Weekend will clarify conference order for women's basketball

In the past 24 years, no women's basketball team has won the ACC Tournament after finishing worse than fourth in the conference standings.

The last squad to do so — a fifth-seeded Terrapin team — won the title in 1986, in an era before a top-four finish even credited a team with a first-round bye.

With that history in mind, this year's Terp team enters its final two regular-season games — starting with tonight's matchup with Virginia Tech — looking to improve not only its on-court product but also its seeding for next weekend's ACC Tournament in Greensboro, N.C.

The No. 15 Terps (21-6, 7-5 ACC) sit in sixth place in the ACC, one game behind No. 13 North Carolina and Georgia Tech. The Terps hold the tiebreaker over both the Tar Heels and the Yellow Jackets, having bested each team in their only meetings this season.

With winnable games against the Hokies (11-16, 1-11) tonight and at Boston College (18-9, 5-7) on Sunday, coach Brenda Frese and the Terps seem set to put themselves in the best possible position for next weekend's conference tournament.

Whether they open up in Greensboro on Thursday or Friday, though, is largely out of their hands.

"I don't think I've ever seen the standings come down like this in my nine years," Frese said. "Any time you can get a bye, it helps you stay fresher for a longer period of time. You don't want to play four games in four days."

While disappointing home losses to the Eagles on Jan. 6 and Virginia on Feb. 13 made the Terps' weekend slate perhaps more important than it would have otherwise been, the team was dealt a bit of good fortune with the weekend schedule.

Because North Carolina hosts Georgia Tech tonight, the Terps will finish no lower than fifth in one of the nation's most competitive conferences should they win their two remaining games.

And with the Tar Heels' final game coming at No. 9 Duke and the Yellow Jackets hosting No. 12 Miami to close the season, the Terps have a legitimate shot at the No. 4 seed in Greensboro and a first-round bye.

"It'd be great to have the bye and improve our chances," guard Dara Taylor said. "We have a great opportunity, and we have to finish up the season and win these two games."

The concern over seeding for the ACC and NCAA tournaments, though, is a welcome relief for the Terps considering where they stood at the same time last season.

They entered the final three games of their regular season planted securely on the NCAA Tournament's bubble, only to falter in each and head to Greensboro as the No. 9 seed. In a game that nixed their chances at reaching a seventh straight NCAA Tournament, the Terps lost in the second round to top-seeded Duke.

So while this weekend's games are certainly important for the Terps, who are projected as a No. 4 seed in the NCAA Tournament by ESPN's Charlie Creme, a battle for seeding — and not their postseason lives — is a welcome relief for Frese.

"Obviously, it's very rewarding in terms of the hard work this team has put in," Frese said. "It's nice that it doesn't come down to a do-or-die kind of finish."

Not that Frese hasn't let her team know exactly what the consequences of a letdown tonight or Sunday might be. Yesterday, she and her coaching staff sat down with the team and broke down the different ACC Tournament scenarios.

Tonight, she hopes, her message that the Terps must do everything in their power to control their tournament placement will translate to the Comcast Center floor.

"They have to understand the ramifications," Frese said. "But with two games remaining, I know we'll come out really strong. You can see the finish line and that the ACC Tournament's a week away."

cwalsh@umdbk.com