Maryland women’s basketball exemplifies the advantages available to coaches in college athletics’ current landscape, perhaps better than any team in the country.

The Terps slogged to one of their worst finishes under coach Brenda Frese last season with a roster held back by injuries and strange fits. But no longer do those deficiencies take several recruiting cycles to fix. Frese solved them immediately — 10 of her 15 players, seven of them transfers, are new to the team this season.

They know it’ll take time to get acquainted with each other. That was evident in Maryland’s 74-32 season-opening win at UMBC on Monday, when the group showed flashes of their ceiling that was backed by a preseason No. 18 ranking, accompanied by sluggish stretches that should be expected with so many new faces.

“You’re seeing everyone’s rosters are turned over every year,” Frese said. “So it’s going to take longer to be able to form your identity. You’re not going to have as many full rosters that are returning anymore like we used to have in the past. That just takes time.”

Frese made clear last year fell below her program’s standard, then spent the offseason ensuring it would be an aberration rather than a trend. The coach sought specific traits in the transfer portal: rebounding, interior defense, 3-point shooting and a point guard to bring it all together.

Her haul features veterans who fill each of those roles. Sarah Te-Biasu, the Atlantic 10 Player of the Year at VCU last season, allows preseason All-Big Ten selection Shyanne Sellers to play more off the ball. Saylor Poffenbarger, seventh in the nation in rebounding last year at Arkansas, pairs with Christina Dalce, a Big East co-Defensive Player of the Year from Villanova, to offer the size down low Frese coveted. Kaylene Smikle, who averaged 17 points per game and shot 35% from deep over the last two seasons at Rutgers, gives Maryland another scorer.

In spurts, they all came together how Frese surely spent this summer dreaming.

Te-Biasu intercepted a pair of UMBC passes on the perimeter then darted the length of the court for easy layups in a back-and-forth first half. In the fourth quarter, Poffenbarger grabbed a rebound and heaved full court to Sellers, who dished to Dalce for an uncontested score as the Terps pulled away for their 42-point victory.

UMBC scored just 10 points in the second half. Eleven Maryland players saw time on the court. Frese will continue to experiment there. And she has the depth to do it.

“You’re gonna see a lot of this,” Frese said. “That chemistry is going to take time. I don’t like it, but I have to be patient with that process.”

But there were also awkward moments that displayed a lack of cohesion impossible to smooth in just one game, like when two Terps defensive gaffes led to back-to-back UMBC corner 3s in a second quarter where the Retrievers nearly outscored Maryland. The Terps finished with 22 turnovers to just eight assists.

“That just comes with time,” Sellers said. “We have a lot of new pieces, and we’re just trying to figure out how to blend them.”

“Once we get there, it’s gonna be game-changing,” Dalce added.

Sellers, the lone familiar face for Maryland fans, finished with 12 points and seven rebounds in the win. The senior has experienced all the highs and lows in her career. She hopes to be the glue that holds together a roster that was revamped around her.

Monday also marked the start of UMBC coach Candice Hill’s tenure. Hill took over for Johnetta Hayes, whose contract was not renewed after last year’s 10-19 campaign and a 29-62 record over four seasons, with sights set on the Retrievers’ first NCAA Tournament appearance since 2007.

“She definitely meets us where we are, but she also pushes us to rise to the occasion,” graduate guard Jordon Lewis said. “This is her first time coaching. You would have never guessed that.”

The postseason hasn’t been that elusive for Maryland. After the Terps made three consecutive Sweet 16 appearances, a rare winless March sent Frese chasing solutions. There were plenty available.

Patience, for both Frese and Maryland, will be a virtue this season. They’ve accepted that, along with all the obstacles it comes with.

“You have to,” the coach said. “Otherwise, you’ll be left behind.”

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