Maryland-Ohio St. Live Blog!

Hey everyone, Scott here. While you listen to the game on WMUCsports.com or watch on ESPNU you can follow here as I will be following the game live here at the Comcast Center. Feel free to post your comments and ask questions. I will try to answer them as the game goes along!

FIRST HALF

20:00 -- The Buckeyes come into tonight's game at 5-1 and a #19/17 ranking in the country. Their last game was Sunday night, a loss to Auburn 67-58. They are led by senior guard Marscilla Packer, averaging 17.7 points per game. Watch out for freshman center Jantel Lavender, 6-foot 4 out of Cleveland averaging over 16 a game.

16:45 -- Terps jump out to an 11-2 lead. Balanced attack so far, Laura Harper has four points, Marah Strickland with three, and both Crystal Langhorne and Kristi Toliver have two. If you were wondering, Langhorne is starting her 2nd consecutive game.

15:30 -- Media timeout. The Buckeyes are a chilly 1/9 from the field, and just had about three chances from point blank and couldn't score. Terps up 14-2. Toliver hit her first 3-pointer of the game. Probably won't be her last.

13:30 -- Maryland defense has been stellar. 18-4 Terps. Ohio State on the year is averaging 72.8 points per game... and at this rate they will come nowhere close to that mark. Jade Perry has come into the game for the first time along with Ashleigh Newman. Not much lost when these players come into the game.

11:53 -- 18-9 Terps at the under-12 media timeout. The Buckeyes are starting to put it together, as Brittany Johnson hit a three pointer followed by a silly turnover by Marah Strickland. State has the ball coming out of the timeout looking to inch closer.

11:35 -- Funny note: The stat I gave of 72.8 points per game for the Buckeyes was actually the number for the Terrapin men's team's home games... Don't ask. The real number is 76.5 for the Buckeyes.

10:51 -- Star Allen, starting forward averaging nine points and seven rebounds for Ohio State, just picked up her 3rd foul so she'll have to sit.

6:59 -- Outstanding hustle play by Toliver. After the Terps turned it over she hustled back down an stole the ball away from Leslee Mason-Cox and was able to get a timeout in before she slid out of bounds. Buckeyes hanging around though, 27-16 Terps, as they are trying to utilize the 3-point shot more.

6:41 -- 27-16 Maryland at the under-8 media timeout. Marscilla Packer has been invisible for Ohio State, scoring nothing so far, which is 17.7 away from her average. They just showed the video of how Brenda Frese broke the news of her pregnancy to the team, and it was a job well-done by her, kept the team in suspense throughout. The twins are due March 11th.

3:33 -- 34-21 Terps at the final media timeout of the half. Marah Strickland hit her 2nd 3-pointer of the contest and the same can be said for Buckeye sophomore guard Maria Moeller. Ohio State is trying to avoid the knockout punch before the halftime break.

0:00 -- Halftime score is Terps 39, Ohio State 25. Toliver tries her patented step-back 3-pointer at the buzzer but cannot connect, which is quite a surprise to me. Marscilla Packer still scoreless, but she does have four assists. Turnover battle is even, 10 for Maryland, 11 for Ohio State.

SECOND HALF

20:00 -- About to get started. Let's see if the Terps come out blazing here and try to put the Buckeyes away. If Packer and Lavender can get their heads on straight for Ohio State though, this one could come down to the wire.

16:09 -- The 14-point halftime lead is now 18. Langhorne's ankle looks fine from here as she leads the Terps in scoring with 11. Marissa Coleman has picked up her 3rd personal foul, we will see how her playing time is affected in the coming minutes. Terps shooting 51% for the game while O.S.U. is down in the high-20's. Jantel Lavender leads the Buckeyes with eight points.

15:17 -- The Terps pushed the lead to 20 for a moment and then Packer scored her first points of the game on a 3-pointer. 49-30 now. Harper with six second half points, pushing her game total to 10. By the way, do opponents know that Langhorne's favorite low-post move is the spin? Or is she that good?

