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Terps bounce Deacs from women's tourney
By Margaret McKenzie
Old Gold and Black Reporter

The glass slipper did not quite fit for the Demon Deacons in the first round of the Atlantic Coast Conference tournament. The Cinderella dreams died for the Deacs on March 1 in Greensboro when the Maryland Terrapins avenged their end of the regular season loss with a 72-66 victory.

The loss ends the 2001-02 season for the Deacs and marks the end of the college careers of seniors Val Klopfer, Adell Harris, LaChina Robinson and LaTisha Pearson.

Throughout the first 20 minutes of the game the score was close. The Deacs captured the momentum in the opening minutes of the contest, jumping out to a 9-2 lead, but the Terrapins were not discouraged by their early difficulties. They battled back with a 6-0 run of their own, and from there the lead changed hands several times throughout the half.

Neither team managed to establish control and both shot well. Ahead by one in the close of the half, Maryland built their lead to three when Jamecca Harrell converted a wide open lay up after Terri Daniels threw a floor-length pass. The 29-26 lead was the largest of the half for the Terrapins.

The second half was quite a different story. Two is a number that will remain in the minds of the Deacs during the off-season. Two is the number of points they scored during the first 10 minutes of play in the second half. The Deacons converted this basket in their first possession of the half. They then went on to miss their next 13 shots, shooting only 27.5 percent in the second half. Maryland didn’t hesitate to capitalize on the Deacons’ offensive woes. They went on a 25-2 run, building a lead they would not relinquish.

Finding the offensive spark at the 9:57 mark, the Deacons began their rally. Implementing the full-court pressure defense, the Deacs forced Maryland to turn the ball over and the Deacs converted several key outside shots. A 12-2 Deacon run followed and after sophomore forward Eafton Hill hit a three with 3:30 to play the Deacs within eight.

Two minutes later sophomore guard Bianca Brown brought the Deacs to within seven by converting on all three of her free throws after she was fouled on a three-point attempt.

The next time down the court Brown hit the first of two free throws to make the score 59-66. The Terrapins responded and quickly rebuilt the lead to 11. Freshman guard Jennifer Johnson hit her third three of the night with seconds left to play, but it was not enough for the Deacons.

Sophomore guard Tonia Brown broke a single season record for made three-point shots with 62 after converting one in this final game.

Brown led the scoring with 11 points and Hill added 10 points, six rebounds and four assists. The Deacs ended the season with a 12-16 record, 5-11 in conference play. Next season they will return 10 varsity players, including 3 starters.

After defeating the Deacons, Maryland lost to second-ranked North Carolina in the second round. The silver anniversary of the tournament finished with a third consecutive Duke title. The Blue Devils defeated North Carolina 87-80 in the championship game.