Though the lady Terps have now swapped places in the AP Poll with the Blue Devils, that did not hold them back as they came out looking as sharp as a No. 2 pencil. Forward Laura Harper who was coming off a seven point performance against Duke, led the 19-1 Terps with 21 points, 15 of which came in the first half. From tip-off to triple zero of the second half, Brenda Frese’s team played from all cylinders. The team chemistry was back, the swagger was back (and rightfully so), and the defense was back.

Frese said after the win, “I was very pleased with our improvement defensively. I thought we really focused and brought a lot of energy to the game tonight. The challenge is to do that consistently on the defensive end. But for this game everyone stepped up and I think they achieved what they set out to do this game."

And when Coach says everyone stepped up, she meant just that. If the first half belonged to Harper, then the team’s second half performance belonged to center Crystal Langhorne and guard Kristi Toliver. Langhorne finished the night with 17 points and snatched a game-high 12 rebounds, while Toliver capped the night off with a point total resembling her #20 jersey.

The 12-6 Cavs were led by forward Lyndra Littles who had 23 points on 10 of 23 shooting. Unfortunately for the Cavs, Littles found herself in early foul trouble as she collected her third foul with less than a minute left in the first half. Center Siedah Williams finished with 12 points and freshman guards Monica Wright and Paulisha Kellum had 10 each. Guard Sharnee Zoll made her presence felt not by scoring but by passing as she dished a season-high 11 assists. While the game was a home-coming for Littles and Kellum, it was anything but a celebration as they were the first to feel the wrath of a team once with a flawless record.

For Terp fans there was no question if the women would half difficulty bouncing back from the disappointing loss. Toliver said afterwards in regards to the team’s comeback, “We had a tough one down in Durham, but there was only one thing we could do and that was to recover and regroup. I think that by doing that we showed that we are more mature than in the past because we could have folded again.”

However, as the score was 42-27 at halftime and the Terps held the Cavs to 35 percent field goal shooting, it was clear the team was nowhere near folding, only on the verge of exploding. The second half gave way to the Terps raining three pointers (4 of 8 in the half), shooting 52 percent from the field and crowd-raising plays including a no-look pass from forward Marissa Coleman that resulted in a three point play for Langhorne.

Even though the Maryland Terrapins no longer have the number one spot, they still play as if they do, and like the Queen of Hip-Hop Soul, Mary J. Blige once sang, “you can’t hold a good woman down”.