For the first time in program history, No. 20 Maryland took down No. 6 UConn 85-78 in a Sunday afternoon thriller. The Huskies, who have been slammed by injuries this season, only had seven active players on the roster, something Geno Auriemma lamented after the game.

“You look at our bench and you go, every kid on the bench is somebody we count on to score points,” Auriemma said postgame Friday. “And now we’re gonna have a team out on the floor where the one thing that they don’t think they’re comfortable with is scoring points. And I don’t know how we can win without scoring. So right, it’s not about Xs and Os, it’s about the mindset that they all of a sudden are going to have to acquire.”

Terrapins head coach Brenda Frese pointed to the fact UConn's recruiting helps plug in the holes left by their top starters being sidelined. Maryland, who lost multiple contributors from last season including Angel Reese to the transfer portal, also doesn't have a true center on the roster.

“Everybody has injuries, they understand no one’s going to feel sorry for them,” Frese said. “We’ve all gone through it. Last time I checked they still are bringing top-10 players off the bench now into the starting lineup. So very dangerous team, great size and length. … So preparation doesn’t change. We all kind of know that the personnel that they have, which is a lot of talented pieces.”

Auriemma was candid after the game about his team's situation.

“Until we get some semblance of order back, every lineup that we put out there works fairly well until that moment when it doesn’t,” Auriemma said. “And now you’re scrambling around trying to figure out who do I get out first because you know you need to make a change because it can’t last. So we just have to find how long can a particular lineup be out on the floor together and be effective before it starts to go the other way and then be ready to make the changes we have to make.”