A few weeks down the road, Saint Joseph's might benefit from its lopsided loss to No. 8 Maryland.
That's why coach Cindy Griffin wasn't terribly disappointed after the Hawks dropped a 94-71 decision to the stronger, faster Terrapins on Tuesday night.
''Our team really is in the process of developing who we're going to be this year,'' Griffin said. ''I thought that was a good indication of this team not giving up. We could have folded, we could have hung our heads and said, `Forget it.' But we kept fighting back.''
The Hawks (2-3) trailed by nine points with four minutes elapsed and fought back to 21-18. They trailed by 16 at halftime and stayed within striking distance until Maryland (5-0) simply wore them down.
Erin Shields led Saint Joseph's with 16 points, Ashley Prim had 15 and Katie Kuester 13. The Hawks committed only four turnovers but shot 35 percent from the field and were outrebounded 58-25.
''I told the kids before the game what I wanted to get out of today is to limit our turnovers and make a step in the right direction as far as competing,'' Griffin said. ''I thought we did that.''
Fortunately for the Hawks, they won't be facing too many Top 10 teams on the road.
''I wasn't surprised at how well Maryland was going to play,'' Griffin said. ''I was proud of the way our team competed. But the physicality and the rebounding was just something we could not match tonight.''
Playing in her second game since returning from a suspension, Lynetta Kizer scored a career-high 25 points on 8-for-11 shooting and pulled down eight rebounds for the Terrapins.
After missing Maryland's first three games for violating team rules, Kizer scored 12 in her debut Saturday against Maryland-Baltimore County. The 6-foot-4 senior surpassed that total by halftime against Saint Joseph's and finished with more points than minutes played (24).
''Tremendous,'' Terps coach Brenda Frese said. ''I love how she's approached everything. Real vocal, a ton of energy for us and obviously big play tonight that we had to have to be successful.''
Kizer had plenty of help. Alyssa Thomas scored 21, Tianna Hawkins contributed 17 points and 12 rebounds and Laura Mincy had 14 points and nine rebounds for the Terrapins (5-0), who have won all their games by double figures.
''Extremely balanced,'' Frese said.
After Saint Joseph's closed to 58-47, Kizer made two free throws, Whitney Bays scored in the lane and Kizer added a foul shot for a 63-47 lead with 11 minutes left. That was enough to assure the Terrapins their 85th win in 90 non-league games at Comcast Center.
''You've got to use your non-conference play to get you prepared for conference play,'' Frese said. ''I like that St. Joe's never quit tonight. We have to continue to sustain a 40-minute game where we don't have any drop-offs. That's what we're building toward.''
The Hawks went 1 for 8 from the field at the outset, and Maryland took advantage by taking a 12-3 lead. Minutes later, however, successive baskets by Shields capped a 10-4 spurt that got Saint Joseph's to 21-18.
It was 28-23 before Kizer hit a 3-pointer and Thomas added a layup and two foul shots to spark a 14-4 run that expanded the margin to 15. The Hawks got within 11 shortly before halftime, but Thomas scored on a drive and Kizer made a free throw and a follow-shot to give the Terrapins a 49-33 lead at the break.
