Maryland's Brenda Frese, Oluchi Okananwa Address Viral Video of Sideline Exchange in March Madness

Maryland women's basketball head coach Brenda Frese discussed her viral sideline moment with junior guard Oluchi Okananwa during March Madness.

"I needed to jolt her," Frese told TMZ Sports.

Okananwa also confirmed that the interaction with her head coach gave her more energy moving forward.

"She put life back in me," Okananwa told TMZ Sports.

In the third quarter of Maryland's 74-66 loss to North Carolina in the second round of the 2026 NCAA women's tournament on Sunday, Frese gave Okananwa an intense pep talk on the sideline.

While the Terrapins ultimately lost the contest, Okananwa scored seven points in the third quarter and six in the fourth.

She finished with a team-high 21 points to go along with six rebounds and two steals, shooting 9-of-18 from the field.

Okananwa confirmed that she was "100 percent in my head" prior to Frese's message, per TMZ Sports.

Despite the Terrapins' relatively early March Madness exit compared to past seasons, Okananwa put together an impressive junior year.

She averaged 17.8 points, 5.4 rebounds and 2.2 steals per game while connecting on 51.8 percent of her field-goal attempts.