Indiana women’s basketball squares off against Missouri University of Science and Technology at 7 p.m. Monday at Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall.
Coming off its second consecutive loss to the University of South Carolina in the NCAA Tournament to end the 2024-25 season, Indiana starts the season unranked with a team that has undergone large roster turnover.
The Hoosiers lost six players to the transfer portal alongside three players to graduation, including star guard Sydney Parrish. In her final season of eligibility, she racked up an average of 11.6 points and 5.5 rebounds per game as she earned Academic All-Big Ten and All-Big Ten Honorable Mention honors.
In response to losing key pieces of the team, 12th-year head coach Teri Moren recruited six transfer portal players and two high school recruits to fill out the roster and replace what was lost.
Senior guard Shay Ciezki was the only returning player who played significant minutes for the Hoosiers in the 2024-25 season. She averaged 11.8 points, 2.8 assists and shot 93.2% on free throws in her junior season. Despite transferring from Penn State a year ago, she is expected to be a leader on the court as she is one of two seniors on the squad.
Two freshmen, forward Maya Makalusky and guard Neveah Caffey, will get their first chance to make an impact on the court. Caffey in particular received praise from Moren in a press conference Sept. 30, referring to her defense and athleticism as “special” for the team.
After undergoing knee surgery that caused her to miss the entire 2024-25 season, redshirt sophomore guard Lenée Beaumont will receive her first chance on the court since the 2023-24 season. She averaged 3 points and 9.6 minutes per game in 30 matches during her freshman season. While recovering from surgery, Beaumont became a leader of the locker room. Now, she no longer has to lead from the sidelines.
The Hoosiers' first opponent of the season — Missouri S&T — is a Division II school from the Great Lakes Valley Conference. The Miners ended the 2024-25 season with a 15-12 record after suffering a 74-69 loss to Quincy University in the first round of the Great Lakes Valley Conference Tournament.
Missouri S&T is coached by Kira Carter, who enters her sixth season with the Miners. The Miners are coming off their best record during her tenure. Carter’s only other season above .500 was the 2022-23 season, which marked the Miners’ first winning season in a decade with a 15-14 record.
Missouri S&T is headlined by redshirt junior guard Anna Finley and junior forward Norah Gum, who averaged 13.1 and 10.6 points per game, respectively. The Miners have a balanced squad that should serve as a proper test for the Hoosiers to start the season.
The contest at 7 p.m. Monday will be streamed on Big Ten+.
Follow reporters Savannah Slone (@savrivers06 and srslone@iu.edu) and Max Schneider (maxschn@iu.edu) and columnist Sean McAvoy (@sean_mc07 and semcavoy@iu.edu) for updates throughout the Indiana women’s basketball season.
