Maryland gets ranked preseason test as North Carolina visits for exhibition
Maryland's first exhibition showed how quickly its new pieces can produce points. Saturday brings a ranked opponent and a useful chance to examine what happens when that offense has to work against a different mix of size, perimeter shooting and defensive pressure.
No. 20 Maryland hosts No. 12 North Carolina at XFINITY Center in College Park on October 24 at 1 p.m. Eastern. B1G+ will stream the game. This is an exhibition, the final preseason game for both teams, and its result will not count toward their regular-season records. The rankings are from the preseason Associated Press poll. Maryland's game preview
Building on the Virginia Tech game
The Terrapins beat Virginia Tech 93-82 on Monday, led by Oluchi Okananwa's 23 points. Nunu Agara scored 20 in her first game action for Maryland, Bri McDaniel added 17 and Addi Mack finished with 11.
Maryland generated 50 points in the paint and 23 off Virginia Tech's 18 turnovers. Those are useful markers for Saturday: can the Terps continue to reach the basket, and can their defensive activity create scoring chances without depending entirely on a set half-court offense?
Rebounding offers a separate test. Virginia Tech finished with a 41-38 edge on the glass despite the Maryland win. Freshman Trinity Jones led the Terps with eight rebounds, giving the staff one early indication of how the newcomers can contribute beyond scoring. Virginia Tech exhibition recap and statistics
McDaniel's return is part of the preseason evaluation. She missed the 2025-26 season while rehabilitating an ACL injury and was back on the floor Monday. Agara, an All-ACC transfer from Stanford, adds another established scoring option. Saturday gives Maryland a second public look at how those players fit with Okananwa, Mack and the freshman class. Maryland roster context
What North Carolina brings
The Tar Heels opened their exhibition schedule with a 76-66 win over Davidson on October 18. Achol Akot had 18 points and 11 rebounds, Kate Harpring contributed 17 points and eight boards, and Nyla Brooks scored 10.
Carolina was tied with Davidson at halftime and again at 61 in the fourth quarter before pulling away. Its defense allowed only eight third-quarter points and forced 23 turnovers across the game. For Maryland, protecting the ball through the Tar Heels' pressure is a meaningful counterpoint to the easy offense the Terps created from Virginia Tech mistakes. UNC's Davidson exhibition recap
UNC returns eight players and has added four Power 4 transfers and two freshmen. Ciera Toomey is the leading returning scorer and rebounder after averaging 8.8 points and 6.2 rebounds last season. Carolina also made a program-record 295 three-pointers and shot 35.1 percent from deep in 2025-26. Those are prior-season figures, not a forecast for a changed roster, but they give Maryland reason to pay attention to closeouts and perimeter communication. North Carolina's Friday preview
What to watch beyond the score
Three questions should make the exhibition useful: whether Maryland can finish defensive possessions with rebounds, how consistently it protects the ball when pressured, and which combinations create good shots without needing turnovers first.
The final margin will be less revealing than how those answers develop across different lineups. After one high-scoring preseason outing, Maryland gets a chance to show whether its early offensive promise can hold up against a ranked opponent before the games begin to count.