No. 6 Maryland, bench smackdown UMES 106-61

COLLEGE PARK, Md. — There were two minutes and 40 seconds left in the first quarter of Wednesday’s game between the No. 6 Maryland Terrapins and the Maryland Eastern Shore Hawks, and Terps point guard Destiny Slocum had just picked up her second foul.

Maryland head coach Brenda Frese looked to her bench.

Sarah Myers, a six-foot freshman from Cumming, Georgia, popped out of her seat and ran to the scorer’s table to fill Slocum’s shoes at the point.

Within 10 seconds, Myers dished to senior Shatori Walker-Kimbrough for a three. Myers then put in the last two Terps buckets of the quarter to push the lead to 32-17. She finished with six points and a game-high nine assists in a tied team-high 24 minutes.

“Sarah came in and really brought the energy up,” Frese said after the Terrapins’ 106-61 victory. “It speaks volumes in terms of the talent [and] the depth that we have on our roster.”

About halfway through the second quarter, though, Myers picked up her second foul. Someone else on the Terps would have to step up.

Kaila Charles, another freshman, assumed the duty and carried it out on both sides of the ball: By the end of the first half, she had 10 points, four rebounds and two steals. She finished with 14 points as one of six Terps to score in double digits.

“I always feel like I should play to my ability,” Charles said. “When I saw that our guards were getting early fouls I just wanted to help in any way I could...whether that was offensively or defensively.”

Maryland’s seniors showed their power, as well. Walker-Kimbrough, who averaged 19.5 points per game last season, and center Brionna Jones, who averaged 15.2 ppg last season, combined for 29 of the Terps’ 54 first-half points. The duo finished with 19 and 17 points, respectively. Jones also had eight rebounds.

In the third quarter, Frese went back to Myers — this time alongside Slocum — but Myers was on and off the bench after picking up a third foul. In total, the Terps racked up 16 team fouls while the Hawks finished with 14.

“It probably wasn’t one of our sharpest outings in terms of the start,” Frese said. “We had some early foul trouble, but I thought we were really able to go to our bench. We spend a lot of time talking about when your number is called being ready to play, and I think you see that we have a lot of different combinations that we can go with.”

Charles continued to work offensively late in the game, adding four more points in the third frame including a long, buzzer-beating two to put Maryland on top 80-50 heading into the final period. The team closed out the fourth quarter easily and coasted to their second win of the season.

“Coach always tells us to be ready when our number’s called,” Myers said. “You never know how long you’re going to be out there and I know there’s a lot of great players on our team.”