The young Terps played tentatively in the first half and were down by 13 early in the second half, but they never gave up. They truly believed in team play. (All five starters averaged double figures in scoring for the season.) When Freshman Kristi Toliver tied the game hitting a 3-pointer with 6.1 seconds remaining in regulation, the Terps celebrated as though they had won. They might as well have stopped the game then.
"Overtime is our time," Terrapins forward Marissa Coleman said. "What a better way to win a national championship than in overtime, which was our time all season long?"One of the cool things about the NCAA tournaments is how there is only one winner. Everyone else goes home with a final loss to dream about what might have been. But everyone has a chance when the “second season” begins.
Too young to fear the pressure and too experienced to succumb to it, the Terrapins won their first NCAA women's title Tuesday night, coming back from a 13-point deficit to force overtime and beat Duke 78-75.
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Maryland (34-4) is 6-0 in overtime games this season -- the first five on the road and the last in the championship to cap the second-largest comeback in a women's final. It was the first time the title was determined in overtime since Tennessee beat Virginia in 1991.
Preseason polls ranked the Terps at Number 14 because of the freshman they were starting. Five victories in overtime on the road during the regular season will give you experience in a hurry. It will certainly teach you that, “It ain’t over till it’s over,” as Yogi would say.
Maryland 78, Duke 75 OT
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