Terps' last-ditch effort falls short in ACC Tournament

GREENSBORO, N.C. — In a season short on several qualities, the Terrapin women's basketball team's latest shortcoming in its quest for an NCAA Tournament bid could be its most damaging.

A premature buzzer-beater from guard Jackie Nared capped a fruitless final offensive surge and spoiled perhaps the Terps' best chance all season for a win against No. 9 and eventual ACC Tournament champion Duke. But that may have been the least of their worries inside Greensboro Coliseum.

The Terps' 66-64 loss, their third this season to the Blue Devils — whom they defeated in overtime last year for their own tournament title — officially placed their grim postseason hopes in the hands of the NCAA Tournament selection committee. Until Selection Monday, the Terps (19-12, 5-9 ACC) will have to wait and see whether they've earned a bid to college basketball's big dance or been relegated to its lesser counterpart, the WNIT.

"I think obviously now we've got to wait," coach Brenda Frese said. "We know we're going to play in some kind of postseason. … I think this year the committee is going to have a lot of tough decisions to make."

The Terps entered the tournament likely needing two wins to feel good about their tournament chances. And holding a one-point lead against top-seeded Duke with less than three minutes remaining Friday, the Terps found themselves on the verge of just that.

A nearly two-minute scoring drought, however, handed the Blue Devils (25-5, 12-2) a 66-64 lead and the ball with 37 seconds remaining. Rather than foul, Frese opted to have Duke play out its final possession, and Blue Devils' forward Joy Cheek missed a jumper that would have put the game out of reach. With seven seconds remaining, Nared corralled the rebound and headed upcourt.

With several seconds still remaining on the clock, Nared pulled up and launched an errant 40-footer that clanged off the backboard. Forward Diandra Tchatchouang collected the miss, but the buzzer sounded before she could get off a game-tying effort.

"I thought [Nared] was going to be able to get to the rim," Frese said. "I think she lost track of the time in terms of having a couple more dribbles to be able to go to the rim."

The miss capped a dreary end to the game for the Terps, who didn't make a field goal in the final seven minutes and had led by as many as 11 points early in the first half. Center Lynetta Kizer, who finished with a team-high 16 points on 4-of-10 shooting, missed three shots in the final 1:15 as the Terps' tournament chances likely faded away.

"I think everybody in our locker room believed we were going to win," said guard Lori Bjork, who finished with 14 points on 4-of-6 shooting. "That makes it tougher to take when you invest that much emotionally. You think you've got it, you believe that you're going to do it and then to not be able to win is frustrating."

Now, the Terps can only wait and dwell on their postseason prospects. While much of the young team, which is comprised of nine freshmen and sophomores, will likely have several other chances at an NCAA Tournament bid, a seventh-straight berth this year was well within reach. The Terps lost four ACC games, including two against the Blue Devils, by three points or fewer this season.

"I can't make that judgment," Duke coach Joanne McCallie said when asked about the Terps' tournament qualifications. "I would love to see them in the NCAA Tournament, but I don't know how they're going to weight the ACC schedule. The 5-9 [conference record] … That's going to be their glaring issue."

shaffer@umdbk.com