Veteran Terrapins Favored in the Sweet 16
This is the only Sweet 16 matchup on the women’s side featuring two former national champions.
Notre Dame has advanced to the regionals even without two of its top four scorers as All-American Olivia Miles and Dara Mabrey are both out for the season.That has resulted in the women’s college basketball odds listing the Fighting Irish as the underdogs.
Maryland had no issues with either Holy Cross or Arizona in the first two rounds of the tournament.
Notre Dame ranks fourth among the remaining teams in rebounding, pulling down 42.7 per game, while Maryland is second only to Ohio State in steals differential among the Sweet 16 teams.
When looking at the women’s college basketball news, Maryland got freshman guard Gia Cooke back for the NCAA Tournament. She missed nearly a month before returning to the court in the Big Ten quarterfinal against Illinois.
As if losing Mabrey wasn’t enough, seeing Miles go down was even more painful for Notre Dame as she is the team leader in rebounds, assists and steals.
Maryland is seventh and Notre Dame tied for 10th in the Associated Press Top 25 poll. Maryland is seventh and Notre Dame 11th in the coaches’ poll.
According to the NCAA women’s basketball odds, Maryland (+4000) is eighth and Notre Dame (+7500) comes in ninth in the odds to win the national title.
Stepping Up
With two key players sidelined for the NCAA Tournament, Notre Dame was going to need production from players to help out Sonia Citron and Maddy Westbeld.
Senior forward Lauren Ebo was happy to oblige as she had 24 points and 28 rebounds in the first two games of the NCAA Tournament. Ebo headed into the tournament averaging 5.5 points and 5.0 rebounds over the previous four games.
Freshman KK Bransford contributed 18 points, 13 rebounds and eight assists in the wins over Southern Utah and Mississippi State. More will be needed from the two of them in this matchup for Notre Dame to defy the women’s basketball predictions by reaching the Elite Eight.
This is Notre Dame’s 19th appearance in the Sweet 16.
𝐈𝐧𝐜𝐫𝐞𝐝𝐢𝐛𝐥𝐞 𝐈𝐫𝐢𝐬𝐡 ☘️
After defeating both Southern Utah and Mississippi State, @ndwbb now heads back to the Sweet Sixteen for the 19th time!
Take a look at how the Irish advanced through the first and second rounds of the tournament 🎥#MarchMadness pic.twitter.com/nMS9IY3kI7
— NCAA March Madness (@MarchMadnessWBB) March 21, 2023
Finding the Range
Sophomore Shyanne Sellers had shot less than 50% in five straight games, including a loss to eventual champion Iowa in the Big Ten tournament. In the two NCAA Tournament games, she was 5 of 8 from the floor.
Sellers averaged 14 points, 3.5 rebounds, 6.5 assists, 2.0 steals and 1.5 blocked shots in double-digit wins over Holy Cross and Arizona. The Terrapins are 7-1 in the last eight games when Sellers makes at least half of her field goal attempts.
Maryland will be looking for more of the same as Sellers will team with Diamond Miller (18.5 points, 7.0 rebounds, 4.0 assists in the NCAA Tournament) and Princeton transfer Abby Meyers to provide the bulk of the scoring against Notre Dame.
Notre Dame vs Maryland Head-to-Head
Notre Dame has won the last four games against Maryland and leads the series 5-4.
The Fighting Irish won both meetings in the NCAA Tournament, topping the Terrapins 80-49 in the 2012 regional final and winning 87-61 in the national semifinals in 2014.
The last meeting was Notre Dame’s 92-72 win in Fort Wayne, Indiana in the 2012 ACC/Big Ten Challenge.
Notre Dame vs Maryland Game Information
- Game: Notre Dame (27-5) vs Maryland (27-6)
- Location: Bon Secours Wellness Arena, Greenville, S.C.
- Day/Time: Saturday, March 25, 11:30 a.m. ET
- Notre Dame vs Maryland Live stream: TBS.com
Notre Dame vs Maryland Betting Lines
Notre Dame vs Maryland Picks and Prediction
At full strength, Notre Dame would likely be favored against Maryland. However, down two starters, the Fighting Irish are five-point underdogs.
Without Miles to run the offense, don’t be surprised to see Maryland turn up the pressure and try to turn over the Fighting Irish. Notre Dame had 19 turnovers in a second round win over Mississippi State.
Maryland led 23-4 and 17-8 at the end of the first quarter in the first two tournament games so Notre Dame will need to keep things close in the early going. There is still plenty of talent on the Fighting Irish roster and that should be enough to make Maryland have to work for the win.
Maryland is listed at -210 in our Las Vegas College Women’s basketball lines. This means that if you wager $100 on the Terrapins, you have a chance to win $48. Notre Dame is +155, offering a chance to win $155 on a $100 wager.
The implied probability attached to the betting lines gives Maryland a 67.74% chance to win, with Notre Dame at 39.22%
