University of Washington
Maryland
Sweet 16 Bound: Dawgs Top Maryland To Advance
March 22, 2016 | Women's Basketball
Box Score | Tournament Central | ESPN Plum Interview | ESPN Recap
COLLEGE PARK, Md. – Washington is Sweet 16 bound. The Dawgs (24-10) defeated No. 5 Maryland (31-4) on Monday night at the Xfinity Center, 74-65. To the outside world it was a major upset with the seventh-seeded Dawgs prevailing on the second seeds' home floor, but the Dawgs had a belief that they could compete with anyone.
The Huskies got a scintillating performance from their leader Kelsey Plum who finished with 32 points, six rebounds and seven assists. However, it was a complete team effort with each Dawg performing in their role.
Talia Walton finished with 20 points and had the dagger 3-pointer to clinch the victory. Chantel Osahor ripped down 15 rebounds, helping Washington outrebound the No. 1 team on the boards in the country. Alexus Atchley and Katie Collier anchored the Washington defense that held the Terrapins to 19 points under their average, while also combing for seven points and 10 rebounds. Finally, Mathilde Gilling came off the bench to chip in six points and five rebounds in one of her best games of the season.
The win advances the Huskies to the Sweet 16 for the first time since 2001 when Washington made it all the way to the Elite 8. The Dawgs will now face the No. 3 seed Kentucky in Lexington at legendary Rupp Arena.
The Dawgs built a lead in the first quarter behind 53 percent (8-15) shooting, despite an early spurt by the Terrapins. After Collier opened the scoring with a baseline jumper, Maryland used an 8-0 run to lead 8-2. The Huskies then caught fire, reeling off a 13-0 run, punctuated by a pair of 3's from Walton and one from Plum to build a 15-8 lead.
As part of the run, Washington held Maryland scoreless for 5:37 as the Terrapins finished just 4-17 in the quarter. Plum had four assists in the opening 10 minutes as the Husky ball movement led to high-percentage shots. The Dawgs led 19-11 after one quarter.
Maryland responded in the second quarter, scoring the first eight points to tie the score at 19-19. The Dawgs would regain the lead and hold off the Terrapins for much of the quarter, retaking the lead three times after ties. However, Maryland finally broke through, closing the half on a 7-0 run to take a 34-29 lead to the break.
Plum led all scorers with 11 points in the half, while Walton had 10. Osahor scored four points, but had seven rebounds as the Dawgs battled on the glass, but were outrebounded, 22-17.
Back came the Huskies in the third quarter as after the Terrapins extended the lead to seven, Washington went on a 16-2 run to lead by seven. The Dawgs outscored Maryland 20-8 in the quarter to take a 49-42 lead to the final quarter.
The Dawgs continued to pour it on in the final quarter led by Plum who had 14 in the final frame, including 9-9 from the foul line. Perhaps the biggest bucket came on a pass from Plum, however, when Walton drained a 3-pointer with 1:25 left to push the lead back to 60-52 after Maryland had cut it to five.
Washington made 11-12 from the foul line in the final minute to end any hope of a Maryland comeback and advance the Huskies to the Sweet 16 for the first time in 15 years.
The Dawgs finished shooting 39 percent (23-59), while holding the Terrapins to 37.3 (25-67). Maryland entered the game shooting 50 percent, one of the best filed goal percentages in the country. A key difference came at the foul line where the Huskies made 20-22, while holding Maryland to just five attempts.
Washington will return to campus tomorrow and have a quick turnaround before heading to Lexington to face Kentucky on Friday at 7 p.m. local time or 4 p.m., PT. Stay tuned to gohuskies.com and @uw_wbb on twitter for more information regarding the Sweet 16.
