No. 5 Terps pound the paint, handle Syracuse

College Park, MD -- Two ranked teams, the Maryland Terrapins (highest rank #5) and the Syracuse Orange (highest rank #20), faced off in the Big Ten/ACC Challenge Wednesday night in College Park. The Terps outlasted the Orange, going on to win 82-64.

Syracuse's Brianna Butler led all scorers with 22, but her contributions (4-of-13 from three, two steals in 38 minutes of action) were not enough to slow down a balanced offense from Maryland.

After missing the first three games of the year with an injury, Maryland senior Tierney Pfirman, made her home-court debut, coming off the bench to see 16 minutes of action. She finished with 13 points and eight rebounds, with nine points and five rebounds coming in the second half.

"Tierney brings us a huge offensive spark," head coach Brenda Frese said. "I love the fact that she's so versatile. We can play her on the perimeter [and] we can play her inside."

Shatori Walker-Kimbrough led the Terps offensively, scoring 19 points on 6-of-9 shooting from the field and 3-of-4 from three. Though she committed eight turnovers, she had eight assists and six rebounds. She also led both teams in playing time, seeing 39 minutes of action.

While the Terps finished with four players in double-figure scoring totals - Brionna Jones (18 points, seven rebounds, three blocks) and Brene Moseley (12 points, five assists), in addition to Walker-Kimbrough and Pfirman - they were called for multiple offensive fouls on the night.

"I think we just have to, when that happens, just slow down and be patient and not try to force it," Jones said.

Syracuse attempted to slow Maryland down with a press, but the Terps managed to break through it enough to score 48 points in the paint.

"We were pressing the whole game," Orange head coach Quentin Hillsman said. "They really did a good job of breaking the pressure."

The Terps turned the ball over 22 times to Syracuse's nine turnovers, but a Terrapin shooting percentage of 51.6% for the game was enough to hold off the Orange.

The Terps will take on Central Connecticut State Saturday, Dec. 5 at 2 p.m.