Indiana was drowning after trailing University of Illinois Chicago at halftime. With the game tied at 37 with less than five minutes left in the third quarter, IU needed someone to step up.
Then Shay Ciezki took over.
Three-pointer. Three-pointer. Three-pointer. Four-point play. Layup. Layup and 1.
Eighteen straight points for her team, utter dominance. Calm, cool and collected.
Coach Teri Moren put it simply as she sat for the press conference: “Shay had a night.”
It was a night that had Indiana fans salivating as her 35-point performance in Indiana’s 72-56 victory against UIC earned Ciezki Big Ten Player of the Week honors.
Following the game, Ciezki was carrying Indiana’s offense at an unreal clip recording nine of Indiana’s 12 3-pointers on the season, there was only one question.
What’s next?
Up next for the Hoosiers and Ciezki were the Marshall Thundering Herd in what was supposed to be their last tune up before the schedule ramped up before Thanksgiving. What came next was anything but a tune up for the Hoosiers.
Marshall gave Indiana everything they could handle before the Hoosiers held on for a 57-51 win. While Indiana started to pull away in the third quarter, building a double-digit lead before Marshall thundered back late in the fourth, it was a disappointing day for both the Hoosiers and Ciezki.
Moren called for more from Ciezki in the press conference saying multiple times that she has to be a more vocal leader for this team.
“We all have to wrap our heads around that we got one kid out there in Shay Ciezki who has played a lot of minutes, then you got four other guys out there that haven't really played any meaningful minutes,” Moren also said of the team’s lack of experience.
Ciezki was expected to carry the bulk of Indiana’s offense this season as the lone returning starter from a year ago and looked to do the same early in this one but after getting a 3-point play halfway thru the first quarter, Ciezki got completely iced out by the Herd.
After not attempting a shot in the second quarter, Ciezki found other ways to impact the game. Ciezki finished the game with a career-high 10 rebounds while adding 13 points and three steals.
Despite double-doubles from Ciezki and Zania Socka-Ngueman, it felt like Indiana took steps in the wrong direction after making progress in previous bouts.
“We need to see some of the growth that we had, you know from the last game UIC,” Moren said. “I didn't feel like we saw that tonight and so again we’ll go back and you know some of the things we’re still not learning, we have to go back and hit them hard.”
The stat that jumps off the page for the Hoosiers is 28 turnovers, the most they have had since having 27 in their upset loss vs Harvard a season ago. A fate that likely could’ve been repeated Tuesday had Marshall shot better than their 29% clip from the field and their 4-for-22 mark from downtown.
The three starting guards of Neveah Caffey, Lenée Beaumont and Ciezki combined for 18 of those 28 turnovers Tuesday and the group has to be better starting with Ciezki as the schedule ramps up before Thanksgiving.
“We can’t be turning the ball over especially when we continue our season and we go ahead and play Florida State,” Beaumont said. “We’re not gonna be able to win a game with that amount of turnovers.”
With her ability to completely take over a game like she did against UIC, Indiana has to continue to try to ride Ciezki the rest of the season. She is the one player in the locker room who Moren can count on as a true veteran of the team.
There will be growing pains this season both for Ciezki as she transitions into the No. 1 option and Indiana as a lot of young players will have to grow up in a hurry if they look to roll into conference play on a high note.
She has done it before, her coach knows she can do it.
Moren’s message was clear: Indiana can’t continue to make the same mistakes and fall backwards but when they do, Ciezki has to pull them out.
Ciezki proved vs UIC that she can carry this Indiana team out of slumps. The entire second half against Marshall it felt like that spark would ignite but it never came for Ciezki or Indiana despite the win.
This Indiana team is still in its infant stages, but for this team to be great, it’ll be up to Ciezki to make sure Indiana’s next step forward finally sticks.
