Indiana Women’s Basketball Nonconference Recap, Big Ten Future Outlooks

No. 16 Indiana women’s basketball hosts Illinois Sunday on the Big Ten Network as conference play resumes. Here is a look back at what we learned from nonconference play, a look forward at the Big Ten and thoughts on the roster thus far.

Indiana women’s basketball concluded nonconference play last week by crushing Bowling Green 84-35 and improving to 10-1 this season. It was the ninth consecutive victory for the No. 16th-ranked Hoosiers — a streak which began after they got clobbered at Stanford by 32 points in the second game of the season, the most one-sided loss in years.

Three weeks ago, Indiana defeated Rutgers by 10 points in the conference opener. Now, the Hoosiers will continue Big Ten play for good on the afternoon of New Year’s Eve when they host Illinois. 

With the pause in play, and the full-time transition to the Big Ten, it seems like the perfect time to recap Indiana’s season so far and provide season outlooks.

Nonconference answers? 

Indiana handily beat six nonconference foes at home post-Stanford, which was expected. All were unranked mid-majors and didn’t pose many threats. Still, most of these contests weren’t completely flawless. Indiana gave up 79 points to Murray State, turned the ball over seven times in the first quarter to Lipscomb, and allowed 15 offensive boards to Stetson.

On the road, the Hoosiers ran into the Cardinal bulldozer. Stanford’s post players, Cameron Brink and Kiki Iriafen, scored 20 points each and totaled 28 rebounds. Indiana chucked up 32 three-pointers and bricked 27. The Hoosiers looked dreary, while Stanford shot well from the outside and commanded the paint. On a neutral court, the Hoosiers defeated top-25 Tennessee and receiving votes Princeton. Indiana won each by 10-plus, though Tennessee was riddled with injuries. Princeton is no longer on the outskirts of the top 25.

Princeton is No. 52 in the NET rankings, which stands as Indiana’s best win thus far. That’s not disappointing by any means. Indiana’s defense was superb, limiting Princeton’s pair of guards and leading scorers to 27 points total. But this singular win doesn’t provide long-term answers. Some may point to Maine in the subsequent game — and how the Hoosiers took two steps back by having to gut out the eight-point win after trailing by eight points at halftime. Yet, that takes … guts, especially when the America East Player of the Year scored 34 points.

Then, Indiana took down Rutgers by 10, and defeated Evansville and Bowling Green by a 193-91 combined score. The Hoosiers were decent in Jersey and toughed out the Big Ten road win, though they shot poorly from three and at the line. Rutgers is the second-lowest Big Ten team in the NET, around the 150s. 

Evansville is way lower in the 350s, and Bowling Green’s leading scorer exited within two minutes of the game. The verdict is unclear; that’s too many caveats. Sure, Indiana has played more well-rounded as of late, but the improved play has come against weaker or undermanned foes. That shouldn’t take away from the Princeton and Rutgers victories. Trends are just unclear. 

The Big Ten 

This is perspective. If Princeton is Indiana’s best win by NET rankings, then there’s nine Big Ten teams that land within the top-40. It’s not absurd to say that the defending conference champions aren’t the top dog in the Big Ten. Indiana is fourth on that NET list, behind Iowa, Ohio State, and even Michigan State. Does anyone really know how the conference is going to shape up? The Big Ten may be the biggest crapshoot league for picking the leaders. Yet, what’s entertaining is that the top-nine averaging Big Ten scorers are all on different teams.

Penn State has the No. 7 and No. 10 scorers, and Indiana has the No. 4 in Holmes and No. 11 in sharpshooter Sara Scalia. Besides that, there isn’t much overlap. Of course, this statistic shouldn’t be the final stamp of approval because of the varying strengths of schedule and game plans. But the focal point is that Indiana returned practically all five starters that took home the Big Ten regular-season title in 2022. The Hoosiers can match up with anyone on any given night. There've been obstacles that the team has started to — and must — overcome.

