Northwestern Women’s Basketball Travels to Indiana for Sunday Big Ten Matchup
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As the calendar turns to February, the Northwestern women’s basketball team finds itself deep in the heart of a demanding Big Ten gauntlet. Still searching for consistent traction in a crowded conference race, the Wildcats enter Sunday afternoon facing another road challenge. Northwestern is sitting at 8-13 overall and 2-8 in Big Ten play. They head to Bloomington for a matchup against the Indiana Hoosiers. Especially inside the historic Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall.
Northwestern Women's Basketball Will Be Prepping to Show How a Game is Played
This contest closes out a difficult stretch for the Northwestern Wildcats. This will also mark its third road game in a span of four outings. For a team looking to stabilize its season and climb the conference standings.
February Hoops 🔜
— Northwestern Women’s Basketball (@nuwbball) January 30, 2026
🆚 Indiana
🗓️ Sunday, February 1
📍 Bloomington, Ind.
🆚 USC
🗓️ Thursday, February 5
🎟️ https://t.co/t9LtHHaemb pic.twitter.com/Cz0svh572n
And for Sunday's match, the team is about to represent more than just another game. It is a chance to capture momentum before returning home to Evanston.
Indiana, on the other hand, enters February in an unfamiliar position. The Hoosiers are 11-11 overall. However, the team remains winless in conference play at 0-10, riding a 10-game Big Ten skid.
Against Northwestern, Indiana will be looking to finally break through and secure its first league victory of the season. In short, it is now safe to say that the Wildcat's fans will get to witness an amazing show in a few hours.
Looking Over Their Series History and Recent Meetings
If talking about history, then it favours Indiana more before entering Sunday’s matchup. It is because the Hoosiers hold a 46-39 advantage across 85 all-time meetings. With that, the team has even won seven straight games against Northwestern. Indiana has also claimed the last two matchups against the Wildcats at Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall.
Nonetheless, the Northwestern Wildcats' last win in Bloomington, which came on January 16, 2020, was commendable as well. It was when the Wildcats rallied from a 12-point fourth-quarter deficit to earn a dramatic 71-69 overtime victory. Last season, the teams met at Welsh-Ryan Arena in a defensive battle. That's also where Northwestern held a one-point lead with just over 90 seconds remaining. However, at the last moment, they favoured Indiana. It is because they pulled away for a 68-64 win.
Northwestern enters Sunday aiming to bounce back from an 89-73 road loss at Nebraska. Despite the defeat, the game marked a significant milestone. It happened when senior Grace Sullivan surpassed 1,000 career points. Sullivan led the Wildcats with 16 points while adding five rebounds and a block. This performance is her 19th double-figure scoring performance of the season.
Tayla Thomas paced Northwestern with 19 points and eight rebounds against Nebraska. Mentioning that, she narrowly missed her sixth double-double while adding a career-high three steals. Casey Harter continued her strong stretch with 14 points in 40 minutes, and Caroline Lau added 11 points, six rebounds, and four assists.
Sunday’s game tips off at 1 p.m. CT as Northwestern looks to close its road swing. Especially on a positive note, before returning home to host USC on February 5.
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Shayni Maitra is a sports girl through and through writing about everything from locker room drama to game-day legends in the NFL and NBA. She’s covered the action for outlets like College Sports Network, Sportskeeda, EssentiallySports, NB Media, and PinkVilla, blending sharp takes with a deep love for storytelling. Whether it’s college football rivalries, Olympic gold-chasers, or the off-field chaos that keeps Twitter alive, Shayni brings the heat with heart—and just the right amount of humor.