No. 8 Indiana women’s basketball beat No. 6 Maryland 70-63 on Sunday at Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall. Entering the game, Indiana held an 0-11 all-time record against Maryland.
Throughout the 2021-22 season, defense has been a point of emphasis for the Hoosiers. The Terrapins came into the game averaging 82.8 points per game, good for ninth-best in the country among Division-I programs. On Sunday, the Hoosiers held the Terrapins to nearly 20 points below that average and only allowed them to shoot 36%.
“I think we made them earn everything they got,” graduate student guard Ali Patberg said. “Right now, it doesn’t seem real. But we knew coming in that we could do it and we just needed to execute, and we did.”
After the third quarter ended with the teams tied at 45, Indiana started the fourth quarter on a 7-0 run and built the lead to 9 points with under three minutes left. Across the final minutes of regulation, Maryland outscored Indiana 10-1 and senior guard Grace Berger missed a turnaround midrange jumper as time expired to send the game to overtime.
Indiana held Maryland to just 24% shooting in the second half and overtime, where Maryland shot 0-7. Indiana’s lockdown defense and strong free-throw shooting in the extra period allowed the team to secure the victory in front of a boisterous home crowd.
“I thought we were terrific defensively,” head coach Teri Moren said. “We controlled the pace. We wanted this game to be in the sixties for them and really wanted to limit their shot opportunities.”
Patberg led Indiana in scoring with 18 points, followed by senior forward Aleksa Gulbe with 17 points and 10 rebounds. Junior forward Mackenzie Holmes also recorded a double-double with 15 points and 14 rebounds. Sophomore forward Angel Reese led Maryland with 22 points and 12 rebounds before she fouled out in overtime.
The crowd of 5,572 made its presence known throughout the game, booing loudly whenever a call went against Indiana and rising to its feet when the team went on a run.
“I just want to give a huge shoutout and appreciation and thank you to the fans that I thought showed up in a big way today to support our group,” Moren said.
Indiana played without three of its bench players: sophomore guard Chloe Moore-McNeil, freshman guard Kaitlin Peterson and freshman guard Keyarah Berry.
Indiana’s bench played a combined one minute in the second half and overtime. All five starters played over 40 minutes, led by Patberg and Berger who played all 45 minutes.
“We’re always going to stay together whether we have 6 people or all 12 people,” Holmes said. “All we have is each other at the end of the day.”
Sophomore forward Kiandra Browne only recorded two points but drew three offensive fouls in her seven minutes of play off the bench. Moren said Browne is willing to play whatever role the coaches need her to play to help the team win.
“If that’s playing 25 minutes or playing five minutes it doesn’t matter, she’s going to try and come in and impact the game,” Moren said. “She’s an energy player for us.”
Indiana’s next game is Wednesday against Wisconsin in Madison, Wisconsin. Tip-off is scheduled for 7:30 p.m., and the game will air on BTN+.
