COLLEGE PARK — Lexie Brown practically took it upon herself to ensure that the No. 14 Maryland women's basketball team would be on the right side of history Monday night, shaking off a balky start to spark a decisive surge in the second half of an 87-78 victory over Ohio State in the Terps' first league game in the Big Ten Conference.
The sophomore point guard scored 12 points, good for Maryland's fifth-leading scorer Monday, but her timing couldn't have been better before an announced 5,671 at Xfinity Center. After missing her first five 3-point attempts, Brown sank two and drew a charge as the Terps reeled off 11 in a row to take a 68-55 lead with more than 10 minutes left in regulation.
Moments later, Brown stole a pass and drove for a layup while getting fouled. She missed the bonus free throw, but Maryland had taken its most comfortable lead of the game, 70-57. Ohio State drew to 77-73 on a 3-pointer by Cait Craft with 2:43 to play, and again Brown came to the rescue, this time delivering a pair of passes through traffic to center Brionna Jones (Aberdeen) for uncontested layups.
Those field goals, plus another foul shot by Jones, raised the margin to 82-73, and Ohio State didn't get within two possessions the rest of the way.
"In the back of your mind, I was like, 'It was wide open, so I can't miss this one,'" said Brown, who finished 5-for-14 from the field with a game-high seven assists. "As a shooter, you have to have a short memory. Throughout the whole game, I really didn't shoot a high percentage. I just have to get back in the gym and get more shots up and be better the next game."
What's on the horizon for the Terps (10-2) is a road game Saturday against No. 12 Nebraska, the highest-ranked team from the Big Ten. A victory could vault Maryland back into the top 10, where it began in the preseason and stayed until losing to Washington State, 70-64, in the San Juan Shootout in Puerto Rico over the Thanksgiving break.
But on this night, the Terps celebrated not just a fourth consecutive win but a third in a row against Ohio State (8-5). Maryland beat one of the Big Ten's flagship programs in the past two ACC-Big Ten Challenges when the Terps were in the Atlantic Coast Conference. Maryland left the ACC after 37 years that included a record 10 conference tournament championships.
"I actually hadn't put much thought into that, having coached and grown up in the Big Ten," Terps coach Brenda Frese, who was named national coach of the year at Minnesota in 2002, said when asked whether winning the program's inaugural Big Ten game made the result any more gratifying. "I think more than anything when you get to conference play, it's just you're excited about the level of competition and the fact that you're going to have to play a complete game to be able to get win."
Maryland did just that inside, owning substantial advantages in rebounding (57-37), points in the paint (46-22) and second-chance points (23-12). The Terps also shot 51 percent in the second half and finished with five players scoring in double figures.
Jones had 23 points on 9-for-13 shooting to match a career high and 14 rebounds to set a career high. Sophomore wing Shatori Walker-Kimbrough chipped in 18 points (7-for-12 shooting) and nine rebounds, and senior guard Laurin Mincy and reserve forward Tierney Pfirman each added 14 points.
As important a contribution from Mincy was her defense on Ohio State freshman guard Kelsey Mitchell, who was coming off 39 points in a 96-54 throttling of No. 17 West Virginia a week ago. Mitchell scored 19 points against Maryland but missed 19 of 26 shots and committed four turnovers.
"I always get more excited when conference play comes around," said Mincy, a redshirt senior who came to College Park expecting to play only in the ACC during her career. "The level of competition is more intense. I was just really excited, and I'm glad we all came out and were able to get a win."