10:58 -- 52-35 Terps up 17. Jade Perry just said "no you don't" to a Brittany Johnson shot, which got the crowd up on it's collective feet. I have yet to mention this, but Kristi Toliver is on her away to another double-double with nine assists... the only problem is that she is deferring on her shot so much that she only has seven points. One quick 3-pointer could solve that problem though.

7:22 -- Maryland up 16 at the under-8 timeout, 60-44. Langhorne is piling it on with 10 second half points and 17 total. Marissa Coleman, who has been quiet the past two games after being unstoppable on the west coast swing, has just six points. Freshmen Drey Mingo and Kat Lyons have not seen any action tonight after seeing extended minutes in Tuesday's 90-77 home win against Pittsburgh.

2:19 -- Well the rout is on. 75-51, Terps up by 24. Toliver is one point shy of a double-double and has 11 assists. Buckeyes are praying for rain now, as the A-C-C chant begins from the crowd in this Big Ten/ACC Challenge game.

1:28 -- Langhorne has 17, Coleman 14, Harper 13, Perry nine, Toliver nine, Strickland eight and Newman rounds out the scoring with five. Nice solid attack by the Terrapins. Kat Lyons has checked in for the first time. Looks like K.T. will fall shy of the double-double with nine points and 11 assists.

0:00 -- That will do it. Terps go to 10-0 on the year with a 77-53 victory over Ohio State. Another win against a Top 25 team, the 4th to be exact. Drey Mingo entered late as well for Maryland and dropped in the final two points for good measure. Maryland now gets ready to head up I-95 to New Jersey to take on #5/6 Rutgers in the Jimmy V Classic. The game starts a stretch of four games in seven days. The amount of games the Terps are playing right now is unprecedented.

Next Game: #3 Maryland @ #5 Rutgers - Monday @ 6:40 on WMUCsports.com.

Thanks for following along. If you have any questions for me please leave them here or you can e-mail me personally at scott.sudikoff@gmail.com Please join myself and Hal DeCoursey this coming Monday night for the Rutgers game. Pregame begins at 6:40 with tipoff to follow at 7 o'clock. Have a good night everyone!

Welcome Back Langhorne

A sight for sore eyes was seen Tuesday night at Comcast Center, as Crystal Langhorne started only her second game of the season. Langhorne looked like her old self after missing six of Maryland's first eight games. The ankle sprain that she has been dealing with for almost a month now is to a point where she can get out there and play extended minutes.

She admits that she is not at 100%.

"I think I did OK," she said, "but it's going to be a while until I really get back in the flow, get my wind back."

75% for the two-time All-American is good enough for now for this Maryland team. Against Pittsburgh she tallied a double-double, a typical occurrence during her career, with 15 points and 13 rebounds. She used her patented spin move in the lane on more than one occasion and at no point showed any discomfort.

Langhorne saw action Sunday night against UCLA but she did not start that contest. She did tally 12 points. In her only other game of the season, November 11th vs. Oklahoma, Lang only scored two. Clearly in that game she was not ready to see playing time. But, after two extra weeks of rest, Crystal is poised to belatedly get her senior season going in full swing.

Jade Perry did more than enough to fill the void left by Langhorne during the early season stretch, and can now move back to the bench where she can provide a punch.

Tuesday's double-double was the 45th of Langhorne's career. The former ACC Rookie of the Year and two-time All-American seeks that second National Championship. This Terrapin squad has the pieces to make a memorable run to Tampa. We are all just glad that Crystal is back out on that court bringing her intensity and leadership to a team with unrivaled potential.

UCLA-Maryland Live Blog!

John here. I'll be live blogging this game since we can't be there. Feel free to leave comments. I'll make sure to answer them as we go.

7:04 PM: UCLA turns it over on the offensive end, and the Terps survive, 79-75. What an amazing comeback for Maryland, and what a trial by fire for Daron Park. If Maryland had waited much longer, they almost certainly wouldn't have been able to make the comeback, but they flipped the switch at just the right second.

Thanks for following along! Later tonight or tomorrow, someone (likely myself) will be back to break all it down. Keep reading, and make sure to tune in Tuesday night at 6:40 when the Terps come back home to face Pittsburgh!

