For women's basketball, no time to break

In what might be as much a testament to its talents as its troubles, success has come this season to the Terrapin women's basketball team despite a consistent struggle to piece together 40-minute efforts.

It's an issue that has highlighted the Terps' current two-game skid, one in which their flat starts against Virginia and Miami essentially sealed each loss.

Not surprisingly, coach Brenda Frese and her coaching staff decided to install a new mantra during practice this week: consistent intensity.

Frese feels the message rang clear with the team. It certainly helps, though, that tonight at Comcast Center the Terps welcome No. 7 Duke — a team the Terps outplayed for nearly all of their Jan. 6 matchup before faltering late.

"I don't think it would have mattered who's coming in [tonight]," Frese said. "They're so disappointed with their play the past two games."

Their loss to the Blue Devils (23-2, 9-1 ACC), which featured an 11-4 Duke run that put away the Terps in the game's final two minutes, highlights just how impactful momentary lulls in poise and intensity can be on a game's result.

"At the end, we just had a lot of mental lapses. I think that made the difference," guard Kim Rodgers said of the team's ACC opener.

The tough start to conference play, though, may have been the perfect learning experience for the No. 16 Terps (20-5, 6-4).

After their setback in Durham, N.C., the Terps returned home and got outworked by a lesser Boston College squad in another disappointing defeat.

Since its poor start in league play, though, the team — and particularly its freshmen — has grown substantially. After faltering against the Eagles, the Terps strung together a seven-game winning streak that included wins over nationally ranked North Carolina and Georgia Tech.

"Starting off with Duke as our first ACC game, we didn't really know what to expect," freshman forward Alyssa Thomas said. "But we all grew as time went on, and tomorrow I think we're definitely going to be ready."

With Sunday's disappointing loss to Virginia, the Terps are now in a situation similar to the one they found themselves in more than a month ago.

"Taking two losses, you can't let it keep sliding down," Rodgers said. "All we can do is make sure we win these next four games."

The Terps have proven that they can play with anybody in the ACC, and as they move toward March's ACC and NCAA tournaments, a win over a top-10 opponent tonight could become even more important.

But for now, Frese's focus is Duke.

"Each game is equally important," Frese said. "You can't take any team for granted. I think our team recognizes how hard you have to play every night.

To capitalize on their opportunity for a marquee victory tonight, Rodgers says it all comes back to the team's ability to put to rest their recent gaps in intensity.

"Our team sometimes has a problem with being really up and then really down," Rodgers said. "What we have to do is stay intense, and that's going to start on Thursday."

TERP NOTE: Tonight's game will coincide with the third birthday of Frese's twin sons, Markus and Tyler. The night they were born in 2008, the Terps beat Duke, 76-69.

"Obviously, that was a special moment for us three years ago," Frese said. "Kind of ironic that we're playing them again."

cwalsh@umdbk.com