EVANSTON, Ill. — Northwestern outplayed Indiana women’s basketball in many areas of play. The Wildcats outrebounded the Hoosiers, had fewer turnovers and a higher shooting percentage.
But even though Northwestern put together a strong performance against Indiana, it wasn’t enough to upset an experienced Hoosier team Wednesday.
And while the Hoosiers left Welsh-Ryan Arena with a 68-64 win over the Wildcats, it was a battle between the two Big Ten opponents. The Hoosiers shot just 39% from the field and 36% from the 3-point line. Junior guard Shay Ciezki led all scorers with 20 points — 16 of which came during the second half, which helped combat Indiana’s shooting woes throughout the contest.
“Like I said to the kids, winning is hard,” head coach Teri Moren said postgame. “It’s hard at home, it’s hard on the road, and our margin of error is really small, and so, we’ve got to be much better, but we’re happy that we’re going to get out of here with the win tonight.”
But even with low shooting percentages and getting outrebounded, Moren pointed out another area where the Hoosiers will need to improve: assists.
“Our assists still not where I need them to be,” Moren said. “I mean 18’s great, but we need to be upper 20s. We went on that streak there where we had a couple games of 25, 26, 27 (assists), and I think that when we’re sharing the ball like that, we’re a really good ball team.”
This isn’t the only time Moren has stressed the importance of spreading the ball around. After Indiana’s win over Wisconsin on Dec. 28, when it had 25 assists on 32 made baskets, Moren once again emphasized that Indiana is a better team when it has a high number of assists.
Finding a way to win on the road without their best shooting performance is something the Hoosiers will have to continue to do against Big Ten teams, not only on the road, but at home, too.
Not only does Moren view these contests as must-win games, but she also said it is an expectation for Indiana to win tough matchups. Her key to winning those games is keeping up the team’s energy.
“You got to be able to create your own energy, as we always tell our kids … how can we create that same type of energy inside all of us,” Moren said. “And then have it collectively where we’re guarding together, collectively, as one unit, as one team, and then the ability to knock down shots, share the ball.”
With a matchup against No. 24 Iowa looming Sunday, the Hoosiers will once again need to create their own energy on the road against a conference opponent.
“There’s going to be a lot of break battles in the Big Ten just because, I mean, it’s the best league in the country,” Moren said. “You got to throw out the records, I always say that, throw out the records.”
The matchup between the Hoosiers (11-4, 3-1 Big Ten) and the Hawkeyes (12-3, 2-2 Big Ten) is set to tipoff at 3 p.m. Sunday at Carver-Hawkeye Arena in Iowa City, Iowa, and will stream on Peacock.
Follow reporters Dalton James (@DaltonMJames) and Savannah Slone (@savrivers06) and columnist Ryan Canfield (@RyanCanfieldOnX) for updates throughout the Indiana women’s basketball season.
