With 8.2 seconds left on the clock, the Indiana University Women’s Basketball team took the lead for the first time since trailing by 8, with 3 minutes remaining in regulation. They would go on to beat Purdue and retain the Barn Burner Trophy in their 73-68 overtime thriller in West Lafayette on January 16th . . . and that was the last time the Hoosiers have played.
Between health and safety protocols within the IU and Illinois programs, the past 3 scheduled games have been postponed. Indiana will be looking to reschedule their matchups against Michigan State, Iowa, and Illinois.
The 15-day break has been challenging, as Indiana has had all but 4 in their program test positively for the latest variant of Covid-19; 3 of the 4 who have managed to steer away are staff members.
“Like a tidal wave, [Coronavirus] took a lot of us out,” said IU Head Coach Teri Moren.
This 2-week plus interval between regular season games is the longest stretch that Coach Moren has experienced in her 30 years of experience, but she says the past week has been productive in terms of workouts and preparations. Even though the majority of the team began showing symptoms after returning from the Purdue game, a few had already gone through their bouts, and were on the mend. They were able to come out of quarantine and begin workouts first.
According to Coach, the players able to workout went through some half-court drills to keep up their stamina and endurance. “We would cheer for the days that we could add another player to our practice, and then another day, and another,” said Moren, describing the process of getting her team back and conditioned. “We’ve been back for some time, now, about a week of togetherness.”
“Nobody is ‘chompin’ at the bit’ to get back on the floor more than this group,” Moren described the team’s readiness to play. After the Illinois game was postponed this past Thursday, the Hoosiers had to shift their sight once again, to Michigan. And from the confidence Coach Moren displayed just 2 hours before boarding for their trip to Ann Arbor, one can presume that #6 Indiana is well prepared for tonight’s battle against #7 Michigan.
Michigan (18-2, 9-1) is on a six-game win streak heading into tonight’s matchup after sweeping the yearly series with Ohio State. They are led by Senior Forward Naz Hillmon’s 20.2 points and 8.9 rebounds per game, Senior Guard Leigha Brown’s (from Auburn Indiana) 15.1 points per game, and Noblesville, Indiana native Senior Guard Emily Kiser’s 10.3 points per game. The Wolverines average 73.6 points per game and shoot 46.0 percent from the field.
The Hoosiers will look for continued productivity in the paint from Senior Forward Aleksa Gulbe, as All-American Forward Mackenzie Holmes is still out after undergoing a knee procedure. Additionally, successful perimeter ball movement on offense, and preventing second chance opportunities on defense, will be pivotal for IU in this nationally televised (ESPN2) match-up against two top ten teams. Expect significant rotation between Forward Kiandra Browne in the 3-2 set, and Guard Chloe Moore-McNeil in the smaller, 4-guard set.
Indiana (14-2, 6-0) has won its last nine-straight games this season and 15-straight Big Ten games dating back to January 4, 2020. In addition, its 12-game road win streak is the second longest in the nation and also dates back to January 2020. Defensively, IU has held each of their opponents this season to under 70 points.
Tip-off is in Ann Arbor tonight at 7pm.
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