Indiana women’s basketball beats Iowa, 86-69: Three observations

No. 14 Indiana women’s basketball picked up a season-defining victory with an 86-69 over No. 4 Iowa in Assembly Hall earlier tonight. The win improves Indiana’s record to 22-4 (13-3 Big Ten) on the year and took place in front of a sellout crowd of over 17,000 fans.

The win also extended the Hoosiers’ home winning streak to 14 games.

Here’s three things:

Headliners

Sara Scalia, Indiana’s sharpshooter, did not play well last time she faced Iowa and was held to just six points.

The stoic fifth-year responded by leading Indiana with 25 points off 7-14 shooting. The Big Ten’s best 3-point shooter went 3-8 from deep but also got it done off bounce.

Scalia picked her spots while driving well and was unafraid of contact and drew fouls on multiple takes. Listed at 5-10, Scalia is so good at protecting the ball as she goes up with it.

Tonight was also Indiana’s best defensive performance of the season and Scalia, who needed to improve as a defender after last season, is a huge reason the Hoosiers held (lol) Caitlin Clark to 24 points off 8-26 shooting.

As per usual, Mackenzie Holmes was Indiana’s other headliner tonight. The reigning Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year said she needed to protect the rim better after Indiana’s Monday loss at Illinois and did so by tying her season-high with four of IU’s nine total blocks.

Holmes singlehandedly outscored Iowa’s posts 24-16 and was inevitable late. 10 of her points came in the fourth quarter as the Hoosiers looked to their all-time leading scorer to snuff out any potential Hawkeye runs.

Supporting cast

Yarden Garzon (15pts, 3-5 3PT, 5reb, 5a) won Indiana this game with her work from midrange.

The sophomore guard took over when Iowa deployed a zone defense to start the second half. The Hawkeyes packed it in to limit Mackenzie Holmes so Garzon began pulling up from the elbow whenever she could.

Iowa eventually realized Garzon deserved attention inside the arc so she shifted into pass-first mode and began feeding Holmes entry passes. She’s so great at putting just enough on the ball to pull Holmes off a defender without running her out of bounds.

The Israeli National Teamer’s game has grown so much since her freshman season. She’s no longer just a 3-point specialist.

Sydney Parrish also made impact in her return to the starting lineup. The senior guard snagged hard-earned rebounds and finished with seven points in 29 minutes.

Parrish’s best moment came in the third quarter when she hit threes on back-to-back possessions. Her triples sandwiched a thunderous Lilly Meister block of Kate Martin and increased Indiana’s lead to 17.

Iowa fought hard to stay within striking distance but Parrish quieting their initial push gave Indiana the confidence to respond to each additional run. The Hawkeyes never pulled within two possessions in the second half.

Playing with The Juice

With their chances of repeating as Big Ten Champions and serving as an NCAA Tournament host site in doubt after Monday, the Hoosiers held a players-only meeting earlier this week.

We’ll probably never know what went down in that room but the message got across. This was the most inspired, determined, and confident we’ve seen Indiana all year.

Sara Scalia picking up a tech. Yarden Garzon talking mess to Caitlin Clark after a foul call. A whole lotta chest bumps. Indiana clearly knew how important picking up such a high-quality victory was and played its most complete game of the season as a result.

You can’t explain why Indiana is 31-1 in Assembly Hall over the last two years without mentioning its fans, either.

Tonight’s game was the second sellout in program history and Caitlin Clark, the NCAA’s all-time leading scorer was candid about the crowd’s impact postgame.

“They were tenacious,” said Clark. “It helps when there’s 17,000 people screaming at you.”

Whether it’s winning the Big Ten for the first time in 40 years, watching program legends rewrite the record book, or taking care of a top-five team on a Thursday, Indiana women’s basketball continues to produce moments that will stick with their fans forever.