Author: Seth Tow

As Indiana women’s basketball moves into the offseason, things could change quickly. That’s always the case in college sports, in the age of NIL and the transfer portal. But for IU, some change has to be expected given the losses of foundational players like Mackenzie Holmes and Sara Scalia. The Hoosiers have plenty of key pieces returning, but could look to the transfer portal to fill some holes as well. Who’s back Classes listed are for next season’s roster Sydney Parrish, fifth-year guard — Had Parrish avoided the foot injury that cost her seven games during Big Ten play, she…

Jacob Mangum-Farrar is getting used to change. Indiana is the second school he’s played at, after transferring from Stanford ahead of last season. Mangum-Farrar is entering his seventh and final year in college football — he used a traditional redshirt during his true freshman year in 2018, and received a medical redshirt for either his redshirt freshman or sophomore season. This year will be his COVID season. This will be the third different coaching staff he’s played under in college. And he’s now taking on his second position. Mangum-Farrar turned in a solid season for the Hoosiers at inside linebacker…

Mackenzie Mgbako is back. The co-Big Ten Freshman of the Year is returning to Indiana men’s basketball for his sophomore year, as he announced on Instagram on Saturday. Mgbako endured some early struggles this season, but he enjoyed a strong finish strong to help earn the Freshman of the Year honor. The 6-foot-8, 217-pound forward averaged 12.2 points, 4.1 rebounds, and 1.3 assists per game, while shooting 39.5 percent from the field and 32.7 percent from 3-point range. Mgbako was IU’s biggest 3-point threat this season, with a team-high 153 attempts from beyond the arc. Trey Galloway was Indiana’s only…

One of the central storylines of Indiana women’s basketball’s season was its performance in big games. The Hoosiers suffered lopsided defeats in two of their biggest games of the regular season, road dates at Stanford and at Iowa. They performed better in some other big games later in the season, but those two performances lingered over Indiana’s season like an ominous cloud. Whether fair or unfair, and whether true or false, it created a perception that the Hoosiers didn’t show up in their biggest games. But Indiana spent its entire NCAA Tournament run conquering narratives. Its second-round win over Oklahoma…

Indiana women’s basketball looked like its season was going to end unceremoniously. The fourth-seeded Hoosiers trailed undefeated South Carolina, the NCAA Tournament’s No. 1 overall seed, by 22 points with 7:30 remaining in the third quarter in Friday’s Sweet 16 game. But IU continued fighting hard, turned the game around, and controlled things for most of the second half. The Hoosiers trailed by just two points with less than a minute to play in the game. But ultimately, Indiana left itself with too much to overcome. The Gamecocks escaped with a 79-75 win at MVP Arena in Albany, N.Y. Indiana…

Indiana women’s basketball is not just facing a tough challenge in the Sweet 16. The Hoosiers have as difficult a task as any in the sport. No. 4 seed IU takes on No. 1 overall seed South Carolina on Friday in Albany, N.Y. at 5 p.m. ET on ESPN. The Gamecocks have lost just one game over the last two full calendar years, against Iowa in last year’s Final Four. They defeated No. 8 seed North Carolina by 47 points in the second round. So the odds are against Indiana, both figuratively and literally. The Hoosiers are 15.5-point underdogs against…

BLOOMINGTON — Three small steps separate the courtyard space in front of Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall’s south facade and the entry to Cook Hall on Indiana University’s athletic campus. Sixteen light structures stand tall in that space in a grid formation. One row of four behind the top of the steps, and the other 12 spread out in the area in front of the bottom. The stairway sits 60 steps from the closest door of Assembly Hall’s south entrance, and 146 steps from Branch McCracken Court. On this Monday in late March, that space outside — and eventually, that arena…

BLOOMINGTON — When Indiana and Oklahoma matched up in the second round of the NCAA Tournament, both teams sought revenge. Both the Hoosiers and Sooners bowed out of last year’s tournament at this same stage. This year, one team would put that behind it, while the other would extend its heartbreak. And after a tight affair with little separation for much of the game, IU’s night ended in joy. The fourth-seeded Hoosiers celebrated on the court after the final buzzer, with a 75-68 victory. Indiana advances to the Sweet 16 for the third time in the last four seasons. The Hoosiers…

BLOOMINGTON — Indiana women’s basketball remembers what happened at this time last year. The Hoosiers entered the second round of the NCAA Tournament as the No. 2 overall seed, heavily favored to advance to the Sweet 16. Their Final Four and national championship hopes all felt attainable. And then it all came crashing down, as IU lost to Miami. It took many inside the program a long time to get over it. Deep down, the Hoosiers may still not be over it. But Monday night, they have a chance to make it right. Fourth-seeded Indiana takes on No. 5 seed…

BLOOMINGTON — Chloe Moore-McNeil has spent all year speaking up. The quiet-by-nature senior spent last offseason working on becoming more vocal, and has been Indiana women’s basketball’s voice of reason on so many occasions throughout the year. She called out her teammates after the Hoosiers suffered a blowout loss against Stanford in November. She fired them up during a mid-January win over Minnesota. She reassured them during a key point in a big win at Maryland in late January. Moore-McNeil has become increasingly comfortable in that leadership role. And in this season-defining time of year, she knows her voice is…