No. 8 women's basketball wants to get back to boards

In victories, the Terrapins women's basketball team makes its mark on the glass. With a daunting frontcourt ranked third in the nation in rebounding margin, the Terps usually have little trouble imposing their will in the paint.

In losses, however, it hasn't gone quite as expected.

The Terps have been a force under the rim in their 18 victories, using their length and athleticism to easily gain the rebounding edge. But in their two losses — most recently to Duke on Sunday — it's been their opponents who have dominated on the stat sheet.

Forward Alyssa Thomas said the team has placed extra emphasis on rebounding in practice this week coming off a loss to the rival Blue Devils, something the No. 8 Terps hope will show on the court when they host Virginia Tech at Comcast Center tonight.

"It's a great chance for us to show where we've come with our defense," Thomas said. "Come out and get back to what we're used to doing."

The Terps (18-2, 5-2 ACC) have become accustomed to outrebounding their opponents with relative ease this season, owning a margin of 15 boards per game, 1.8 per game less than Liberty, which ranks first. In wins, the team averages a rebounding margin of nearly 18 per game.

In their two losses — a 12-point loss at Miami on Jan. 12 and their eight-point loss to Duke — the Terps found themselves on the other end of the spectrum. The Hurricanes outrebounded them by eight, the Blue Devils by 11.

The Terps finished Sunday's game with just 30 rebounds, their worst performance this season.

"[Those] two teams exposed us in that area and were able to beat us," coach Brenda Frese said. "They were just more aggressive attacking the glass than we were at putting a body on them."

Virginia Tech (6-14, 2-5) offers a chance for the Terps to regain their prowess on the boards, however. The Hokies average 34.2 rebounds per game — tied with Boston College for the worst mark in the conference — and an ACC-worst rebounding margin of minus-4.1.

The Terps have won six straight games against the Hokies dating back to 2006, outrebounding them in five of those contests.

"Hopefully there are lessons to be learned from it," Frese said. "Coming off of our loss at Duke, that's something we want to be able to go back and take advantage of."

With the loss to the rival Blue Devils fresh on their minds, the Terps should enter tonight's contest determined to regain their edge on the glass.

"It's something we take great pride in," Frese said. "We feel like that every time we step out — that we need to be a dominant rebounding team."

vitale@umdbk.com