COLLEGE PARK, Md. - Maryland's Lady Terps left the Comcast Center Thursday afternoon and headed for Raleigh, N.C., where they'll play Vanderbilt Saturday at 2:30 p.m. in the Sweet 16.

The talented, confident group breezed through the first two rounds at home, beating Dartmouth and Utah by an average of 22 points. The Lady Terps beat Vanderbilt by 14 points in last year's tournament, but now they face a Vanderbilt team with the same kind of resume.

But the Terps do have a new tool on their side. While everybody talks about players Marrissa Coleman and Kristi Toliver -- and rightfully so -- there's a new player, and she's not from around here. In fact you could say the newest Terp is 'foreign' to the big dance.

Yemi Oyefuwa is experiencing culture shock, college hoops-style.

"The whole big dance is new to me, so when people say to me, 'Do you have your dancing shoes ready?' I'm like, 'Yeah, sure. I dance, too, so, OK.' I didn't realize it was in terms of basketball," she recalled.

Yemi hails from London, she's a 6'6" first-year student whose game is a work in progress -- although she's being mentored by two greats: Kristi Toliver and Marissa Coleman.

"We had to teach her about the Sweet 16, the Elite 8 and the Final 4, and all that stuff," said Coleman.

"I think the fact that she doesn't know a whole lot about [American] basketball -- it's funny and it bring humor," added Toliver.

Yemi was discovered while playing for the under-20 British national team.

"I'm really really glad that I got a chance to come here because, I mean, they're like my family here --there like my second family. It's a good team as well, which never fails. I know we've been on a run and I'm really happy and proud to be a part of that.

Yemi's parents don't get to see her play, so daily phone calls and Web-cam talks have to suffice.

"When we won the ACC I called my mom and I was like, 'Mom, we won!' And she was like, 'You got to the Final 4?' And I was like, 'Not yet, mom. That's in a couple of weeks.'"

Should the Terps make it to the Final Four, Yemi will get to see St. Louis.

"I've never been so that would be another place to check off. I have a little map and I've shaded in everywhere I've been so far. Every state I've been to, so that's really cool," she said.

 Email To Friend