BLOOMINGTON — Indiana women’s basketball had to fight hard for a win over Eastern Michigan, 74-67, on Sunday afternoon at Assembly Hall.
The Eagles, IU’s penultimate nonconference opponent before Big Ten play starts, forced the Hoosiers into early foul trouble, and their aggressive defense gave them an advantage on the boards.
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Still, IU moved to 10-2 on the season. Shay Ciezki had a game-high 25 points on 9-of-17 shooting.
The Hoosiers will have a week off for finals before returning to Assembly Hall for its non-conference finale against Western Carolina.
Here are two things we learned.
IU women’s basketball barely scrapes by Eastern Michigan
IU’s nonconference game on Thursday against Louisiana Monroe was smooth sailing. The Hoosiers led by 20 points heading into the fourth and coasted into a 94-58 win.
That wasn’t the case Sunday.
The Hoosiers needed everything they had to scrape by the Eagles — a team that, despite the buy-game status, brought an aggression to Assembly Hall that Indiana could barely match.
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Eagles forward Sisi Eleko was nearly unstoppable, with a double-double of 15 points and 18 rebounds. Guard Ainhoa Cea befuddled the Hoosiers with multiple full-court passes.
IU’s largest lead of the night was just 10 points, and Eastern Michigan was within one possession multiple times deep into the fourth quarter.
In all, this was a game against a Mid-American Conference foe that the Hoosiers needed to fight hard to win. But as IU goes into Big Ten play in a couple weeks, they may not be as lucky.
On Ms. Basketball’s night: Maya Makalusky has career night in first start for Indiana women’s basketball
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IU women’s basketball struggles with foul trouble
Something coach Teri Moren has emphasized is how star freshman Nevaeh Caffey needs to stay out of foul trouble. She likes how Caffey plays aggressively, of course, but the freshman has struggled in her foul count.
That showed again as Caffey picked up two fouls in the first quarter. Her second came as Eastern Michigan exploited her weaknesses, forcing a switch to put Caffey on a center in the paint.
Along with Caffey, nearly the entire Hoosiers starting five struggled with foul trouble in the first half.
Lenee Beaumont and Edessa Noyan picked up two fouls in the first half, while freshman Maya Makalusky, who made her debut in the IU starting lineup on Thursday, picked up three — including two on consecutive plays.
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Noyan picked up two fouls in the third quarter, forcing the Hoosiers’ consistent back-to-the-basket post to the bench with four fouls for most of the rest of the game and further depleting their frontcourt depth.
Makalusky picked up her fourth foul with seven minutes left in the game, forcing the Hoosiers to go to Jade Ondineme, a forward that has played sparingly in this non-conference season so far.
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This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: Eastern MI vs Indiana women’s basketball score today, game stats, analysis
