Thirty-two points. Eight-for-11 from the 3-point line. Three rebounds and steals. Zero turnovers. This was the Sara Scalia game of the season.
The senior guard’s career performance allowed No. 16 Indiana to soar past Bowling Green in an 84-35 victory at Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall on Friday.
Scalia’s 32 points in the non-conference finale topped the previous career-high of 28 against Princeton.
“I just saw my first couple go down, and obviously my teammates were looking for me when I was open,” Scalia said. “It’s a good feeling when you’re hot like that, so I was trying to have fun with it.”
For the first time since Tyra Buss in 2018, Indiana recorded back-to-back games with a single player scoring 30+ points. Sophomore guard Yarden Garzon had 30 points against Evansville on Monday.
The first quarter was paused only a minute into the game as Bowling Green State senior guard Lexi Fleming suffered an injury. The team’s leading scorer, averaging 16.7 points per game this season, collapsed to the floor and smacked the court multiple times before being helped off. She would not re-enter the game.
“I just want to give our thoughts and our prayers to Lexi Fleming,” Indiana head coach Teri Moren said. “She's a terrific talent and you never like to see anything like that happen, especially one minute into the game. I really feel for Fred (Chmiel) and his team, his staff and certainly her.”
Chmiel, head coach of Bowling Green State, enters his first year with the program after eight seasons as an assistant coach at South Carolina.
Senior guard Chloe Moore-McNeil hit the first 3 of the game to give the Hoosiers a 3-0 lead, and the team would never trail after that. The Hoosiers would open the floodgates early with an 11-4 run to close out the first with a 20-6 lead. Scalia would have six points to her name in the quarter.
Scalia put up nine points in the second quarter to improve the Hoosiers’ shooting to 58.3% in the first half of the game. Despite the Falcons gaining some momentum on offense, it would not be enough to pose a threat to the Hoosiers. The half would end at 39-19 with a Hoosiers lead.
The Hoosiers’ defense came to life in the third quarter, as they held the Falcons to only six points. The offense found its pace and dropped 21 to extend its lead to 65-30. Scalia had eight points in the third to bring her total to 23 through three quarters.
Scalia would score nine in the fourth to notch the career best and get Indiana to its 84 on the night.
“Really proud of the way we guarded, we looked like a tough gritty team tonight,” Moren said. “We’ve seen moments, but I want more consistency looking like that defensively, especially with Big Ten play starting.”
Moore-McNeil had five assists on the night to lead that category. Graduate student forward Mackenzie Holmes had 10 points and six rebounds. Sophomore forward Lilly Meister had eight rebounds in the contest that gave Indiana more opportunities to keep possession of the ball.
Indiana improves to 10-1 on the season with a 1-0 Big Ten record. It will host Illinois at noon on New Year’s Eve.
