After Indiana women’s basketball made a stop on the defensive end of the floor and junior guard Henna Sandvik secured a rebound, Chloe Moore-McNeil ran down the court and sent a pass flying between two Maryland defenders. The pass landed in the hands of Sydney Parrish, who laid it into the hoop for an Indiana basket.
During the two graduate student guards’ senior night, the fans inside Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall let out a cheer and rose to their feet as Parrish’s layup regained the Hoosier’s lead. And with the Hoosier faithful backing it, Indiana had an opportunity to stack momentum if it made a stop on the defensive end.
But just moments later, the roaring fans fell silent. Maryland senior guard Shyanne Sellers made a bucket over Sandvik, which tied the game at 18. Indiana never reclaimed the lead.
Indiana challenged Maryland and the Terrapins answered. But when the roles were reversed, the Hoosiers were unable to match their opponents, and it happened time and again. Their response, or lack thereof, ultimately led to their 60-74 loss to No. 19 Maryland on Thursday at Assembly Hall.
The Hoosiers lacked the resilience they needed to pull off another ranked win inside of Assembly Hall, just like they did against then-No. 22 Michigan State on Feb. 23 at the Breslin Center in East Lansing, Michigan. They were unable to channel the energy from their win at home over then-No. 8 Ohio State on Feb. 20, when the Hoosiers showed growth from their past mistakes against other top opponents.
Unlike in their losses to the Spartans and the Terrapins, the Hoosiers showed toughness when the Buckeyes cut into their lead and didn’t allow Ohio State to take control.
Indiana head coach Teri Moren attributed that lack of consistency to an absence of focus from her squad on the hardwood.
“It's focus, that's what's missing,” Moren said after the loss. “We're not a very focused team. I think when we're really focused, hyper focused, like we were against Ohio State, I think we know what we're capable of.
Without focus, Indiana couldn’t string together the offensive and defensive possessions it needed to withstand a top conference opponent.
While Moren thought the lack of attention wasn’t a problem for the full 40 minutes Indiana was on the court, she recognized it showed intensity too late in the contest.
During the third quarter, Indiana pulled within 2 points of Maryland after a 13-3 run, but the late surge wasn’t enough. Maryland came roaring back and extended its lead to 14 points by the time the final buzzer sounded.
Indiana didn’t have the focus that playing good, solid basketball demanded of it, Moren said, leading her to question her team and its ability to show resilience when they need to most.
“When you face adversity, the last thing you need to be doing is thinking about yourself,” Moren said. “You need to be thinking about your teammates because ultimately that will help you. I don’t know if we’re a team like that, I think we get into our feelings too quick.”
The Hoosiers’ game against Maryland marked the end of a three-game stretch against ranked opponents, which Indiana finished with just one win — over Ohio State — and two losses — against Michigan State and Maryland.
When Indiana entered the stretch, it knew the importance of escaping with at least one win. A couple wins could have vaulted them firmly off the bubble and cemented the Hoosiers in the NCAA Tournament, while three-straight losses could have removed them from tournament talks.
Now, with just one game remaining on its schedule and heading into the postseason, digging for focus and managing individual emotions will be important for Indiana.
If Moren is correct and the emotion of games is one factor that stands in the Hoosiers’ way of finding clarity, their contest against Purdue at 2 p.m. Sunday at Mackey Arena in West Lafayette, Indiana, will pose a test in a road-rivalry environment.
Follow reporters Dalton James (@DaltonMJames) and Savannah Slone (@savrivers06) and columnist Ryan Canfield (@RyanCanfieldOnX) for updates throughout the Indiana women’s basketball season.
