Three Takeaways from Indiana's Dominant Wins in Greece
The Indiana women's basketball team didn't miss a beat overseas. Teri Moren's squad handily dispatched the Greek and Patras All Star teams 120-50 and 101-36, respectively, on Thursday and Saturday this past week.
Even without star center Mackenzie Holmes (who the team seemingly sat as just a precautionary measure, not due to any unknown injury), the Hoosiers did whatever they wanted on the court.
Sydney Parrish and Sara Scalia led the way, averaging a team-best 21.5 and 18 points per game in the two contests, respectively. Additionally, sophomore Lexus Bargesser hit double-digit scoring in each game, and freshman Julianna LaMendola showed star potential in the 70-point win over the Greek All Stars.
Sadly, the main headline might be the injury status of Scalia, who left the game against the Patras All Stars late in the fourth quarter after landing awkwardly on her knee. The team has not yet issued an update on Scalia's injury.
Regardless, the in-game performances were unmitigated successes for the Indiana women's basketball team. Here are three highlights that stood out on the games from both Thursday and Saturday:
1. This Team Can Really, Really Shoot
Indiana shot 27-for-74 from three during its two games in Greece.
That might seem super impressive on first glance, but it's a 36.5% mark, which is nothing to scoff at. It's just below Indiana's 36.9% mark from three that is posted during the 2022-23 season, which was good enough for Moren's squad to finish as the 11th-most accurate three-point shooting team in Division I last year.
More impressive, though, is the sheer volume of makes over the course of two games. Indiana made 16 threes against the Greek All Stars and 11 threes against the Patras All Stars. Last season, the Hoosiers only made 11 or more three-pointers on five occasions in their 32 games.
Given, it was a lot easier to get open looks from three against the outmatched competition. Surely, a Big Ten level opponent will not just let Parrish and Scalia camp out from behind the arc all day without putting up more resistance. But still, you have to create the open looks and convert them in an organized, competitive setting, which is never easy.
Here's a two-minute video I posted of every single three-pointer the Indiana women's basketball team made on Thursday and Saturday.
Beautiful shooting strokes all around.
Here are the shooting splits for every player on the team who attempted at least one three during the games in Athens and Patras:
- Sydney Parrish: 10-for-19 from three (52.6%)
- Sara Scalia: 10-for-22 from three (45.5%)
- Julianna LaMendola: 3-for-10 from three (30%)
- Chloe Moore-McNeil: 1-for-4 from three (25%)
- Lenee Beaumont: 1-for-5 from three (20%)
- Yarden Garzon: 2-for-11 from three (18.2%)
- Lexus Bargesser: 0-for-3 from three (0%)
It's clear Parrish and Scalia carried the bulk of the shooting load in Greece, but they're not the only good shooters on this team. Garzon is a proven deadeye, having converted 45.8% of her three-point attempts as a freshman last season. Additionally, LaMendola shot 3-for-6 from three in the first game before an 0-for-4 performance tanked her percentage for the foreign tour.
This team should be plenty capable of spacing the floor around Holmes in 2023-24.
2. The Passing Skills of Chloe Moore-McNeil
With Grace Berger taking her awesome post entry passes and pick-and-roll skills to the WNBA, one of Indiana's guards has to step forward and be even more of a ball handler in 2023-24.
Enter Chloe Moore-McNeil.
Obviously, Moore-McNeil already handled and distributed plenty for the Hoosiers last season, averaging 4.8 assists per game, second-best on the team behind Berger.
But in Thursday and Saturday's games against the Greek and Patras All Stars, the senior guard showed off just how special of a passer she can be.
Even though Hoosiers' fans won't get the treat of watching Berger carve up defenses with pristine passing anymore, expect Moore-McNeil to throw some sweet dimes throughout the 2023-24 season.
3. How Indiana Keeps Getting Scalia Open Threes
Everyone on the court knows Scalia can shoot. In four seasons playing at Minnesota and Indiana, the 5-foot-10 guard has made 267 total threes and converted them at a 37.3% clip.
So how does she keep getting open?
Really it's just off basic actions and good spacing principles instilled by Moren. Indiana's four non-centers are almost always spread equally around the three-point line, and they know how to move and relocate to get each other open.
Scalia kept getting open from the slot during the games against the Greek and Patras All Stars by having fellow sharpshooter Parrish set flare screens for her over and over again.
Having your two best shooters screen for each other is an easy way to create deadly offense for your team. No opponent wants to leave either Scalia or Parrish open from three for even a second. Additionally, Parrish as the screener poses a threat to slip to the rim and finish in the paint, as she's more than capable finishing amongst the trees standing at 6-foot-2.
To the surprise of no Indiana women's basketball fan, the Hoosiers should be in great hands in 2023-24 with Moren at the helm and players like Scalia and Parrish on her roster.
Related Stories on Indiana Basketball
- IU MAKES TOP 7 FOR 5-STAR GUARD: 2024 five-star guard Mikayla Blakes announced her top seven schools on Saturday, and Teri Moren and the Indiana Hoosiers made the cut. CLICK HERE
- SCALIA INJURED IN IU WIN: The Indiana women's basketball won 101-36 over the Patras All Stars in Greece, but near the end of the game, senior guard Sara Scalia had to exit the game with an apparent injury. CLICK HERE
- LAMENDOLA MIGHT BE ANOTHER IU BASKETBALL STAR: In the team's first game of their foreign tour in Greece, Teri Moren's Indiana Hoosiers won 120-50, and freshman Julianna LaMendola looked like an absolute star. Here are some quick highlights from the newcomers' 15-point performance. CLICK HERE
