Diamond Miller spent much of last season nursing a nagging knee injury, but she entered the 2022-23 season with a clean bill of health, much to the excitement of Maryland faithful.
But that excitement quickly turned to concern during Monday’s season opener, as the senior guard went down in the second quarter with an injury, which looked to affect the same knee that limited her last season. She had surgery to repair the knee in April.
The Maryland women’s basketball team downplayed the injury following an 88-51 victory over George Mason, as coach Brenda Frese told reporters taking Miller out was a precautionary move.
“From our end, we just didn’t think it was worth pressing anything,” she said. “It’s nothing too serious. We’ll continue to have her evaluated once we get back home, but just more out of precautionary [reasons]. It’s a long season … so just wanted to be smart with it.”
Much of that precaution likely comes because the Terps want the 6-foot-3 senior to be healthy in the long run, especially as No. 17 Maryland prepares to take on No. 1 South Carolina on Friday. The game will be televised at 6 p.m. ET on ESPN2.
The Terps will need Miller when they battle the defending champions – she averaged 17.3 points and 5.8 rebounds as a sophomore before the injury during her junior season. But even without Miller for most of the game, Maryland showed plenty of firepower against George Mason.
Abby Meyers, who joined the Terrapins after transferring from Princeton, finished with 19 points, 6 rebounds and 3 assists. Shyanne Sellers had 14 points, Bri McDaniel had 13, and Lavender Briggs finished with 9.
Still, Maryland’s next opponent looked even stronger. South Carolina ended Monday with a 101-31 win over East Tennessee State. Zia Cooke led the Gamecocks with 17 points, while Sania Feagin added 15 points.
Reigning Player of the Year and Defensive Player of the Year Aliyah Boston ended the contest with a double-double, scoring 11 points and grabbing 11 rebounds.
