BTN.com staff, February 23, 2015
(AP) From start to finish, it was a memorable night for No. 5 Maryland.
The Terrapins scored the first 10 points against Penn State and never trailed in a 65-34 rout Monday.
Afterward, the team was presented a sparkling trophy for winning the Big Ten regular-season title.
It doesn't get much better than that.
"I'm really, really proud of this group," coach Brenda Frese said. "Going into this season there were a lot of unknowns – young team, new conference. To be able to come out and play the way they have in these first 16 games is not easy."
Maryland (25-2, 16-0) clinched first place Saturday night when Ohio State beat Iowa.
That doesn't mean the Terps intend to coast to the finish in their inaugural Big Ten season.
With victories over visiting Indiana on Thursday and at Northwestern on Sunday, Maryland will become only the third Big Ten women's team to go unbeaten in conference play, joining Ohio State (1984-85) and Purdue in (1998-99).
"We're not done yet," guard Laurin Mincy said.
Brionna Jones scored 11 of her 17 points in the decisive first half, which ended with Maryland up 35-14. After that, it was merely counting down the minutes until the trophy presentation.
It was the 19th straight victory for Maryland, its longest winning streak since a 21-game run in 1988-89.