Indiana Might Have Found Another Star Freshman in Julianna LaMendola
All of the caveats and qualms about the level of competition the team faced apply, but even then — it was very impressive to watch Teri Moren's Indiana Hoosiers stomp the Greek All Stars 120-50 in Athens.
Led by 22 points from senior forward Sydney Parrish, IU cruised to a 70-point win on Thursday, even with first team All-American center Mackenzie Holmes not playing in the game.
The tour Moren's squad is taking through Greece is much more about the experience than it is the hoops, in fairness. The Hoosiers are only playing two total games during their 10 days abroad (the second of which is happening on Aug. 5, Saturday afternoon), and none of the competition they'll see is anything to write home about it.
However, one player who stuck out as particularly impressive in her minutes on Thursday was freshman Julianna LaMendola.
The first-year from Texas finished the game against the Greek All Stars with 15 points, five rebounds, three steals and two assists while shooting 6-for-9 from the floor and 3-for-6 from three.
As it did for most of the players wearing crimson and cream on Thursday, the shooting stood out for LaMendola. She was eager moving off the ball and calling for teammates to pass it to her whenever she found herself open, ready to catch and fire with good pre-shot footwork.
Her shot form looks very clean as well. No elbows jutting out where they shouldn't be. Clean flick of the right wrist directly in a straight line toward the basket she's shooting at. No weird placement of her guide hand that negatively effects the shot's trajectory.
She does start her shot form by placing the ball ever so slightly beneath her chin, likely to generate a touch more power on her long distance shots, but it's the same motion every time she shoots and has no discernible hitch.
TLDR — her shot is pure.
But LaMendola displayed more than just supreme shooting prowess during the 40 minutes of play in Athens. The freshman also showed understanding for how to use the threat of her shot to access other strengths in her game.
Midway through the second quarter, LaMendola was bringing the ball up the court, and her on-ball defender was backed up a good bit into the paint. For a moment, LaMendola pounded the ball with her right hand, looking like she might launch another triple.
Instead, she waited for her defender to jump out at her in an uncontrollable manner, giving LaMendola an easy blow-by drive and a beautiful no-look drop-off pass to Sharneece Currie-Jelks for free throws.
The crossover and pass was so nice, it wouldn't be crazy for one to call it Grace Berger-like.
It's important to not get too carried away. Indiana was clearly head and shoulders above the Greek All Stars, and production and playing time from this game won't directly correlate to what happens in the actual season. Heck, last year's breakout freshman star — Yarden Garzon — came off the bench and just played spot minutes, even though it's known she'll serve a major role for the team in 2023-24. What happened on Thursday doesn't directly impact what will happen in Big Ten play.
But regardless, LaMendola made about the best first impression that she possibly could have. She shot well, she made plays for others and — in typical fashion for this Indiana team — she hustled like crazy on the defensive end of the floor.
Nothing is for certain this many months away from the season's start, but after Thursday's performance, it sure seems like Moren and Co. found another star freshman in Julianna LaMendola.
The second and final game of the Indiana women's basketball foreign tour in Greece can be watched here at this YouTube livestream link on Saturday, the same link where the team's first game was broadcast.
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