Women's basketball sees Michigan stray from script

Entering Wednesday's game against the Terrapins women's basketball team, Kevin Borseth said his Michigan squad had a three-point plan for knocking off the unbeaten Terps.

"We felt that if we could take 10 points away from transition and offensive rebounds and shoot a better percentage … now we got a game," the fifth-season coach said.

Only a third of his blueprint became reality.

The Wolverines did shoot nearly 40 percent from the floor for the game, but they could do little to corral their hosts elsewhere. The No. 6 Terps outscored Michigan, 18-0, in fast-break points and totaled 24 offensive rebounds, outrebounding the Wolverines by 23 in a nine-point victory.

"We knew transition and we knew rebounding were going to be difficult, because [the Terps] are so strong around the basket," Borseth said. "We didn't keep them off the glass like we planned, and we didn't stop them in transition."

Prowess on the boards and in transition has been a staple for the Terps (8-0) throughout this season, and it's a recipe they will likely continue to lean on when they travel to the nation's capital to face American (5-3) on Sunday.

"We talked about which style of play and tempo was going to win out," coach Brenda Frese said. "For us, being able to run in transition and being able to dominate the glass were two key areas that we were really successful in."

Controlling the rebounding battle is nothing new for the Terps. After finishing in the top 10 nationally in rebounding margin in each of the past two seasons, the team is ranked No. 1 overall as of Nov. 27. The Terps average a rebounding margin of more than 20 per game, with more than half of those boards coming on the offensive end.

The Terps have also had little trouble running this season, outscoring each of their opponents in fast-break points. The team has notched double-digit fast-break totals four times and shut out its opponent in the category twice.

"Everything in our game is coming along," forward Tianna Hawkins said. "We're successful in what we're doing."

The statistics continue to look impressive for the Terps as they enter a road showdown with the Eagles on Sunday. And with seven straight victories over the local foe and 11 wins in 12 meetings overall, American doesn't figure to challenge the Terps the way Michigan did on Wednesday.

That's not an attitude the team will embrace, however.

Said Frese: "We've got to continue to stay hungry."

vitale@umdbk.com