Indiana women’s basketball went all of January without a win. Then, the Hoosiers won three straight games. A two-game hiccup in Los Angeles set them back, but Indiana closed its season with three more wins.
The 6-2 record in February took the Hoosiers from the outside looking in on the Big Ten Tournament to earning the No. 13 seed with a 6-12 conference record.
The No. 13 seed gave Indiana a first-round contest against No. 12-seeded Nebraska at 3:30 p.m. Wednesday at Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis. Nebraska finished the regular season at 18-11 overall and 7-11 in the Big Ten.
In the first contest between Indiana and Nebraska, the Cornhuskers won 78-73 on Jan. 8 at Pinnacle Bank Arena in Lincoln, Nebraska, which marked the Hoosiers’ fifth conference loss of the season.
After the contest, Indiana head coach Teri Moren continued to preach that her young squad needed to be focused on the process; results would follow.
It took six more games before those results came — an 89-75 win over Northwestern on Feb. 1. But when they did, they stayed, and the Hoosiers kept winning.
The recent wins are a testament to Indiana’s development throughout the season. As a team with two freshmen in the starting lineup and eight total newcomers, it took time for the Hoosiers to find their rhythm in the Big Ten, which has seven teams in the Associated Press’ top-25 poll.
The Hoosiers’ February turnaround has come with a more balanced scoring attack. Senior guard Shay Ciezki ranks second in the Big Ten in points per game with 23.2. Her mark is only behind Ohio State sophomore guard Jaloni Cambridge, who averages 23.4 points per contest.
Behind Ciezki, though, Indiana didn’t have many scoring options through the first part of conference play.
Through the first 10 Big Ten games, redshirt sophomore guard Lenée Beaumont averaged 11.7 points per game, while freshman forward Maya Makalusky and freshman guard Nevaeh Caffey averaged 8.7 and 7.6 points per contest, respectively.
All three of their numbers jumped during the Hoosiers' last eight conference contests. Beaumont averaged 13.6, Makalusky averaged 14.5 and Caffey averaged 11.1 points per game.
The multiple scoring options were evident in Indiana’s regular season finale against Penn State on Saturday in Bloomington. While Ciezki recorded 29 points — her 20th game of 20 or more points this season — three other Hoosiers scored in double figures in the Hoosiers’ 93-59 win. Beaumont and Caffey scored 18 points, while Makaluksy had 15.
Aside from the guards, junior forward Edessa Noyan has made strides as the Hoosiers’ primary interior presence.
Noyan earned the backup role at the beginning of the season behind sophomore forward Zania Socka-Nguemen. However, Socka-Nguemen battled foot injuries this season and has been out indefinitely since late January. In her absence, Noyan has slotted into the starting lineup.
She initially struggled against Big Ten competition and received much criticism from Moren, but Noyan’s improvements have been impactful for the Hoosiers.
In Indiana’s six conference wins, she averaged 8.7 points and 8.2 rebounds per game. In Big Ten losses, those numbers dropped to 4.3 points and 4.6 rebounds.
Meet the Cornhuskers
Nebraska opened the season with 13 straight wins. It was 5-5 in the Big Ten ahead of February, but the Cornhuskers started the month with six straight losses before picking up two wins against Washington and Rutgers to close the regular season en route to earning the No. 12 seed.
Nebraska is projected to be one of the last four teams to make the NCAA Tournament field, according to ESPN’s Charlie Creme’s latest Bracketology released March 2.
The Cornhuskers are led by sophomore guard Britt Prince, who averaged 17.3 points per game throughout the regular season and ranked 12th in the conference. She shot 54.3% from the field, 45.6% from 3-point range and 90.1% from the free-throw line this season. Prince recorded 20 points off 6-for-11 shooting with seven assists against the Hoosiers in January.
Tipoff
Tipoff between Indiana and Nebraska is slated for 3:30 p.m. Wednesday at Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis. The contest will stream on Peacock. If the Hoosiers defeat the Cornhuskers, they’ll play No. 5-seeded Ohio State on Thursday.
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.
