BLOOMINGTON — Indiana women’s basketball finished up nonconference play with a 71-44 win over Western Carolina on Sunday afternoon at Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall.
Indiana, now 11-2, will have eight days to prepare for the gauntlet of Big Ten play, as Minnesota will come to Bloomington on Dec. 29.
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Here are three observations from IU’s win over Western Carolina (2-10):
IU women’s basketball finishes nonconference play with convincing win
IU skated into Big Ten play with one final tuneup over Western Carolina.
The Hoosiers will end the nonconference season at 11-1, with their only loss coming against No. 10 Iowa State at the Coconut Hoops Classic on Nov. 30.
Indiana already had one foray into league play when it traveled to Illinois on Dec. 6. The Hoosiers took a bad loss, 78-57, against the Illini, but that loss spurred coach Teri Moren to make a change, putting freshman Maya Makalusky in the starting lineup over Valentyna Kadlecova.
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Makalusky has started the past three games, opening with a 22-point performance against Louisiana-Monroe and staying consistent since.
On Miss Basketball: Maya Makalusky has career night in first start for Indiana women’s basketball
Full IU women’s basketball bench sees significant minutes
Indiana pushed out to a strong lead very early in the nonconference finale, and Moren used that as an opportunity to give her bench extended minutes.
The Hoosiers only had nine players available on Sunday — forwards Zania Socka-Nguemen (lower body) and Faith Wiseman (jaw) are out with injuries, and Sydney Fenn is out for the season. Kadlecova, a player who got significant minutes through the nonconference slate, left the team last week to return to the Czech Republic to play professional basketball.
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With Big Ten play on the horizon, too, Moren’s bench got an extended run while her starters got some rest. Forward Jade Ondineme, who mostly saw garbage time, gave some crucial depth to the Hoosier frontcourt in the first quarter behind Edessa Noyan and Makalusky, while guard Chloe Spreen got extended minutes starting in the second quarter to give starters Shay Ciezki and Nevaeh Caffey some rest.
Ondineme ended up playing 15 minutes with three points and two rebounds, while Spreen played 16 minutes.
Last time out: Shay Ciezki has ‘kill switch,’ but IU women’s basketball needs to support her
Indiana women’s basketball continues to struggle on glass
A consistent problem throughout the Hoosiers’ nonconference season has been their rebounding prowess. Mid-major teams they should’ve heavily outrebounded have stayed close in that category, sometimes even outrebounding the Hoosiers.
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That was no different on Sunday afternoon.
Indiana ended the game with a 34-to-30 disadvantage on the boards, allowing 12 offensive rebounds to Western Carolina. The Catamounts used those 12 rebounds to pick up 11 second-chance points.
Indiana still walked away with a compelling victory. But Big Ten play looms, and those lackluster rebounding numbers could be the difference between a win and a loss in league games.
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This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: Indiana women’s basketball score today vs Western Carolina, Hoosiers record
