BLOOMINGTON — Shay Ciezki has a “kill switch.”
She’s an emotional player. She takes things personally. And as Indiana women’s basketball was fighting more than it should’ve for every point against Mid-American Conference opponent Eastern Michigan, she knew she needed to find a new gear to put the Hoosiers over the edge.
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“I think, as an athlete, that just comes with a competitive edge, I think that all great athletes should take things personally,” Ciezki said after IU’s hard-fought 74-67 win. “It’s just that winning mentality. At the end of the game, it definitely was closer than we wanted, the switch kind of gets flipped and just go into, like, kill mode. And you want to win the game, whatever that takes.”
And that switch helped Ciezki push Indiana to a victory. She finished with a team-leading 25 points on 9-of-17 shooting — her 11th straight game with 20 or more points — playing a full 40 minutes.
Ciezki, as the only starter who returned for the Hoosiers in 2025-26, has been the consistent force the Hoosiers have desperately needed so far this season. The Hoosiers’ offense runs through her, and she leads the Big Ten and is fifth in the country with 24.9 points per game.
“I don’t know that nationally right now, anybody’s talking about what a season she’s having for us,” IU coach Teri Moren said. “It’s been very, very special, and hopefully she can continue to play like this throughout Big Ten play, because we’re certainly going to need it. Here in nonconference, she’s had a special kind of season that we’re all very, very proud of, but also grateful for, because she has turned into our go-to.”
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But Indiana is still looking for a consistent complement to Ciezki’s play on the floor.
The Hoosiers have one more tune-up nonconference game against Western Carolina on Dec. 21 before fully entering Big Ten play. Indiana’s league opener was lackluster, taking a 78-57 loss at Illinois.
As the Hoosiers head into league play, the defensive pressure, especially on Ciezki, is going to intensify. Ciezki will get double-teamed, or even triple-teamed, as she’s at the top of everyone else’s scouting report.
So, the Hoosiers need someone they can turn to when that happens.
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“I think offensively, we’ve got to find ways to move off the ball when we put the ball inside,” redshirt sophomore Lenee Beaumont said. “Or if they’re heavy deny on Shay, as most teams are going to do going forward. You know, areas of improvement for sure on both ends.”
Beaumont, who missed all of last season with a knee injury, has shown flashes of becoming that dependable player next to Ciezki. She’s one of the Hoosiers’ vocal leaders and is averaging 15.2 points per game, as well as 4.8 rebounds. She scored 15 points again Sunday against Eastern Michigan, but fouled out late in the game after getting a technical.
Edessa Noyan has also stepped up in recent games, especially with starting center Zania Socka-Nguemen out with a lower leg injury until at least after Christmas. Noyan scored 13 points on 6-of-8 shooting as the Hoosiers fed offense through her, but her minutes were limited with foul trouble.
Freshman Maya Makalusky, who shined in her debut in the starting lineup on Thursday with 22 points, still had her 3-point touch Sunday with three 3-pointers for nine points. Her minutes, though, were also limited by foul trouble.
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“I think she would tell you that she’s still learning an awful lot about what it takes to play at this level,” Moren said. “But the one thing about Maya is she is a true competitor and she’s interested in knowing what she has to do, one to be on the floor, two to stay on the floor, and how she can help us win games.”
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Still, this IU team is a work in progress. The Hoosiers returned less than 20% of its scoring from 2024-25, with eight new faces, including six transfers, in the building this season.
But the standard stays the same.
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“We’ve had a tradition around here,” Moren said. “We have a standard of how we’re going to play and what our fans are used to, and they’re used to watching us, regardless of the scoreboard, play hard and have great effort for 40 minutes, and that will not change. That’s the standard, and it’s our job, and my job to continue to send that message.”
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This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: Shay Ciezki scoring points ranking, Indiana women’s basketball roster to help
