We’re moving forward, that’s it!”
– IU Senior Guard Aleksa Gulbe
It wasn’t the prettiest of wins, but the final score was all that the Hoosiers needed to advance to their second consecutive NCAA Sweet Sixteen appearance.
Indiana took to the court Monday evening in front of an electrifying crowd of 9,600 at Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall, to take on the Ivy League Conference Champs, 11th seeded Princeton. The Hall was so loud, it was difficult to hear the PA Announcer over a vocal Hoosier Nation.
The Princeton Tigers entered the match-up winning 18 straight games, including a national eye awakening bought over #6 seed Kentucky, on Saturday afternoon. Princeton is an extremely well coached team that moves the ball fluidly, getting numerous touches before each shot. Their 4-guard set does not match up in size against most of their competitors, but their ball handling, their vision, and their shooting skills allow them to compete against just about any opponent. And compete against Indiana, they did!
IU was strong in the first half of play, directing their pace, and creating good shooting opportunities for themselves. They appeared focused, making over 60% of their first half shots, and defending strongly. Indiana obviously watched film and set a game plan, because they stifled the two most productive Tiger scorers to just 6 points after 20 minutes of play. And Hoosier Guard Ali Patberg was brilliant in her shadow-like defense of Princeton Guard Abby Meyers, the Ivy League Player of the Year who exploded for 29 points in their win against Kentucky. Indiana led 39-29 at the mid-way point.
While the 3rd quarter looked to start well for Indiana, the Princeton defense stepped up to the challenge, holding IU to just 6 points over ten minutes. The Hoosiers have a historical difficulty with zones, but the shifts the Tigers performed in the paint were spectacular. And Princeton solidly performed on offense against the Hoosiers in the 3rd, executing ball screens successfully to get much better looks than they had in the first half. After 3, the Indiana lead was shrunken to 45-42.
For the most part, the Hoosiers had continued difficulty in the 4th quarter. Princeton was performing sharply, and IU had a hard time scoring, turning the ball over 4 times (17 throughout the entire game). Indiana would find themselves trailing by a point at the 5-minute mark, but would tie things back up at 52, with just shy of a minute to go in the game.
This final minute would be where this veteran Hoosier team would demonstrate their grit and their heart. After all, this group has been here before . . . on a few different occasions during this season, alone.
After a missed shot by Princeton, Indiana grabbed the rebound, crossed halfcourt, and called timeout, with 38 seconds left on the clock. Once the ball was inbounded, it took 10 seconds for IU Senior Guard Grace Berger to “do what Grace does,” as IU Head Coach Teri Moren often says. She split the defenders, weaving with poise, and put up an acrobatic shot. Indiana went up 54-52, and Assembly Hall was thunderous.
Under 30 seconds left, the Tigers slow played their possession, hoping to find a decent look at a late triple, with a few seconds remaining for the opportunity to grab the rebound if they missed. Nothing was available, and Princeton’s Point Guard Kaitlyn Chen, instead drove to the basket off of a screen at the key. IU Junior Forward Mackenzie Holmes and Graduate Guard Nicole Cardano-Hillary stuck to her, forcing Chen to make a pass. With 4 seconds showing, that pass was intercepted by Patberg, who was immediately fouled.
Patberg, in her final game at Assembly Hall, made the play that allowed the Hoosiers to seal their fate . . . a return to the NCAA Sweet 16.
“There’s nobody that deserves it more than Ali Patberg, obviously because of the player she is and what she’s done for this program,” said Berger of Patberg’s on and off the court accomplishments and sacrifices. “On the court that kind of speaks for itself. But the person she is off the court, we talk about it all the time, but it really is true, . . . She’s just a complete team player. She does everything she can to win.”
And while that steal was imperative, the last 4 seconds of the game unfolded some additional drama, with Aleksa Gulbe sinking two foul shots for IU to go up four points with 1 second left, and Princeton subsequently hitting a buzzer-beating 3-pointer, but the game had ended 56-55.
IU won, and advances to the Sweet Sixteen to meet the Connecticut Huskies in the Bridgeport Region on Saturday, March 26th, at 2pm.
The Hoosiers gathered at center court and celebrated before Holmes led her teammates into the South Student section, running into the stands to pay tribute to Hoosier Nation for all of their support.
“I wanted them to know how much we appreciate them being there and showing up tonight,” said Holmes of her salute to Hoosier Nation.
“I went up to Coach Moren and I’m like, can we go thank them? She’s like, ‘yeah’. And then I ran over there, and I was like, screw it, I’m going to go run up and I’m going to go high-five them and make them feel like they’re part of this victory, because they are. We couldn’t have done this without them, and I want them to keep showing up for us. I know this is our last game in the hall, but the next season we want the stands packed with students. They really showed up tonight, and I’m super thankful for that,” added Holmes.
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