 19th career 20-point game. Addi Mack scored 15 points, and Bri McDaniel added 12 with five rebounds.
The bench produced 19 points. Lea Bartelme had eight points, seven rebounds and five assists, The Diamondback reported.
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Pressure on the Patriots
George Mason committed 28 turnovers. Maryland turned them into 27 points and finished with 10 steals. The Patriots shot 33.3 percent from the field.
So the Terrapins won despite a cold night from deep. They made 9 of 28 three-pointers. Still, they shot 40.3 percent overall and scored 36 points in the paint.
Nunu Agara was 2 of 7 from the field and dealt with foul trouble. Coach Brenda Frese said afterward that Agara was trying to force it, the Diamondback reported. Frese also praised the versatility of Bartelme, who gives Mack more shots.
Anovia Sheals led George Mason with 19 points, and Mary Amoateng had 10. The Patriots made 22 of 28 free throws but could not keep up from the floor.
Records and what comes next
Maryland is 11-0 all-time against George Mason. It also won its fourth straight home opener and extended its non-conference home winning streak to 28 games. That streak dates to Nov. 11, 2022.
Marya Boiko added four points and three rebounds in 19 minutes.
Coach Brenda Frese is 342-55 in home games at Maryland.
Maryland hosts Columbia on Sunday, Nov. 15, at 1 p.m. The game airs on B1G+. The Terrapins then host Coppin State on Wednesday, Nov. 18, at 6 p.m.
This story was written by Disruptor Sports journalists working with Claude, a generative AI model made by Anthropic. How our newsroom works.
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