Brenda Frese is aware of what she’s doing within the switch portal.
Whereas different coaches have complained about this new period of faculty sports activities the place participant motion is way more fluid, the 54-year-old has masterfully tailored. In every of the previous few years, the longtime chief of the Maryland Terrapins has revamped and remodeled her roster within the spring months, then gone on and received with these gamers at a excessive stage within the subsequent season.
Take the 2022-23 marketing campaign for instance. In that offseason — after a run to the Candy 16 — All-Massive Ten skills like Angel Reese and Ashley Owusu walked out the door, as did key contributor Mimi Collins. Frese reloaded and introduced in Ivy League standout Abby Meyers and SEC skills Brinae Alexander and Lavender Briggs to pair with Diamond Miller, Shyanne Sellers and Religion Masonius and stormed into the Elite Eight.
After which there’s this previous yr, the place Frese bolstered her roster with seven transfers, received 13 video games within the Massive Ten and once more went to the Candy 16, taking Maryland at the very least that far within the event for the twelfth time in her profession.
This offseason has been no totally different for the Terps. Even with Frese’s prime lieutenant Karen Blair leaving to grow to be the pinnacle coach at Georgia Tech, she and her employees started working shortly in recruiting new gamers to Maryland via the switch portal.
And, on paper at the very least, Frese as soon as once more is assembling a group that appears able to making a deep run in March Insanity.
On Friday, Maryland introduced that it had signed sophomore switch Oluchi Okananwa, who was an enormous motive why Duke was capable of advance to the Elite Eight this season for the primary time since 2013. Okananwa — a 5-foot-10 guard from Boston — was the ACC Sixth Participant of the 12 months as a freshman and this season was named ACC Event MVP after accumulating 49 factors, 20 rebounds and 7 assists in three video games in Greensboro, North Carolina.
“Followers needs to be actually enthusiastic about Oluchi,” Frese stated in a press release. “Her IQ and athleticism are high-level. She’s a dynamic participant who will convey qualities to our perimeter that any group would like to have. She’s going to thrive in our up-tempo type, as a result of she will actually stand up and down the ground. She’s a two-way participant who might be laborious to play in opposition to. We all know, as a result of we performed in opposition to her final season.”
Certainly, Okananwa tallied 5 factors, three steals, two blocks, two assists and two rebounds in a loss to the Terps approach again in November. She by no means began for Duke in two seasons with the Blue Devils, however throughout 71 video games averaged 9.9 factors, 5.7 rebounds, 1.6 assists and 1.5 steals in 22 minutes per recreation whereas taking pictures 47.5 p.c from the ground and 32.4 p.c from 3-point land. She’s typically been praised by coaches across the ACC for her relentless effort, robust protection and knack for playmaking.
Okananwa is the most recent addition to an already spectacular switch class for Maryland.
Earlier this month, Indiana’s Yarden Garzon and Penn State’s Gracie Merkle joined the Terps, every bringing one thing totally different to the squad and enhancing their probabilities of successful huge subsequent season.
Garzon, a 6-foot-3 versatile wing from Israel, was a three-time All-Massive Ten choice for the Hoosiers and averaged 12.4 factors and 5.1 rebounds per recreation whereas taking pictures 42.6 p.c from behind the arc throughout her profession there. This previous season, she led Indiana in scoring and dished out a profession finest 3.2 assists per recreation as properly. Due to her taking pictures expertise and talent to protect a number of positions, she was one of many extra extremely coveted gamers within the portal this spring.
Merkle is a 6-foot-6 redshirt junior who has hung out at Penn State and Bellarmine. As a freshman at Bellarmine, she led the nation in taking pictures proportion with a 70.2 p.c mark from the ground. This previous season for the Nittany Lions, she averaged 15.5 factors, 8.6 rebounds and 1.5 blocks per recreation whereas taking pictures a Massive Ten-best 67.1 p.c from the ground. She was the ASUN Rookie of the 12 months in 2023, and an All-Massive Ten choice this season.
Whereas Shyanne Sellers — the Terps’ bus driver for the previous few seasons — is off to the WNBA after getting drafted within the second spherical by the Golden State Valkyries, Okananwa, Garzon and Merkle will pair with a formidable returning crop of gamers for Maryland. That group consists of Kaylene Smikle, Saylor Poffenbarger, Mir McLean, Bri McDaniel and Allie Kubek. 5 of eight of Maryland’s main scorers from this previous season might be again in black-and-red.
Frese and her Terps appear to be huge switch portal winners. These additions might assist them return to the Ultimate 4 for the primary time since 2015.
