Twenty-two years of coaching. Countless legacy-defining games. Yet, she has shown no signs of slowing down. Teri Moren and the Indiana Hoosiers remain unbeaten through five games, taking down the Butler Bulldogs, 73-52 on Wednesday night. The win marks Moren’s 450th of her career.
“I think it’s part of what we came here to do,” Moren, the winningest coach in IU women’s basketball history, said postgame. “We’ve been able to find players that fit us, and we fit them.”
The last time the Hoosiers hit the hardwood, they pulled out a win by the skin of their teeth, a 57-51 win over Marshall. Wednesday night, however, was the exact opposite. From the start, Indiana brought an energy and an attitude of an experienced team, opening the game on a 14-4 run that set the tone for the rest of the night.
Defensively, the Hoosiers were stout, surrendering just seven first-quarter points and closing out on the perimeter, forcing the Bulldogs into low-percentage looks. Butler shot just 33 percent from beyond the arc, making them one-dimensional on the offensive side of the ball.
While Butler struggled to shoot from the outside, Indiana did not, knocking down 58 percent of their shots from distance.
Leading the way for the Hoosiers once again was sophomore Lenée Beaumont, who scored 19 of her game-high 21 points in the opening half, showcasing her ability to score from all areas of the court. Beaumont capped off her scorching start with a 3-pointer just ahead of the buzzer, sending Assembly Hall into a frenzy.
“I’m playing with a lot of joy right now,” Beaumont said following the win. “Honestly, just having fun playing basketball.”
Even during a game where the Hoosiers seemingly never lost control, the third-quarter woes continued. Similar to last week’s matchup against Marshall, Indiana failed to stray away from self-inflicted wounds, turning the ball over and getting themselves into foul trouble. Forward Zania Socka-Nguemen played just 17 minutes Wednesday, committing four fouls.
“I want them to stay aggressive defensively, but we have to have that controlled aggression,” Moren said.
Moren ran a nine-person rotation, increasing the minutes for a plethora of players, including freshman Maya Makalusky. Just three days removed from barely touching the court, Makalusky saw 16 minutes of playing time, scoring seven points and providing a spark off the bench.
“Offensively, she [Makalusky] finally gets to see one of her 3s go down, that was big for her,” Moren said. “I do think that she can continue to help us, very much like Syd [Sydney] Parrish did for us.”
When the team has needed a tone-setter, Shay Ciezki has answered the call. On Wednesday night, Ciezki displayed an area of her game that has gone virtually unnoticed: her knack for crashing the boards, which set up transition offense. Leading the team with eight rebounds, Ciezki played a slasher role, doing the dirty work to set her teammates up for success. With 14 points, she has now scored in double figures in 14 consecutive games.
While the second half of the game was relatively quiet regarding offensive production for the Hoosiers, they refused to waver — a trait and mentality that will be crucial as conference play begins in the coming month.
Indiana led by as many as 30 late in the fourth quarter, causing Moren to empty the bench with around four minutes remaining.
“I have so much respect for [Butler head coach] Austin [Parkinson] and his staff,” Moren, who started her coaching career as an assistant coach at Butler in 1992, said. “They are going to test us… That’s why we always agree to play them.”
The Hoosiers closed out the game to thundering applause from the fans, the last time they will play at the comfort of home for another two weeks. Up next, they will travel down south to Fort Myers to take on Florida Gulf Coast on Tuesday afternoon.
