Kubek and Sellers combined for 39 points in Maryland’s 13th straight win.
No. 8 Maryland women’s basketball guard Shyanne Sellers spun into the lane past a Rutgers defender, created significant separation, put up a right-handed floater and caught nothing but net.
It was that kind of night for Sellers, who powered Maryland to its 13th straight victory, 78-61, to open the 2024 season.
The Terps were led by Sellers’ 22 points and Allie Kubek’s 17 off the bench. They also put forth a dominant defensive effort, holding the Scarlet Knights to 35.5% shooting from the field and forcing 24 turnovers.
Maryland’s night started with a corner triple from Kaylene Smikle — the Terps’ leading scorer and former Scarlet Knight.
The game was Smikle’s first against Rutgers since transferring this past offseason after two seasons as its primary offensive threat. She helped Maryland build an early lead, along with a particularly energized Sellers.
“I don’t really think it was any different than any other game,” said Smikle, who scored 13 points. “Basketball is basketball, doesn’t matter the team.”
Sellers had a sequence in which she drew a charge, celebrated with a dance from the floor and got back on offense, where she froze her defender with a crossover and hit a midrange jumper.
The quarter ended on a high note for the Scarlet Knights, as guard Kiyomi McMiller hit a 3-pointer from near Maryland’s logo. McMiller, a Silver Spring, Maryland, native, ended the first quarter with nine of Rutgers’ 13 points, as Maryland took a six-point lead to end the quarter.
McMiller’s offense brought Rutgers all the way back within three points early in the second quarter. But that’s when the tide turned.
The Terps turned up their defensive heat on the perimeter and forced Rutgers into multiple turnovers. Maryland stole the ball seven times in the first half and created 19 points off those extra chances, many in the form of easy transition layups.
“I thought that [second quarter] was probably the most dialed in we were,” Maryland head coach Brenda Frese said. “Defensively, we really understood how to take things away.”
The defensive dominance allowed the Terps to end the first half on a 19-3 run and take an 18-point lead into the locker room at halftime. Despite shooting less than 40% from the field in the first 20 minutes, Maryland manufactured a sizable advantage.
The third quarter was more of the same for the Terps, as Sellers and Kubek continued to pace the team offensively. Kubek was particularly efficient in relief of Christina Dalce, who played just seven minutes. The graduate student forward missed just three shots, and Sellers set her up multiple times for easy buckets at the rim.
“She does a great job of finding me, I appreciate that about her,” Kubek said. “Three years together has definitely impacted our connection on the court, and I’m just grateful for that.”
The Terps attacked the rim consistently in the third quarter, earning trips to the charity stripe and shooting it much better than they have in previous games. They ended the game 84.4% from the line.
Maryland extended its lead to 21 points by the end of the third quarter, striping all hope of a Scarlet Knights’ comeback.
The Terps were comfortable enough to let reserves Ava McKennie and Amari DeBerry see significant minutes in the fourth quarter as they coasted to a victory.
Three things to know
1. Steals. Maryland stole the ball from Rutgers 10 times, with Smikle leading the team with five. The steals were a crucial part of Maryland’s stellar defensive effort, helping it to operate with a comfortable lead the entire second half. Mir McLean also posted three steals, and did so covering Rutgers’ best offensive player in McMiller.
“That’s what she’s capable of,” Frese said of Smikle’s defensive effort. “When she plays that hard on both ends of the floor, she anticipates really well.”
2. Red-hot start. Maryland’s 13-0 start to the year is its best since the 2011-12 season, which it opened 16-0. Maryland has two more games in the next week, against ranked conference opponents in No. 23 Iowa and No. 4 USC.
3. The Terps continue to outrebound opponents. 13 straight wins isn’t the only streak Maryland protected successfully against Rutgers. The Terps also haven’t been outrebounded by an opponent this season, and won the rebound battle, 50-37, against the Scarlet Knights. Saylor Poffenbarger led the team with 11.