Coming off an eight-day break, Indiana women’s basketball returned to the hardwood Sunday for a matinee matchup with Bellarmine University inside Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall in Bloomington.
After dominating the first half, the Hoosiers cruised to a 95-61 victory to improve to 8-3 with just one nonconference contest remaining until the full Big Ten slate.
The Cream and Crimson opened the game with a 7-0 run to take an early lead. After the two squads went back and forth for much of the first quarter, Indiana pulled away to a 13-point advantage after 10 minutes.
In the Hoosiers’ Big Ten-opening victory over Penn State on Dec. 7, senior forward Karoline Striplin finished with 27 points and went perfect from the field. She picked up where she left off in the first period Sunday with 8 points to lead the Hoosiers.
Indiana continued to extend its lead in the second quarter thanks in large part to a 19-2 run over nearly five minutes. While the Hoosiers led by 30 points with just less than two minutes until halftime, the Knights went on a 7-1 spurt as they trailed 54-30 at the break.
After a pair of largely dominant quarters, the third period was nearly even as the Hoosiers outscored the Knights by just 4 points as they led by 28 with 10 minutes left.
Indiana controlled the final period, outscoring Bellarmine 19-13 en route to its 34-point victory.
Striplin led all scorers with 18 points as she went 7 for 10 from the field. Junior guard Yarden Garzon and junior forward Lilly Meister tacked on 16 and 11, respectively.
Junior guard Henna Sandvik notched a career-high 13 points as she went 3 for 5 from beyond the arc alongside four rebounds.
The Hoosiers have another week off until their next matchup at noon Dec. 22 against Oakland University inside Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall in Bloomington. The contest will stream on Big Ten+.
Follow reporters Dalton James (@DaltonMJames) and Savannah Slone (@savrivers06) and columnist Ryan Canfield (@RyanCanfieldOnX) for updates throughout the Indiana women’s basketball season.
