Lady Terps Take on Louisville in March to the Arch

Melanie Balcomb, Vanderbilt's head coach, told her players before Saturday's game that "Maryland wants to play UConn in the Final Four, but that we want to play Maryland today". It was a subtle message to her team that Maryland was overlooking them. The Maryland Terps have higher aspirations than reaching the Sweet 16 or Elite 8. And they should.

They've done that 3 of the last 4 years. These Terps have two seniors that won the national title as freshman. Kristi Toliver and Marissa Coleman know what it takes to win. They should also know that they can't overlook any team at this point of the tournament. Only a stellar effort from Marissa Coleman allowed Maryland to survive and advance last Saturday. Maryland can not afford to spot Louisville 18 points tonight and expect to win. As good as Vanderbilt was defensively, Louisville is better. What Jennifer Risper lacked in size, Angel McCoughtry has. McCoughtry might be a better overall defender than Risper and Risper gave Maryland fits until she got in foul trouble.

Louisville's coach, Jeff Walz, is a former Maryland assistant. This may not help him much in developing a game plan because only two players remain from his tenure in College Park. Toliver and Coleman must play well in order for Maryland to win. The supporting cast must play better than it did against Vanderbilt.

Lynetta Kizer needs to play like she's 6'-4" which means she needs to dominate the paint. Dee Liles needs to defend and rebound. Kim Rodgers and Marah Strickland need to make shots. Brenda Frese needs to make her team realize that the most important game is the next game.

Maryland may or may not have the personnel necessary to defeat UConn, but it won't matter if they can't beat Louisville. If they can take it one step at a time and realize that the next game is the 4th step in a 6 step process they may get a chance to make history.

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