BLOOMINGTON — When Indiana women’s basketball finds a groove, it’s a hard team to stop.
And IU did just that on Thursday. The 14th-ranked Hoosiers built a massive early lead against Michigan at Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall, and they rode that to an 80-59 win.
Indiana (12-1, 3-0 Big Ten) scored 36 points in the first quarter, their most in a single quarter since February 2022. and made their first 15 field goals before finally misfiring early in the second quarter. IU’s offense inevitably slowed down a bit in the second quarter, but the Hoosiers still held a 51-34 halftime lead. Three IU players — Mackenzie Holmes, Sydney Parrish, and Sara Scalia — had double-digit points by halftime.
Parrish and Scalia both racked up double digits by the end of the first quarter. Michigan (11-4, 1-2) struggled to defend the 3-point line in the opening period, and Indiana’s shooters made them pay.
Indiana, as a team, shot 58 percent from the field for the game, and went 9 for 19 from 3-point range. Free-throw shooting continued to be a struggle, as the Hoosiers shot just 66 percent at the foul line. IU scored 1.7 points per possession in the first half, though it finished at 1.270. Michigan led the Big Ten in scoring defense entering the game, at 55.2 points per game allowed, so some regression was expected after the torrid opening quarter.
Holmes was a force inside, as she so often is. Michigan’s early struggles stemmed from a “pick your poison” situation between limiting Holmes and limiting the outside shooters. The graduate student led the Hoosiers with 20 points on a 7-for-10 clip. She also grabbed a team-high seven rebounds, and chipped in one block and one steal. However, this was her third straight game with five turnovers.
Parrish was quieter in the second half because of foul trouble, but still finished with one of her stronger outputs of the season. The senior shot 5 for 6 from the field, including 3 for 4 from 3-point range, for 14 points. She added five assists, two rebounds, and a block; she also committed three turnovers.
Scalia led the team with six assists, which is tied for her most in an IU uniform. The fifth-year senior scored 16 points on a 5-of-12 line, and went 4 for 10 from the 3-point line.
Indiana hits the road over the weekend, taking on Nebraska on Sunday afternoon.
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