Maryland women’s basketball was trailing North Carolina in the third quarter of their NCAA Tournament matchup and needed a spark.
Insert head coach Brenda Frese.
Frese pulled All-Big 10 First Team guard Oluchi Okananwa to the side and began an intense, heartfelt diatribe to her star player, which was featured on the game’s broadcast. Frese had no qualms with getting right up into Okananwa’s face to get her point across.
“I believe in you, but you gotta want this moment,” her lips read, as she pointed her finger into Okananwa’s chest.
One would think the speech wouldn’t be well-received by Okananwa. While some questioned Frese’s tactics, Okananwa said it was the extra energy was exactly what she needed.
“Coach understands I’m a competitor at heart, and I’ve told her this before and I’ll keep on telling her this until forever: I love to be coached hard, and that’s what she does with me every single day,” Okananwa said postgame.
“It’s a long game, lots of ups and downs, and I feel like after that conversation, that’s when I really went back out and just did what I had to do for my team in that moment. I’m forever appreciative of that.”
Frese explained her logic as well, citing the strong relationships she forms with her players as why her speeches are typically effective.
“It’s always been a pulse that I’ve been able to have with individuals and players,” Frese said. “And we do have to at times have those tough conversations. You can’t have them without a relationship, you’ve gotta be able to have that.
“The best of the best, the elite of the elite want to be coached hard. At that moment I had watched (Oluchi) struggle within this tournament, and she’s just too gifted. I wanted to implore how much belief I had in her and just challenge her,” the 24th-year coach added.
Though the Terrapins still fell to UNC 74-66, the words jumpstarted Okananwa. She scored 12 points in the second half to finish with a game-high 21 on 9-of-18 shooting, while adding six offensive rebounds.
Her success vaulted Maryland back into the game to tie the score entering the fourth.
Okananwa, a junior, finished her third college season averaging a team-leading 17.8 points per game, while adding 5.4 rebounds and 2.0 assists.
Her points total marked a career high after transferring to Maryland following two seasons at Duke. During her two years in Durham, she averaged 9.7 and 10.1 points, respectively.
The Terrapins finished the year at 24-9 after earning a No. 5 seed in the NCAA Tournament. They boat-raced Murray State in the Round of 64 before their season ended against the Tar Heels in the second round.
The record marked the 23rd straight winning season of Frese’s tenure and her 20th 20-win campaign. The passion she displayed Sunday is part of the reason why.
