Maryland
Guards
Junior Kristi Toliver is one of the best in country, a clutch shooter who averages 16.8 points to go with 7.5 assists. Considered somewhat inconsistent her first two seasons, she’ll have to be at her best against a tough Vanderbilt zone defense that has kept its first two opponents to less than 50 points per game. Marah Strickland, a 6-foot freshman, provides the size to see over the zone but as the least-experienced Terrapin she’ll have to be steady.
Forwards and centers
Senior centers Crystal Langhorne, 6-2, and Laura Harper, 6-4, are an imposing duo before factoring in 6-1 junior Marissa Coleman. Langhorne averages 17.1 points and 9.4 rebounds, but Coleman (16.0, 7.7) and Harper (14.3, 8.6) aren’t far behind and they’ve combined to block 90 shots. They’ll have to be solid because Vanderbilt is so strong on defense.
Bench
The first two players off the bench are reliable seniors, 6-1 Jade Perry in the front court and 5-10 Ashleigh Newman in the backcourt. Because the Terps really didn’t blow out a lot of teams while playing nine ranked teams, a pair of freshmen, 6-2 forward Drey Mingo and 5-10 guard Kat Lyons, shouldn’t be intimidated.
4 Vanderbilt
Guards
A freshman, Jence Rhoads, runs the team and has steadily improved, making the SEC All-Freshman team, with junior Jennifer Risper and sophomore Merideth Marsh in the backcourt combining for almost 20 points a game. Risper is a good rebounder, averaging 6.4, and shooter, hitting 50 percent. None of the three is particularly explosive and they’re prone to turnovers.
Forwards and centers
This is where the Commodores could have a hard time matching up with a pair of 6-1 starters. Junior Christina Wirth carries the scoring load at 13.1 points a game and has already passed 1,000 for her career. She is also the best 3-point shooter, which could pull the taller Terps away from the basket. Freshman Hannah Tuomi contributes 5.3 points and 3.8 rebounds.
Bench
Jessica Mooney, a 5-8 guard, shared the SEC Sixth Woman award, averaging 8.7 points, and Liz Sherwood, a 6-4 senior and member of the 1,000-point club, provides offense up front with 11 points a game. Sherwood could be a key factor because of Maryland’s size. Sophomore Lauren Lueders is next in line for the guard-based offense but a pair of 6-3 youngsters, sophomore Amy Malo and freshman Rebecca Silinski, could be pressed into duty if anyone gets in foul trouble.
Summary
Maryland has the experience – four starters from the ‘06 national champions – to handle the pressure, but that could be tested if the Commodores get the pace to their liking. That is because the Terps tend to let teams stay in the game. Vanderbilt prefers to keep the pace much slower than what Maryland prefers. It will be up to Toliver to get Maryland at the speed it wants or run an effective half-court offense so the big front line can dominate.