Purdue women's basketball's shocking upset bid could not come to fruition, as the Boilermakers fell 78-69 to Maryland in Mackey Arena. Purdue led by as much as 16 during the first half, but the 7th-ranked Terrapins came out inspired in the second half to fight off the Boilermakers' upset bid.

The trio of Reagan Bass, Rashunda Jones and Destini Lombard were integral parts of said quest, combining for 48 points on 20-35 shooting from the field. It was just the second time Jones has scored in double-figures this season and was shooting 26% from the field in her previous four games. Bass continued her stellar play with the Boilermakers, notching her fifth game with 14 points or more.

The Boilermakers shot 50.9% from the field, including 7-17 from three-point range, but their best offensive performance against a high major team was not enough to take down the Terrapins. The loss is Purdue's third in its last four games, and drops Katie Gearlds' group to 5-4 on the season.

It was a defensive battle across the opening five minutes of play, with both teams starting a combined 3-19 from the field in Mackey Arena.

Destini Lombard's triple gave Purdue a 7-2 lead at the 4:25 mark and began opening things up for the Boilermaker offense. Reagan Bass and Rashunda Jones then chipped in three combined buckets to build a 9-2 run, which gave Purdue a 13-4 advantage with just over two minutes to play in the first quarter.

The Purdue defense looked as good as its been all season in the early going, holding Maryland to just 2-17 shooting in the opening frame. Rashunda Jones and Reagan Bass guided the Boilermakers in the first ten minutes, combining for 13 of Purdue's 18 first quarter points, and helping lead a 18-6 lead over the Terrapins after the first quarter.

The tandem would continue their stellar play into the start of the second quarter. After Maryland cut the lead to eight in the opening minute, Bass, Jones and Lombard combined for a 7-0 run to extend the lead back to 15 at the 7:59 mark.

Maryland then began to find its flow offensively, chopping the lead down to eight thanks to an 10-2 run spanning less than three minutes. Te-Biasu and McDaniel hit back-to-back field goals to make it a 33-25 game with less than three minutes left in the first half.

The Boilermakers maintained a nine point lead heading into the break behind five points from Rashunda Jones down the stretch.

Jones and Bass led the way for the Boilermakers, who shot 51% from the field in the first half, as the tandem combined for 23 points. Destini Lombard also chipped in eight points to help guide the upset bid.

Purdue limited its turnovers in the first half to just six, while conversely scoring ten points off of eight Maryland miscues.

Purdue looked more inspired than it had perhaps all season in the first half, but Maryland was not prepared to just roll over. The Terrapins went on a 7-2 run to start the third quarter, cutting the Boilermakers' lead to four within the first two minutes of the second half.

Kendall Puryear and Jones teamed up to keep Maryland at bay over the first five minutes of the quarter, combining to go on a 6-2 mini run, extending the lead the Terrapins cut to two, back to six with 5:02 left.

The Terrapins then got it going in a big way, going on an 8-0 run to take their first lead of the game with 2:04 left in the third quarter. After an Alaina Harper free throw that snapped the run, Maryland extended its lead to four thanks to a three-point play by Smikle. Maryland outscored Purdue by 12 in the third, taking a 55-52 lead into the fourth quarter.

After Destini Lombard tied it back up to start the fourth quarter, the Terrapins went on a 6-0 run in 39 seconds to take a 61-55 advantage with 8:52 to play. Despite Reagan Bass provided late life with back-to-back layups, Purdue started to run out of gas down the stretch,

Maryland's lead shrunk to two before back-to-back threes by Pofferbarger and Te-Biasu, along with a Smikle layup to extend the Terps' lead to a then game-high ten with six minutes to play. Purdue would respond, however, putting together a 6-0 run of its own to cut the deficit to four with 3:34 to play.

Maryland was able to escape with a comfortable lead once the final buzzer sounded, sending the Boilermakers to 5-4 on the season.