WNCAA ND v UMD Elite Eight TONIGHT 9 PM

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Notre Dame-Maryland Preview - UND.COM - University of Notre Dame Official Athletic Site

ND 33-3 v UMD 31-4

TONIGHT 9:00 PM on ESPN


...

Both teams certainly know how to score - the Irish rank second nationally by averaging 79 points, with Maryland (78) two spots behind them - but they do it in different ways.

The Irish's strength is a four-guard starting lineup that rolls up lots of assists and steals. Behind BIG EAST Player of the Year Skylar Diggins, Notre Dame ranks fifth in points allowed (51.6), fourth in field-goal percentage (47.6 percent), fourth in assists (18) and second in steals (13).

The Terrapins - who have four starters who are 6 feet or taller - prefer to pound the ball to their elite interior players and have them bang the boards for second chances.

Maryland ranks second nationally with a rebounding margin of plus-14, with Tianna Hawkins leading the nation by making nearly 63 percent of her shots, and ACC Player of the Year Alyssa Thomas doing all the little things to keep the Terps rolling.

"We love to use our length and get on the glass, so we know that gives a lot of teams a lot of trouble," Thomas said. "We're able to use that on defense and create havoc out there. We know we have a height advantage on them, especially inside, so I know our inside game's going to be a huge (focus) for us" Tuesday.

Making up for that rebounding deficiency is nothing new in this tournament for Notre Dame.

The only Division I team with a better rebounding margin than Maryland is Liberty (plus-15.6), and the Irish routed the Flames by 31 points in the first round. Then they claimed an 11-point win in the second round against California, which ranks third nationally at plus-12.6.

Devereaux Peters, the Irish's only starter taller than 5-foot-11, leads her team with an average of 9.4 rebounds.

"We have to go back to the fundamentals, really focusing on boxing out and pushing people back," Peters said. "It's been a problem we've had all year. I think we've improved on it during the tournament. We've seen a lot of great teams that rebounded really well, so hopefully we can do the same thing."
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ND's 3 losses were to:
Baylor 94-81 in Waco at the Preseason WNIT
WVU 65-63 at ND
UCON 63-54 in Hartford at the BE Championship


The Terps lost to:
Miami 75-63 in Miami
Duke 80-72 at Duke
VT 75-69 in College Park
Miami 76-74 in College Park


ND v UMD is the highest ranked Elite Eight Game.

The Irish are #4 in both the AP and Coaches Polls while the Terps are #5 in both polls.
 
IrishLax

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We got an awful draw in Maryland especially when you consider how much better we are than Tenn, Duke, and Kentucky. Not only is it a bad matchup for us but they're also squarely the most talented #2 seed team.
 
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Lady Irish goin' dancin' in Denver

Lady Irish goin' dancin' in Denver

#1 BU knocked off #2 UTN 77-58, a 19 pt handling of a #2 seed
#1 SU knocked off #2 Duke 81-69, a 12 pt win
#1 CON knocked off #2 UK 80-65, a 15 pt margin
#1 ND routing #2 seed and #5 ranked Maryland by 30 pts with 3 minutes to play.
 
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Only the second time ever that all #1 seeds have made the Final Four. The last time was 1989.
 
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ND 80 UMD 49 FINAL

ND 80 UMD 49 FINAL

IRISH
PTs 80
FGs 32-65 (49.2%)
FTs 13-17 (76.5%)
3 s 3-11 (27.3%)
Reb 41 (15)
Ast 21
Stl 10
BLK 2
TOs 16
PFs 11

TERPS
PTs 49
FGs 22-56 (39.3%)
FTs 5-8 (62.5%)
3 s 0-8 (0.0%)
Reb 26 (9)
Ast 10
Stl 9
BLK 3
TOs 20
PFs 12
 
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Alyssa Thomas and company were supposed to dominate the boards. Thomas lead her team with 6 Rebs, 2 Offensive and her team totalled 26/9.

ND owned the board pulling down 41/15 for a 15 rebound advantage. ND had 4 players match or exceed Alyssa Thomas's 6 rebs. Diggins had 10/4 as part of her Triple Double, Peters was 9/5, Achonwa 7/4, and Novosel 6/2. Five other players split the other 9 rebs.

TEAM EFFORT!

ND held another ranked opponent below 50 points. Holding UMD to 39% from the floor including 0-8 from the arc.

ND led in every category except blocks, trailing 3-2. The Irish dished off well more than doubling UMD's assists 21-10.

They need two more complete games like tonight to go the distance.
 
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#4 Irish Back in Final Four After 80-49 Win Over #5 Maryland - UND.COM - University of Notre Dame Official Athletic Site

...

the Irish broke things open midway through the first half, holding the Terps without a field goal for roughly 5 1/2 minutes during a 26-7 run that pushed their lead well into double figures. Diggins scored seven points during the run while Achonwa had eight, including a pretty layup off a pick-and-roll that put Notre Dame up 38-19 with 2:15 before the break.

That burst was marked by the strong guard play usually expected from Notre Dame - along with some impressive work underneath, where the Irish made all the hustle plays and got to nearly every loose ball and rebound. ...
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