BLOOMINGTON, Ind. – This story continues a series that will continue through October. Is Indiana better than each of its Big Ten opponents?
Nine categories were chosen. There will be no ties in the individual categories. Think of it like you would the Supreme Court.
The categories: Point guard play, free throw shooting, inside scoring, perimeter shooting, rebounding, perimeter defense, rim protection, how much proven Power Five talent is on the roster, and intangibles.
The daily series will cover both the men’s and women’s basketball teams, and it will alternate between the teams.
Today, we see how Indiana measures up against the Penn State women’s basketball team.
Youth will dominate in State College, as Penn State was decimated by departures. Head coach Carolyn Kieger lost guards Ashley Owusu (17.7 ppg), Makenna Marisa (13.4 ppg) and Taylor Valladay (11.5 ppg) from her 22-13 2024 team as their eligibility ran out. Penn State was further damaged by five transfer portal departures, including guard Shay Ciezki’s exit to Indiana.
The leading returning scorer for Penn State is Jayla Oden (5.6 ppg). Given the departures, Penn State didn’t hit the portal as much as one might expect – three players were added.
Penn State might depend on five freshmen – guard Jill Jekot, forward Cam Rust, guard Shaelyn Steele, guard Talayah Walker and forward Ariana Williams. Of that quintet, Rust was the highest-rated recruit as a top 100 player.
Here’s how the battle between the Hoosiers and Nittany Lions shakes out.
• Point guard play – Given the inexperience on the roster, there’s no proven point guard. Sophomore Moriah Murray is the heir apparent. She only played 12 minutes per game in 2024, but she would have averaged 4.5 assists over 40 minutes. Meanwhile, Indiana point guard Chloe Moore-McNeil has been playing regularly since the 2023 season. Edge: Indiana.
• Free throw shooting – Three Nittany Lions – Murray (88.2% in limited playing time) and Louisiana transfer forward Tamera Johnson (72.7%) are the only 70% free throw shooters. Indiana has three – Ciezki (90.2%), Parrish (79.2%) and Moore-McNeil (76.1%). Edge: Indiana.
• Inside scoring – Penn State got Bellarmine transfer Gracie Merkle in the portal. A sophomore, Merkle led all of college basketball with a 70.2% field goal percentage. Merkle (15.1 ppg, 11 rpg) averaged a double-double, but she did it in the Atlantic Sun Conference. It’s a big climb from the A-Sun to the Big Ten. Johnson (10.2 ppg) will make a similar leap from Sun Belt Conference member Louisiana.
Indiana’s Karoline Striplin (7.2 ppg) and Lilly Meister (3.7 ppg), despite being reserves, have more experience against Big Ten-level competition. Edge: Indiana.
• Perimeter shooting – Yarden Garzon (42.2%), Moore-McNeil (40.9%) and Parrish (40%) are a high bar to clear, and the Nittany Lions don’t have the proven personnel to get there. Alli Campbell (39.4%), Jayla Oden (37.5%) and Murray (35.3%) are all decent, but they are not to the Hoosiers’ level. Edge: Indiana.
• Rebounding – With Merkle (11 rpg) and Johnson (6.1 rpg), there’s potential, but will those numbers translate to the Big Ten? Meanwhile, Parrish (6 rpg), Garzon (4.4 rpg), Moore-McNeil (3.6 rpg), Striplin (3.1 rpg), Meister (2.7 rpg) and Bargesser (2.7 rpg) just have more experience in this department. Edge: Indiana.
• Perimeter defense – Once again, Penn State’s lack of proven players can’t be ignored. There are some promising underlying advanced numbers that are encouraging for Penn State, but playing time off the bench just doesn’t provide enough proof. Indiana has a very good defensive point guard in Moore-McNeil as well as a very good wing defender in Parrish. Edge: Indiana.
• Defense at the rim – Merkle averaged 2.3 blocks at Bellarmine. Indiana doesn’t have any proven shot blockers, so the Nittany Lions will take this category – even though we strongly suspect Indiana’s overall defensive strength could just as easily sway it in the other direction. Edge: Penn State.
• Proven Power 5 ability on roster – The standard here is whether a player averaged 25 minutes or more at the Power Five level at their current or former school. This is a simple one. Penn State has no one who played 25 minutes at a Power Five school. The Hoosiers have four – including former Nittany Lion Ciezki. Edge: Indiana.
• Intangibles – Penn State’s inexperience is an obvious factor that goes against them. One player not mentioned is Michigan State transfer guard Gabby Elliott.
She averaged 13.6 points for Clemson in 2021, but she hasn’t played more than 12 games in a season since then for either the Tigers or the Spartans. She started all 15 games she played at Michigan State over two seasons, but injuries to both of her knees wrecked her time in East Lansing.
If she can play, she’ll help a lot, but Penn State will go through growing pains that will be foreign to the Hoosiers this season. Edge: Indiana.
• Verdict – The 8-1 triumph is the easiest victory so far for the Indiana women. Penn State is just too inexperienced to be able to compete with the Hoosiers in most of these categories.
Previous Is Indiana Better Than Women’s Basketball Results
Oregon – Indiana 5-4.
Rutgers – Indiana 5-4.
Maryland – Maryland 7-2.
USC – USC 6-3.
