Maryland women’s basketball’s February has been off to an ideal start. It has won all three games, picking up consecutive crucial Big Ten victories. That run of plus form will be put to the test on the road against one of the best teams in the conference, when the Terps take on Ohio State on Sunday afternoon.
Maryland will be trying to even the season series at 1-1 after getting beat at Xfinity Center in January. The game will tip off at 2 p.m. and be broadcast on Fox Sports 1.
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What happened last time
Maryland entered its last matchup against the Buckeyes with just a single loss — by three points in a road battle against Illinois. After 40 minutes, the Buckeyes called the Terps’ status as a Big Ten juggernaut this season into question with an 89-76 trampling on their home floor.
The game was one of, if not the, worst defensive efforts Maryland has put together all season. Star Buckeyes guard Jaloni Cambridge lit the Terps up to the tune of 28 points, nine rebounds and eight assists.
She did most of her work in the second half when the Buckeyes pulled away after a competitive start. Her success was aided by her sister, Kennedy Cambridge, and Kylee Kitts, who both knocked down three 3-pointers against the Terps.
The Buckeyes shot 50% from deep as a team in the first meeting compared to their mark of 34.2% for the season. That was good for a total of 11 3-pointers — far more than their average of 6.4 per game.
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For the Terps, the main source of offense was Oluchi Okananwa and Yarden Garzon. Those two combined for 46 of their 76 points. Rainey Welson also contributed four 3-pointers off the bench for her first big scoring night of the season, something she’s been able to replicate in the month since.
What’s happened since
Maryland bounced back in the game immediately after Ohio State, beating USC on the road in Los Angeles, but that would be its only positive performance during the six-game stretch that started with the Buckeyes. The Terps rattled off four straight losses, including back-to-back overtime defeats on their home floor to Washington and Iowa.
Right when Maryland was on the verge of moving outside of the Associated Press top 25 and onto the bubble of NCAA tournament bracketologies, it steadied the ship with three straight wins to open February. The win streak was started by Maryland going on the road and taking down then-No.12 Michigan State, one of its best wins of the season.
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The Terps have established themselves as a good road team, going 5-2 in true road games so far this season. Maryland’s most recent win came on Thursday, when it handily beat Penn State at Xfinity Center. It faces a quick turnaround before Sunday afternoon, where it will try to keep its momentum going and pick up another resume-building top-10 victory.
For Ohio State, it’s been almost all positive in the weeks since it played Maryland. The Buckeyes have gone 7-1 and picked up multiple impressive wins, starting with a final nonconference victory over then-No. 10 TCU.
The team’s only loss came in a 90-71 road blowout against then-No. 10 Iowa in late January. Ohio State wasted no time putting that in the rearview mirror, though, rattling off four straight wins against Wisconsin, Nebraska, Washington and Oregon.
Jaloni Cambridge has continued to perform at an elite level for the Buckeyes, averaging 22.5 points, 5.6 rebounds, 4.5 assists, and 2.1 steals per game. Maryland head coach Brenda Frese made it clear after the Penn State game that doing a better job of slowing her down will be key to any hopes of a Maryland win.
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Three things to watch
1. Can role players step up? In Maryland’s first loss, it received very little help from Isi Ozzy-Momodu, Saylor Poffenbarger and Addi Mack — the three starters combined for just 12 points. Welson was also its only significant contributor off the bench. Maryland has been best when it distributes scoring more evenly, and it will have to hope to do that against the Buckeyes.
2. Statement opportunity. Maryland has really just two chances remaining to pick up resume-building wins for March: this game and its final contest against No. 7 Michigan. The Terps are currently No. 15 in the NET rankings, putting them right on the edge of hosting the first two rounds of the NCAA tournament.
3. Can Terps avoid the sweep? Last year Ohio State came to the Xfinity Center and Maryland was able to successfully avenge its early-season loss to the Buckeyes. The Terps find themselves in the same position in 2026 but having to go on the road against a better Ohio State team. If they lose, it will be the second time in three years the Buckeyes have swept them.
