Austin's double-double helps No. 9 Maryland rout Loyola

COLLEGE PARK, Md. -- Three days after enduring its worst rebounding margin in more than five years, No. 9 Maryland redoubled its emphasis on the glass.

The result? A 105-45 rout of Loyola (Md.) on Sunday as Shakira Austin had a career-high 25 points and 13 rebounds.

Stephanie Jones and Taylor Mikesell both added 20 points for the Terrapins (8-2), who dropped a 66-59 decision at N.C. State on Thursday.

"I love the response out of our team today," coach Brenda Frese said. "After our last game, you kind if want to see what your team is made of and I just thought from the jump the aggressiveness and the commitment to the glass was an area where we challenged the team and I thought they had a terrific response."

Maryland held a 53-22 rebounding advantage a game after N.C. State managed a 51-27 edge in the category. That was Maryland's worst showing on the glass since Notre Dame held a 29-board advantage in the 2014 Final Four.

Frese theorized the minus-24 margin might have been enough for her team to "take it personally" in its next outing.

She was right.

"We've been enforcing all season, and for it to drop that low, we just knew we had to be able to pick it up and make sure we were able to enforce on this game and keep it up for the Big Ten," Austin said.

Stephanie Karcz led the Greyhounds (1-8), who have dealt with several injuries early in the season, with 12 points. Karcz also had seven steals, increasing her national lead in the category to 6.0 per game.

Maryland never trailed, with Mikesell making three 3-pointers in the first five minutes. The Terps led 20-10 after a quarter and broke away with a 20-0 run over more than six minutes in the second period.

The Terrapins improved to 26-3 against its in-state rival and has won 19 in a row against the Greyhounds, including a 17-0 mark under Frese.

"They're really talented," Loyola coach Joe Logan said. "We come down here every year, and Brenda does a great job scheduling us and we appreciate that. They're as long and athletic as I've seen them."

BIG PICTURE

Loyola: The Greyhounds, who were picked to finish seventh in the Patriot League, are still building toward the start of conference play next month. Loyola went 0-3 against power conference teams this season, falling to Notre Dame and Northwestern last month.

Maryland: The Terps, the preseason Big Ten favorites, have one game remaining prior to the start of league play and play only once in the next 19 days. While exams and a holiday break will eat into some of that time, it also provides Maryland a chance to fine-tune things entering its conference schedule.

POLL IMPLICATIONS

Even with Sunday's victory, Maryland is likely to fall out of the top 10 in Monday's poll. It's an especially good bet that No. 13 N.C. State (9-0) will leapfrog the Terps after beating Maryland on Thursday.

UP NEXT

Loyola: Loyola is off for exams until a Dec. 20 matinee against Monmouth. It is the Greyhounds' lone game before New Year's Eve.

Maryland: The Terps have a 10-day break for final exams. They'll visit Georgia State on Dec. 18.

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