At 4:17 p.m, Sunday, sophomore guard Yarden Garzon tossed graduate student forward Mackenzie Holmes a post-entry pass with 1:22 seconds left in the third quarter. Holmes corralled the pass on the right block but landed awkwardly on her left leg. She hobbled in a circle before hobbling to the northwest corner of the court. Moments later, she limped to the bench and went into the locker room.
Just 22 minutes later, freshman guard Julianna LaMendola fired a right-handed pass to sophomore forward Lilly Meister at the right block with 3:32 seconds left. Meister hauled in the pass, took one dribble before attempting a layup, then she too landed awkwardly, and injured her left ankle.
No. 14 Indiana women’s basketball’s matchup with Maryland on Sunday marked the final regular season home game of the season. The contest also marked another chapter in Indiana’s and Holmes’ string of late-season injuries — now three consecutive campaigns.
Holmes suffered a knee injury Jan. 5, 2022, against Wisconsin that required a knee procedure which caused her to miss eight games. She also injured her knee in the 2023 Big Ten Tournament and sat out the first round of the NCAA Tournament.
"She’s certainly had some bad luck, especially in late February,” Indiana head coach Teri Moren said postgame. “We’re going to be hopeful and optimistic that it will turn out the way that we want it to.”
Holmes managed to limp off the court, later returning to the bench with 1:15 left in the game.
Meister, on the other hand, needed help to get off the hardwood.
The Rochester, Minnesota, native looked unable to put weight on her left ankle, however she remained on the bench for the rest of the game.
“Day-to-day as far as where [Holmes and Meister are] at,” Moren said. “The evaluation is going to be ongoing right now.”
In the just over three minutes that the Hoosiers were without the pair of forwards, Moren opted to move Garzon to the five and play a small lineup as the Israel native displayed her versatility.
If Holmes misses any action in Indiana’s upcoming games, the Hoosiers would be without their leading scorer this season — averaging 20.7 points per game.
Although Meister averages just 3.9 points per game, she plays an important role in giving Holmes stints on the bench.
Sunday isn’t the first time this season that Indiana has dealt with injuries. Senior guard Sydney Parrish suffered an injury in practice two days before playing against Purdue on Jan. 21. She went on to miss seven games as sophomore guard Lexus Bargesser filled in for the Fishers, Indiana, native.
While Parrish has since returned to the lineup and seems to be back to her normal self, Indiana could now be without a pair of impactful players in the future.
Luckily for the Hoosiers, they have a four-day gap between games. They’ll begin their quest for a Big Ten Tournament title on Friday, approximately 25 minutes after the 6:30 ET matchup.
“The great thing is that we have some time here. We got the double bye so we’re not playing until Friday, so we do have some good time here,” Moren said. “The bigger picture also is the NCAA Tournament. So, we have a lot to think about, certainly the Big Ten Tournament but beyond that as well.”
Follow reporters Dalton James (@DaltonMJames) and Quinn Richards (@Quinn_richa), columnist Ryan Canfield (@_ryancanfield) and photographer Olivia Bianco (@theoliviabianco) for updates throughout the Indiana women’s basketball season.