7:02 PM: And the second one. 79-75 Maryland, 10.8 seconds left to go. Maryland likely has escaped with one here. Wow.

7:01 PM: UCLA makes it 77-75, but a good 10 seconds were wasted not trying to foul someone. Marah Strickland at the line - first one rattles in.

6:59 PM: CRUCIAL turnover for Maryland to pick up. UCLA fouls Kristi Toliver, she hits both. 77-73 Maryland.

6:58 PM: Less than a minute to go, Maryland leads 75-73.

6:57 PM: UCLA hits a circus shot to take the lead back, but Agent Two-Zero (OK, I'll bite) nails a three to put Maryland back up by two with about a minute to go.

6:56 PM: Blow to the Terps, as Laura Harper fouls out. 12 points and 9 boards sitting on the bench.

6:55 PM: Terps lead! How is this happening?!?!?!

6:53 PM: Laura Harper cuts it to 1 with a couple of free throws, and Maryland gets the ball back on the other end. Unbelievable. 2:50 left to go, and the Terps have completely turned the tables on UCLA.

6:52 PM: 71-68 UCLA. Terps on a 15-2 run at the final media timeout. Maryland can definitely win this one, but what a stolen victory this would be if they could pull it off.

6:49 PM: 25 turnovers for Maryland, but they've cut the lead down to just five. UCLA now needs a timeout. By the way, a little bit of history - the last time the Terps had this many turnovers? Their last loss, as well, against Ole Miss. Hmmmm....

6:46 PM: Toliver's three is certainly a good start. The defensive needs to step up as well, though, and the quick buckets UCLA are getting aren't helping. 71-60 UCLA leads.

6:44 PM: Now the Terps can't even get past midcourt - Ashleigh Newman just threw a frustration elbow to draw an offensive foul. This is not insurmountable, but Maryland needs to throw the switch FAST.

6:42 PM: Another turnover, another fast break, another foul. It's been the same formula all game long for the Bruins. There's no reason to change anything, though - why change if the Terps can't stop it?

6:39 PM: 64-53 UCLA at the under-8 media timeout. If they continue to play as sloppy as they have been, Maryland has no chance of coming back to win this one.

6:37 PM: UCLA is shooting 70% from the field in the 2nd half. Maryland has 10 turnovers in the 2nd half. UCLA is up 12. There's your story right there.

6:34 PM: Maryland now down 10, with UCLA on a 17-4 run. Daron Park has no jacket on. Crisis mode? Probably.

6:31 PM: The broadcast crew is talking to Brenda Frese right now, and she sounds amazingly calm for a coach whose team is in the position it's in. All while carrying twins. "Impressed" doesn't quite describe my feelings.

6:29 PM: Jinx.

6:26 PM: 52-50 UCLA at the under-12 media timeout. Jade Perry finally gets on the board with her first points and gets fouled in the process. What a break - Perry's pretty close to automatic at the charity stripe.

6:25 PM: 50-46 UCLA, and Maryland looks completely lost right now.

6:22 PM: Maryland doesn't have an answer for Regina Rogers thusfar, and it's killing them when she's on the floor - 8 points in just 10 minutes.

Pluimer lays it up to make it a 48-46 UCLA lead.

6:20 PM: Lindsey Pluimer makes a three-point UCLA lead.

6:17 PM: Free throw no good, so the game's still tied, but UCLA will have the ball after a Crystal Langhorne foul. Under-16 media timeout, and it's a much-needed one for the Terps. UCLA is perfect from the field in the half, and all of the stat advantages Maryland held are quickly closing.

6:16 PM: Another turnover, another UCLA basket. Tied at 38, and Nina Earl can put UCLA ahead with a free throw. Look for Maryland to try and slow the tempo down here.

6:13 PM: Marah Strickland stops the bleeding with a three; it's her first basket of the game. Timeout, Maryland leads 38-34.

6:12 PM: And now it's down to 1, and the Terps couldn't respond on the other end. They look really sloppy right now. Timeout needed. Badly.