The nonconference objective for the Hoosiers was to work out the kinks. The Big Ten boasts plenty of talented teams, so the strength of schedule is in good shape. Iowa’s Caitlin Clark is averaging 30.5 points per game, and Ohio State’s Jacy Sheldon is just shy of 20. 

The four-way race is likely going to consist of Iowa, Ohio State, Indiana — and Penn State? Once again, there is solid competition everywhere. The first three Big Ten teams in the sentence above are ranked, and three more are receiving votes. Indiana’s benefit is two home Big Ten games to begin. Intriguing matchups conference-wide completely cover this weekend’s slate. 

Indiana’s roster

Indiana has scored 890 points in 11 games. The consequential offseason question was how would the Hoosiers perform in scoring and playmaking without Grace Berger? Closer to the season-opener, I framed this question as can the multi-All-American Holmes stay healthy as the postseason looms? For now, Indiana head coach Teri Moren hasn’t played Holmes more than necessary in the nonconference games, and the coming months will reveal the answer to that question. I’ll alter it once more. How does the absence of Berger impact Indiana’s depth?

It decreases — dramatically.

Even though Scalia was first introduced to Indiana’s offense last season, having the veteran sharpshooter as the team’s sixth-starter option was a luxury. Remove Berger and fill that spot, and bench production plunges. The bench is young. The top four scorers are sophomores or freshmen. Lexus Bargesser’s distinct role is to speed up the game’s tempo. Lilly Meister rebounds well, though she doesn’t play very many minutes. Lenée Beaumont and Julianna LaMendola show promise but are adjusting to the college game. All of the starters are assets, but just five — not six veterans — will be relied upon in marquee games.

Holmes is the team’s leading scorer and is on pace to eclipse the program’s all-time scoring record by season’s end. The forward averages 18.5 points per game, assisted by good footwork and getting to the line. But there’ve been occasions when Holmes has been delayed in reacting to double or even triple-teams, whether that be to score or kick out to the perimeter. She leads the team in turnovers on mostly travel calls. Post-Rutgers win, Holmes took accountability and said that her decision-making to begin the season hasn’t been good.

As much as opponents will try to exploit this, there’s time for the veteran to improve it.

Scalia and Garzon have shown the most explosiveness on offense this season. Within back-to-back games in November, the guards posted their season-highs in points in the 20s range. Just last week, the pair upped that to each putting up 30-plus points in back-to-back games — the first time an Indiana player or players have done so since 2018. The team’s motto is to feed the hot hand, and when Scalia is on fire from three, Indiana is much more difficult to beat. Scalia and Garzon can score inside and out. The latter’s role will be intriguing in the sophomore’s second go-around versus tall Big Ten lineups.

Indiana’s downside is shooting 68% at the free throw line, which as Holmes said, won’t cut it. 

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Indiana hosts Illinois at 12:30 p.m. ET on Sunday, and the game will air on Big Ten Network.

Related Stories on Indiana Women's Basketball 

• INDIANA WOMEN'S BASKETBALL 2023 REWIND: To wrap up 2023, here are the most memorable moments from this past — and ongoing — Indiana women’s basketball seasons. CLICK HERE
• SARA SCALIA HAS CAREER NIGHT, MAKES EIGHT THREES: Indiana women's basketball hosted Bowling Green in the team's nonconference finale Friday night at Assembly Hall. The Hoosiers won 84-35, as Sara Scalia had her best game in an Indiana uniform. CLICK HERE
• INDIANA BEATS EVANSVILLE, GARZON SCORES 30: Indiana beat Evansville Monday night in the return to Assembly Hall. Sophomore Yarden Garzon scored 30 points, and three other starters reached double figure points. CLICK HERE
• INDIANA WINS BIG TEN OPENER: The Hoosiers closed out the victory at Rutgers as four players scored in double-figures. At the postgame press conference, senior Sydney Parrish announced her return for her fifth year. CLICK HERE