The third quarter has been a struggle for Indiana women’s basketball in multiple games this season. During the third frame, the Hoosiers have surrendered more points than they have scored in their previous four Big Ten games.
So, against No. 25 Nebraska, it seemed it was bound to happen again. The Cornhuskers averaged 19 points in the third frame against conference opponents. Indiana averaged 10.8.
But on Thursday, the opposite was true. The Hoosiers surged in the third quarter and outscored Nebraska 23-15.
It led to a tie game entering the fourth quarter — 53-53. It was a chance for Indiana to pick up its first Big Ten win after starting 0-4 in conference play.
But the fourth quarter was far from perfect, and the Hoosiers needed perfection. Nebraska scored 25 points while knocking down three 3-pointers. Indiana only produced 20 points and one triple in the final 10 minutes. The difference resulted in the Hoosiers losing 78-73 to another Big Ten opponent.
All Nebraska needed to turn the tide against Indiana — and awaken the crowd inside Pinnacle Bank Arena in Lincoln, Nebraska — was a 2:34 stretch in the middle of the fourth quarter.
It started at 5:32 on the clock. Indiana had just taken a 63-62 lead. Senior guard Shay Ciezki made a post entry pass to sophomore forward Zania Socka-Nguemen, who had a soft touch off the glass to put the Hoosiers in front.
But on the other end, Indiana’s defense couldn’t hold its lead. Nebraska sophomore guard Britt Prince drove into the lane and caught Indiana senior guard Jerni Kiaku sleeping. Prince kicked the ball out, and the 5-foot-7 Kiaku didn’t have enough time to close out against Nebraska junior guard Logan Nissley’s 3-point basket.
The pendulum swung toward the Cornhuskers, but Ciezki’s experience helped Indiana stay in the game. She’s playing her fourth season in the Big Ten — two at Penn State, two at Indiana — and has averaged 11.3 points against Nebraska. A pull-up jumper from Ciezki, which was her 31st point of the game, tied the contest at 65-65.
It seemed the pieces for Indiana finally clicked together in Big Ten play.
Nope. Prince had an open jump shot on the other end of the court. A screen and fatigue slowed down Indiana freshman guard Nevaeh Caffey defensively. Caffey had to “chase Britt Prince around all night,” Indiana head coach Teri Moren said postgame, leading her to ball watch.
However, Caffey had a chance to respond on the offensive end. She drove to the basket and put up a contested layup that wound up being blocked. Still, Indiana regained possession after the ball went out of bounds, but a traveling violation on junior forward Edessa Noyan gave the ball to the Cornhuskers.
It was a costly mistake for Noyan, who scored zero points in her 16 minutes on the court. And it became even more detrimental as a reverse layup from junior forward Jessica Petrie put Nebraska up 69-65.
Then, a missed jumper off the bounce from Indiana redshirt sophomore guard Lenée Beaumont was corralled by Nissley. And an open 3-pointer from Nebraska senior guard Callin Hake all but ended Indiana’s chances at winning the game.
“The two back-to-back threes are, I think, what really kind of broke our back,” Moren said postgame Thursday. “At that point in the game, it’s all hands are on deck. You better be ready to move and rotate with urgency. We just can’t let those things happen.”
But they did happen Thursday. Nebraska opened the game knocking down four 3-pointers in the first quarter.
That’s not unusual for a team that’s fourth in the Big Ten in 3-point percentage (36.7%) and first in conference games (41.2%). The Cornhuskers also have four players inside the top 50 in the Big Ten for 3-pointers made per game this season.
However, Indiana flipped the script. The Hoosiers held up defensively in the second and third quarters. They restricted Nebraska to just a 1-for-5 and 0-for-4 performance beyond the arc in those frames, respectively.
The defense could have been carried into the fourth quarter, but it wasn’t. The Cornhuskers went 3 for 6 from 3-point range on their way to a win. When Indiana needed to lock down the opposition the most, it couldn’t.
“You have to inspire the person sitting next to you that this is our game,” Moren said postgame. “This is how we’re going to win it and we all have to believe it.”
It’s a good way to look at it postgame. But there was no belief in this group Thursday after they fell behind in the fourth quarter.
Yes, it’s a young group that lacks experience playing against the physicality and talent of the Big Ten. It’s a demanding task as the Big Ten is the first conference to have nine teams ranked in three different Associated Press polls in a single season.
Winning in the Big Ten is hard. Indiana previously hadn’t put itself in a position to win games against conference opponents this season. The Hoosiers showed potential Thursday, but ultimately succumbed to fourth quarter woes. It’s a step in the right direction, but with a 0-5 start in conference, how many steps does Indiana need before it finally wins a game against a Big Ten team?
I’ll answer my own question. A lot.
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.
