Gophers women's basketball can't change history in losing to Maryland

On Wednesday night, a familiar scenario was in play at Williams Arena where the Gophers' women's basketball team was defeated by an unranked but strong Maryland team with a score of 72 to 64 during a Big Ten Conference match. In the fifteen encounters with Maryland, the Gophers have yet to turn the tide, losing fourteen games and now have a seven-match losing streak against the Terrapins (10-4, 2-1). The loss also marked the first occurrence this season that the Gophers (11-3, 1-2) had back-to-back losses with a striking resemblance to Saturday's loss in Iowa and preceding losses to Maryland. Despite starting the game strong, the Gophers faltered against Maryland's solid defense and trapping press maneuver, leading to 20 turnovers and granting Maryland 17 points. Defensively, the Gophers struggled, particularly with three-point attempts (Maryland made 8 out of 18) and guarding the post resulting in too many layups for the opposition. After leading post the first quarter, a second-quarter rally saw Maryland advance towards victory despite initial resistance from Minnesota. Gopher's led player, Mara Braun managed to get Minnesota within a five-point reach with just 1:14 left on the clock, but the team failed to hit a field goal within the final 4:05, ending their hopes of a comeback. Top scorers for the Gophers included Mara Braun with 20 points, Grace Grocholski with 12 points, Hart with 13 points and Mallory Heyer managing 10 rebounds and seven points. On the other side, Maryland had Shyane Sellers and Alie Kubek scoring 15 points each. Despite an aggressive start in the first quarter and an initial lead, increased defensive pressure from Maryland, particularly their full court press, put Minnesota on the back foot. A seeming recovery at the beginning of the third quarter was short-lived when Gophers lost their grip, closing the quarter eight points behind.