6:10 PM: UCLA starts out with two quick baskets, and Maryland follows up with a turnover. Daron Park needs a timeout.

6:09 PM: And welcome back, for half #2.

5:51 PM: 35-28 Terps at the half, and the turnovers are the story so far. 12 for Maryland, versus just 7 for UCLA. Everything else is heavily in Maryland's favor: 51.7% versus 34.4% from the field, 24-15 on the boards, 4-of-8 compared to 1-of-4 from 3-point range. It's very simple - hold on to the ball, and Maryland can start to run away with this one. Continue to give it up, and UCLA will continue to hang around. Considering the heart attack that UCSB provided, you know that Daron Park will do whatever it takes to bury UCLA quickly after halftime.

5:48 PM: First three for UCLA to cut the lead to four, but Toliver answers back with one of her own. HUGE for Maryland. With about 30 seconds left, they need to finish strong going into the half.

5:45 PM: 10 turnovers for Maryland. UCLA only has five. You would think that aside from the basketball ramifications, the incredibly annoying PA announcer, who gets waaaaaay too excited at every Maryland turnover, would be enough motivation to hold on to the damn ball.

5:41 PM: 30-19 Maryland at the final first-half media timeout. At this point, Maryland is leading solely because of the fact that they're shooting much better (52% for Maryland, 29.6% for UCLA). The Terps have zero offensive balance right now - only four Terps have scored, including 14 for Marissa Coleman.

5:39 PM: Speaking of Terp players down low, Crystal Langhorne is apparently fine. Great use of the pivot foot to spin down low and pick up two points. Six in the first half for Crystal.

5:38 PM: Fun fact: UCLA's Chinyere Ibekwe is, in fact, related to former Terp center Ekene Ibekwe.

5:35 PM: 28-15 Maryland. How appropriate that the Terps just picked up another three doing what they do best - working the ball around to the open shooter, grabbing an offensive board when the shot doesn't fall, and then going right back into the offensive flow and finding an open Marissa Coleman.

5:30 PM: 23-12 Maryland at the under-8 media timeout. Every time UCLA looks like they might be able to get back into it, the Terps are there to put together a couple of scores and extend the lead.

5:24 PM: You know, I love Marah Strickland and what she's done offensively, but she just hasn't displayed the same shooting touch that she had earlier in the season. She just sent one off the side of the backboard that was five different kinds of ugly.

5:21 PM: 16-10 Terps. Under 12 media timeout. Nice little 6-0 run by UCLA to get back into it. This game is going to be won or lost down low for the Bruins.

5:17 PM: UCLA was having some early success down low, but that's really started to dry up on the offensive end. Defensively, they're keeping Maryland from scoring easily, but they're still giving up too many offensive boards.

5:13 PM: Wow. Pauley Pavilion is EMPTY. Never thought I'd see the day. It was disappointing to see so few people in Chapel Hill, but that was a neutral-site matchup. This is a UCLA home game against one of the best teams in the nation.....

5:11 PM: 12-4 Terps, and we have a Crystal Langhorne sighting! Awesome news. I'd say that I hope they didn't rush her back, but considering that she didn't even dress for the biggest games of the Preseason WNIT, that's almost certainly not an issue.

With that charge, we're at the first media timeout. Terps looking good to start.

5:09 PM: 10-4 Terps. Another Toliver three. More importantly though, the offensive boards are there early on, which was a big issue against UCSB.

5:07 PM: 5-2 Terps. Toliver knocks down a three. Ho-hum.

5:05 PM: No surprises in the Terps' lineup. Also no surprise that Daron Park is the head coach for today's game, with Coach Frese still in College Park.

5:03 PM: Maryland, of course, is 7-0 coming into this matchup, last playing UC Santa Barbara to a disappointing (for this squad) 75-71 win. UCLA is 3-0, coming off of a 24-point win against Cal Poly-San Luis Obispo.

4:59 PM: This ought to be fun. A big hello to everyone who'll be following along. Game should be starting soon, so we'll get going then.