8 impossible stats from Maryland women’s basketball’s 129-point win

The Maryland women’s basketball team absolutely annihilated Bluefield State by 129 points in an exhibition game Wednesday.

The 146-17 final score warrants a double take, but it doesn’t even do the one-sidedness of this game justice. Maryland shut out the Big Blues in the second half, 72-0, and the Terps scored the game’s last 78 points.

Wednesday’s game doesn’t count, and it was nothing more than a tune-up for the season opener against UMass Lowell on Nov. 13. But when numbers like these appear in real box scores, it’s hard not to appreciate them for their absurdity.

Here are some of those numbers:

• Three Terps outscored Bluefield State as individuals. Blair Watson finished with 29 points, while Shatori Walker-Kimbrough and Iesha Small scored 18 each. Jenna Staiti tied the Big Blues with 17.
• Kiah Gillespie was a plus-132 in this game, Watson was a plus-128, and Sarah Myers was a plus-120.
• Maryland nabbed 35 steals and forced 51 turnovers. The Big Blues attempted 39 shots.
• Bluefield State made only six of those 39 attempts, five of which were prayers from beyond the arc. That’s 15 percent shooting as a team. The Terps shot 64 percent.
• Maryland led 85-0 in points off turnovers.
• A much taller Maryland squad scored 82 of its points in the paint and surrendered only two.
• The Terps attempted 32 free throws, and two Big Blues actually fouled out. Bluefield State didn’t go to the line once.
• Maryland went just 19-of-32 at the line, so there were actually several points left off the board.

We don’t present these stats to demean Bluefield State. The Division II school with just over 2,000 students knew this game would be a blowout, but nobody thought they’d be decimated like this.

Maryland begins the season ranked No. 6 in the AP Poll and No. 5 in the Coaches Poll. The Terps have seven new players, six of which are freshmen who comprise the nation’s No. 1 recruiting class. However, the team certainly looked cohesive on Wednesday. If it’s at all possible to make a statement by winning a scrimmage, Maryland did just that.