No. 9 Maryland loses Bartelme to knee injury in win over Towson

COLLEGE PARK, Md. (AP) — Just when No. 9 Maryland got one key player back from injury, the Terrapins lost another.

Freshman Lea Bartelme left in the second quarter of the Terps' 88-70 win over Towson on Thursday night with what looked like a potentially severe knee injury. Bartelme was driving toward the basket when she went down, and she had to be helped off the court, unable to put weight on her left leg.

“Knee injury — you saw that,” Maryland coach Brenda Frese said. “Just going to be evaluated in the next couple days.”

Bartelme, a 5-foot-8 guard from Slovenia, has started all four games for Maryland so far.

Although Bartelme had to exit early, Kaylene Smikle returned to the court, playing for the first time this season after a leg injury.

“I'm someone who trusts the process. I'm not going to rush back," Smikle said. “I've had good coaches, good teammates who have been giving me confidence on the side, when I'm working out — just helping me just stay in the moment.”

Smikle played only 12:50, but she finished with a pretty full stat line — 13 points on 5-of-15 shooting with five rebounds.

“You can see what she brings to the table in such a short amount of time, with limited reps,” Frese said. “She just plays the right way. You saw when she was on the floor in the limited time, her scoring, her passing, just her understanding of the game.”

The other big standout for Maryland was 5-foot-9 freshman Addi Mack, who followed up a 23-point outing against Georgetown last weekend with 15 points and six assists against Towson. Mack's presence helped the Terps withstand Bartelme's injury, at least in this game.

Maryland had 19 assists and 22 turnovers, but Mack had only two turnovers with three steals.

“She continues to grow every game. Clearly we need her offense. She's given us a great scoring punch," Frese said. "Just really running the team and understanding — I think that's the hardest part in that position — when to score, when to get everyone involved, and understanding clock management.”

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