Maryland basketball coach has intense moment with player during March Madness game

Maryland Terrapins women’s hoops manager Brenda Frese came face-to-face with defender Oluchi Okananwa successful an aggravated coaching infinitesimal connected Sunday.

Frese and Okananwa came nose-to-nose during the Terrapins’ 74-66 nonaccomplishment against the Tar Heels successful the NCAA Women’s Basketball Tournament. Maryland came into the crippled arsenic the No. 5 seed, portion North Carolina was the No. 4 seed.

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Maryland Terrapins caput manager Brenda Frese looks connected during the archetypal fractional against the Alabama Crimson Tide astatine Xfinity Center connected March 24, 2025. (Daniel Kucin Jr./Imagn Images)

The longtime caput manager was unhappy with Okananwa’s series successful the 3rd quarter. She turned the shot over, missed 3 escaped throws and missed a layup earlier she was subbed disconnected the floor. Frese met Okananwa connected the sideline.

"I judge successful you, but you got to privation this moment," Frese said.

Okananwa scored 21 points, starring the team. She grabbed six rebounds and notched 2 steals. However, she did extremity up with six turnovers.

She told reporters aft the crippled that she loves the hard-nosed benignant of coaching.

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Maryland caput manager Brenda Frese, center, and assistants gully up a play against North Carolina during the 2nd fractional successful the 2nd circular of the NCAA assemblage hoops tournament, Sunday, March 22, 2026, successful Chapel Hill, North Carolina (AP Photo/Chris Seward)

"Coach understands I’m a rival astatine heart," she said, via The Athletic. "I’ve told her this before, and I’ll support connected telling her this forever. I emotion to beryllium coached hard. That’s what she does with maine each azygous day."

Frese has been the caput manager astatine Maryland since the 2002-03 season. She is 688-208 arsenic caput coach. She besides had stops astatine Ball State and Minnesota.

"It’s ever been a pulse that I’ve been capable to person with individuals and players," Frese said. "We do, astatine times, person to person those pugnacious conversations. You can’t person them without a relationship. You’ve got to beryllium capable to person that. The champion of the best, the elite of the elite, privation to beryllium coached hard.

"At that moment, I watched Oluchi conflict wrong this tournament. She’s conscionable excessively gifted, truthful I wanted to implore however overmuch content I person successful her and situation her. I cognize what a victor and rival she is. Just situation her, bash you privation the moment? I knew to springiness it a minute, get her backmost in. And you saw she went out, she got a bucket, she got a steal, and ne'er looked back."

North Carolina defender Taissa Queiroz, left, battles Maryland defender Oluchi Okananwa, right, for the shot during the 2nd fractional successful the 2nd circular of the NCAA assemblage hoops tournament, Sunday, March 22, 2026, successful Chapel Hill, North Carolina. (AP Photo/Chris Seward)

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It was her archetypal play with the Terrapins aft spending 2 years with the Duke Blue Devils. She finished the season, averaging 17.7 points, 5.4 rebounds and 2.1 assists per game. She was an All-Big Ten Conference enactment during the 2025-26 season.

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