By Pete DiPrimio
IUHoosiers.com
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. – Yarden Garzon hit Branch McCracken Court hard, striving for a late-game steal that didn’t quite come, sacrificing her body for a chance to help Indiana do what no team except national title contender Notre Dame had done.
Beat powerhouse USC.
So many Hoosiers did so many things to put IU on the brink of a huge upset Sunday afternoon at a rocking Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall. Hustle. Effort. Passion. It was all there.
Still, it wasn’t enough in a 73-66 defeat, and it hurt.
“It’s a bitter feeling when you’re at home and can’t finish hard games,” guard Chloe Moore-McNeil says. “It’s tough.”
The Hoosiers made just enough shots and plays to give themselves a fourth-quarter chance, but not enough to close the deal against the No. 4/5 Trojans (17-1 overall, 7-0 in the Big Ten). Forward Sydney
Parrish led with 16 points and 10 rebounds.
“I’m proud of our players,” IU coach Teri Moren says. “We did a lot of good things. It’s not the result we wanted.”
The energy from a crowd of 12,534 impressed USC coaches and players.
“What an incredible atmosphere,” USC coach Lindsay Gottlieb says. “It’s everything I heard it would be. We played a terrific team. We really had to fight. Our toughness was at a high level, and it had to be.”
Adds Trojan forward Rayah Marshall: “I’ve never experienced anything like this. During timeouts, we couldn’t hear the plays being called. It was exciting to play in this type of atmosphere.”
Consecutive defeats leave Indiana on the NCAA tourney bubble with a 12-6 overall record, 4-3 in the Big Ten. Eleven remaining regular season games, including contests against top-10 Maryland and Ohio State, provide opportunities to earn a sixth straight NCAA tourney appearance.
“Our players know that,” Moren says. “Every game is very important. It’s a one-game season.
“We want to play in March. We’ve got to keep our focus on the things we have to improve on. We will. I have a lot of faith in these guys.”
Faith comes down to doing the little things that matter most — hitting open shots, limiting turnovers, rebounding as if the postseason depends on it.
“It was looking like we were trending in a good direction,” says Moren, referring to the 8-1 stretch that included a 74-67 victory at No. 23 Iowa before home losses to Illinois and USC. “We took a step back against Illinois.
“These games are so important. It’s such a great league and you can’t have a different mindset. It has to be the same no matter the opponent. Our margin for error is very small. We have to be so good at so many levels. We have to keep grinding. It’s marathon, not a sprint.”
IU missed multiple open shots against USC, just as it had against top-ranked UCLA a few weeks earlier at Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall. The Hoosiers were just 8-for-29 on three-pointers. Garzon and Parrish, two of the Big Ten’s better three-point shooters, were a combined 4-for-18 beyond the arc.
“We’ve got to hit shots,” Moren says. “It’s a lesson we have to learn. We got some good ones. We just didn’t hit them. It was the same with UCLA. Hit a couple more and we win.”
Adds Moore-McNeil: “At times we were getting great looks, and then we went away from what got us those great looks. We can’t have that kind of slippage.
“It will take all of us to keep our confidence in our shooting and not let it fall. Keep each other up.”
Garzon was 5-for-5 on three-pointers in the Iowa win, then hit her first three-pointer against Illinois. Since then, she’s made just two of her last 12 attempts.
Still, she pushed hard to total 10 points, nine rebounds, six assists and two steals in 39 minutes against USC.
“Yarden does her work,” Moren says. “We need her to score for us. We have to keep pouring into her, keep encouraging her, keep being her biggest cheerleaders.
“They were being physical with her. She got some great looks that didn’t go down. We have to come up with ways to get her loose so she sees some of those shots go down. We know how important she is for us.”
As far as rebounding, USC finished with a 38-35 advantage. Forward Karoline Striplin says that’s one of the keys to winning key games down the stretch.
“What’s getting us is the rebounding margin. We have to figure out how to get more. That will push us over the edge. It’s just finishing plays.”
Moren sees rebounding optimism given USC out-rebounds opponents by seven a game.
“We did a great job on the boards,” she says. “Our kids battled. They gave us everything they had.”
That includes Striplin, who replaced Lilly Meister in the starting lineup and totaled 10 points, three rebounds and a steal. It was her first start of the season. Moren indicates that will continue. Meister finished with seven points and three rebounds.
“I’m grateful Coach Moren had enough confidence in me to put me into the starting lineup,” Striplin says. “I’m ready to do whatever is needed of me.”
Adds Moren: “(Striplin) has been very reliable. She’s smart. She understands the game plan. She was good for us.
“It was great to see Lilly come in and be productive. We had her come off the bench because we wanted to get her to relax. We need both of them.”
Moore-McNeil finished with 13 points and four assists while drawing the main defensive assignment against JuJu Watkins, one of the nation’s best guards. Watkins finished with 22 points, but needed 16 shots to do it.
“Chloe did a great job,” Moren says. “We made (Watkins) work for it.”
Adds Moore-McNeil: “She’s such a hard player to guard. We wanted to make her go to her left, make her uncomfortable and inefficient.”
As far as the game, IU fell behind 9-2, rallied for 25-14 lead and trailed 38-32 at halftime. Through it all, foul trouble mounted, turnovers continued, but effort didn’t diminish.
Then came the third-quarter charge.
Meister made a layup, her first three-pointer of the season and a free throw. Moore-McNeil buried a three-pointer. A deficit as large as eight became a 50-48 Hoosier lead. Only a long Watkins three-pointer that nearly popped out of the basket prevented the Hoosiers from having the lead entering the fourth quarter.
Still, down just 51-50, the Hoosiers had a chance, and took advantage. Parrish opened the fourth quarter by hitting three-point and two-point baskets. IU led 55-51. Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall rocked. The Hoosiers were on the verge of a huge upset.
USC rocked back to restore its eight-point lead. Then Moore-McNeil hit her second three-pointer. Lexus Bargesser made a tough turn-around jumper. USC’s lead was down to 70-66 with 68 seconds left. IU defended the Trojans into a shot-clock violation, and all things were possible.
Then they weren’t. The Hoosiers missed their final three shots and were left to wonder about what might have been, and what was achieved with perhaps women’s basketball’s best atmosphere.
“I’m proud of our team,” Striplin says. “It’s sad we couldn’t win. We have to be better next game.”
Adds Moren, whose team faces a West Coast trip to Oregon and Washington next weekend: “It was a great crowd. Our fans came out and supported women’s basketball. That makes it a great experience for us and for all women’s players.”
