The transfers continue to pile up on Maryland’s women’s basketball team. Ashley Owusu and Angel Reese, the Terrapins’ two leading scorers from this season, entered the transfer portal on Tuesday.
Owusu tweeted a statement that she was entering the portal, sharing that she has never "started anything that she has not finished" in her life but there were things both “on and off the court” that led to her decision.
“My goal was to have a career here [at Maryland] and to win a national championship alongside an amazing team,” Owusu said. “I could picture my jersey hanging in the rafters at Xfinity Center. Unfortunately, events that have transpired on and off the court this year have led me to make the very difficult but necessary decision to continue my education and basketball career elsewhere.
... I ask that you please respect my privacy and pray for me and my family as I place my name in the transfer portal.”
Owusu, who spent three seasons at Maryland, was the Terrapins’ second-leading scorer averaging 14.3 points per game.
Reese did not make a statement about entering the portal. However, according to the Associated Press, a Maryland spokesperson confirmed that the 6’3” forward would indeed be entering her name into the pool.
After missing most of her freshman season due to a broken foot, Reese—the No. 2 recruit in the 2020 class—bounced back strong and became the Terrapins’ No. 1 scoring option, averaging 17.8 points per game this season. She averaged 10 points per game as a freshman.
Terrapins coach Brenda Frese now has Reese, Owusu and reserves Taisiya Kozlova and Channise Lewis to the transfer portal.
“We wish these student-athletes all the best as they continue their basketball careers and education elsewhere,” Frese said in a statement. “Every team has been impacted by the transfer portal on both ends of it. Maryland basketball is bigger than any one lineup or person. Our staff is committed to bringing the best student-athletes to Maryland.”
The moves come after Maryland, which started the season ranked No. 4, failed to win the Big Ten tournament and was eliminated in the Sweet 16 of the NCAA tournament this season.
