With a busy preseason and an exhibition win already under its belt, No. 23 IU will officially begin its regular season with a pair of games this weekend at Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall.
The Hoosiers will play their first game of the new season Friday night when they are hosts to Presbyterian at 7 p.m. On Sunday afternoon, Vanderbilt will come to Bloomington as IU’s first major conference opponent of the season for a 2 p.m. tipoff.
Both Vanderbilt and Presbyterian return their top four scorers from last season, so their strengths from last year should carry over into the upcoming season. One thing both teams did well last season was shoot the three, and IU Coach Teri Moren said her team will have to keep the perimeter locked down all weekend.
“We’re not looking ahead to Vanderbilt, but certainly we know we have to guard the 3-point line both Friday and Sunday,” Moren said. “The thing about Presbyterian, though, they’re kind of hybrid players and they don’t have a true post player, so they can all step out and shoot the three.”
Presbyterian was 41st out of 344 Divison I teams in the country last season in terms of most 3s attempted at nearly 23 3s per game. Sophomore guard Taylor Petty was last year’s leading scorer for the Blue Hose and by far their most active long-range shooter, tallying 74 made threes in 223 attempts during the season.
Vanderbilt, on the other hand, opts for efficiency with its 3s and shot 37 percent from deep last year, which was good for 16th in the NCAA. The Commodores’ backcourt of junior guards Christa Reed and Rachel Bell will anchor the team as the two leading scorers from last season. The duo combined for more than 20 points per game.
Both Moren and sophomore forward Kym Royster said the quick turnaround between games is tricky for planning purposes but not much of an issue in the way of player fatigue. Royster said the biggest thing when prepping for two games in three days is to take full advantage of practice time during the week.
“We just have to come into every practice focused and ready to work,” Royster said. “We can’t have any days of practice where we’re not good as a team collectively. We’ve got to always look forward to coming in and getting things done.”
If the Hoosiers do get tired, they can lean on their deep bench to stay fresh and competitive. With seven guards who saw at least 10 minutes of playing time in IU’s exhibition win against University of Indianapolis, Moren has a wide range of players to help keep up with Presbyterian and Vanderbilt on the perimeter.
Moren said the starting lineup for Friday’s game will be close to a game-time decision. She has said the lineup and rotations will remain fluid in the early part of the season but nine or 10 players would be in the regular rotation Friday.
With both Vanderbilt and Presbyterian coming off 18-win seasons and returning most key players, Moren said the opening weekend should present a healthy challenge for her team.
IU went 14-0 at home last year, so Moren said she anticipates every visiting team who comes to Bloomington this season will be anxious to end the Hoosiers’ streak. On Friday night, Presbyterian will get the first crack at playing streak-stopper.
“Presbyterian will be a great first game for us. They bring some tremendous challenges,” Moren said. “I would anticipate, just like anybody else that comes in here, that we’re going to get their best.”
