Behind two comebacks and a 21-4 run to end the game, Maryland rallied past Texas A&M 81-74 on Sunday in the semifinals of the Raleigh Regional of the NCAA tournament. The Terps advanced to their fourth Elite Eight under head coach Brenda Frese.
Laurin Mincy had 21 points and for her career-high 12 rebounds for her first career double-double. Alyssa Thomas added 21 points and nine rebounds for the second-seeded Terrapins (31-4). They trailed by 18 points in the first half and by 11 midway through the second half, but Maryland fought its way back and held the defending national champion Aggies (24-11) to just one basket in the final 7 1/2 minutes.
My take–Yes it was Alyssa and Laurin who keyed the victory but the Terps do not win this game or even stay close without the efforts of Lynetta Kizer. Lynetta finished with 15 points and 6 rebounds.
Brenda was asked about the 2nd half turnaround: What was your thinking when changing defenses during the 11-point comeback in the second half?
“We changed to a 2-3 zone and went small with four guards in there with Kim Rodgers. The turning point was when Tianna went down but Kim is one of our best defensive players and I just felt like the four guards were giving them problems at the time.”
Maryland will play top-seeded Notre Dame Tuesday at 9 p.m. in Raleigh on ESPN and ESPN3.com.
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Kent Boone
http://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/ncaa-tournament-2012-marylands-lynetta-kizer-dedicates-career-to-fallen-friend/2012/03/23/gIQAwhwoWS_story.html