Around this time a year ago, IU Coach Teri Moren was still trying to find leaders and establish a culture.
It was a team of 11 freshmen and sophomores. Moren said it often became the coaches’ jobs to light a fire and run the show.
But things changed quickly. Moren had one offseason, and she provided a turnaround. The Hoosiers won one out of every four conference games in year one. In year two, they are the No. 4 seed in the Big Ten tournament.
And here’s where things get exciting.
It took time for Moren to build the culture she desired in Bloomington. Now she has a team full of players who understand what she wants the program to be about.
“Now that we’ve established that, it’s the players that are the ones who are going to be talking to the new kids about what our culture looks like and what we’re about,” Moren said.
Now we can find out what the program Moren wants to build at IU looks like.
Things looked genuinely bleak for Moren after the tumultuous offseason of 2015. Now the future looks brighter than ever.
During Moren’s first offseason, four players transferred from IU. They all had their reasons, and they said they didn’t feel like they were a good fit with Moren’s program.
So Moren brought in three transfer players of her own. They were the first players Moren handpicked to be a part of her future program at IU. It provided a look at the kind of players she wants here.
All three — Tia Elbert, Tyshee Towner and Victoria Kemokai — were scrappy guards Moren credited for their defensive ability. Moren said the thing she looked for most were players ready to buy in and understand “what they’re about.”
What exactly is IU women’s basketball about?
“I think each other,” Moren said. “I think the toughness that, you know, we’ve shown. I think we’ve shown that we stick together.”
Since Moren has a team that has bought in and will likely all be returning next year, she said she is excited about seeing what happens when the new players come in. She isn’t struggling to find leaders.
“My job’s going to be a little easier because I’m going to have, you know, kids in place that have tremendous leadership ability and skills,” she said.
Moren is the Big Ten Coach of the Year. Sophomore guard Tyra Buss is first team All-Big Ten. Sophomore forward Amanda Cahill is second team All-Big Ten. People are taking notice, and the foundation is being built.
When Los Angeles Sparks Coach Brian Agler’s daughter Taylor transferred from IU in March 2015, he went out of his way to praise Moren. He said if IU gave her time to build her program, she would have success in Bloomington.
But the most impressive thing with Moren’s turnaround is that time was not something she needed. Last season, she referred to the transition at IU as “by far” her most challenging. Yet it’s still been her quickest turnaround.
It took Moren three years to make Indianapolis a 20-win team. It took four years to win 20 at Indiana State.
It’s taken her two seasons to accomplish the feat at IU.
Now it’s time to see what happens in the future. She has earned Big Ten recognition. Now she can build?
This is a still young IU group that has fought back through difficult tests. It’s beaten teams it wasn’t supposed to. It’s come back from behind time and time again.
The team has talent, toughness and potential to keep growing. Next year it will have more depth and competition.
But Moren will tell you what the key has really been.
“The most important thing this team has done is it’s been about ‘we.’”
brodmill@indiana.edu
