After a lengthy road trip, No. 14 IU returned home to Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall. On a night where it saw offensive struggles in both halves, the one constant was its defense as it defeated the University of North Florida 72-45.
“It’s very important to come protect our house, playing at home again after a long trip, so we wanted to do that,” junior guard Jaelynn Penn said after the game.
The defense picked up right where it left off last game, where it held the University of Miami to just 45 points, including just 20 in the second half. IU used that second-half momentum to charge up the defense in its first home game since Nov. 17.
Right out of the gate, you could almost tell defense would be the storyline, and it was. IU forced 19 turnovers and accumulated eight steals and three blocks. All night long, North Florida seemed baffled on offense, having bad possessions and taking poor shots.
North Florida got the scoring going with a 3-pointer just over a minute into the game but went ice cold after that. The Ospreys struggled to put the ball in the hoop as they had 11 straight misses throughout the rest of the first quarter. It wasn’t until there were just 25 seconds left in the quarter that they hit another shot, bringing their point total to just six.
The most impressive part is that North Florida didn’t shoot any free throws in the first quarter. IU showed great discipline on the defensive end, forcing North Florida to take contested shots. Twelve of those 14 shots were no good, allowing IU to get on offense.
The problem for IU in the first half is that its offense was seemingly nowhere to be found. The Hoosiers scored just 28 points in the first half, their lowest first-half total on the year. They scored more points against two top-five teams just last week. Luckily for head coach Teri Moren’s team, the defense was there to pick up the lacking .
Moren said that games like this are when the team relies on its identity as a defensive team.
"On the nights that our shots aren't falling or things aren't going as smoothly as we would like, the one thing that we can control is our effort and our energy and our discipline and being sound on that end,” Moren said.
The effort, energy and discipline were all there as IU held North Florida to 19 first-half points. That’s its third-lowest total for a half all season. It also allowed no points off of free throws by playing extremely disciplined basketball.
The second half did see some defensive struggles as the Ospreys shot 12 free throws compared to just two in the first half. But IU buckled down and kept the pressure on.
IU stole the ball seven times in the second half after only having one steal in the first. Those defensive efforts led to offensive opportunities that IU desperately needed after a lackluster first half. Six different Hoosiers had a steal, showing just how good this team is from top to bottom. That type of chemistry is developed both on and off the court.
“We have a relationship off the floor which means we can get in each others faces offensively and defensively in the game and energize each other, and we know at the end of the day we have each others’ backs.” senior forward Brenna Wise said.
In the end, IU showed a consistent defensive effort, where it allowed 7-27 shooting in both halves, to win this game. When the offense struggled, the defense picked it up. And when the offense starting to catch fire, the defense caught fire with it.
The defense held its second straight opponent to 45 points. If the Hoosiers can keep playing defense at that high of a level, they are going to be a big problem for every team standing in their way.
