BLOOMINGTON, Ind. – Welcome to Indiana women’s basketball. Todd Golden is here tonight on the live blog as the 25th-ranked Indiana women take on Harvard at 7 p.m. ET.
Indiana won its season opener on Monday with an 82-60 victory over Brown, like Harvard, from the Ivy League.
Harvard (1-0) won its opener as the Crimson defeated UMass 71-58 in Cambridge, Mass.
Follow along as we chronicle the action.
Game action
• 0-0, 850 1Q. Harvard’s Gabby Anderson has a novel approach to guarding the inbounds pass. She shouts at the top of her lungs. It worked too. Indiana turned it over.
• Harvard 10-2, 532 1Q. After an early deadlock, Harvard hit a couple of threes and that allowed the Crimson to set their full-court pressure. Indiana has had major trouble with the traps. Indiana just committed a turnover when Karoline Striplin tried to pass out of trouble and threw it to Lydia Chatira, who got an easy layup. Indiana is 0-for-2 from the field with 6 turnovers. You read that right, 6 turnovers. Teri Moren called a timeout to get the Hoosiers reset.
• Harvard 16-4, 250 1Q. First field goal of the game for the Hoosiers was converted by Chloe Moore-McNeil. Crimson still in control and still creating havoc. Harvard also shooting 54%.
• Harvard 21-6, :55.8 2Q. A completely unfamiliar feeling here at Assembly Hall. The Indiana women are being run off their own floor. The turnovers haven’t stopped. And as any good press will do, Harvard has sped up Indiana’s decision-making, so even when they don’t turn it over, they’re rushed.
• End first quarter – Harvard 21, Indiana 7. Assembly Hall is in a state of shock. Polite claps at the end of the quarter, but stunned silence otherwise.
Harvard was 9 of 18 from the floor. Indiana only managed 7 shots and made 2 of them. Hoosiers have 11 turnovers. I’m entering my third season of Indiana coverage and that was the worst quarter I’ve seen the Hoosiers play by a very wide margin. Someone has to provide composure to get Indiana back on-track. Indiana’s defense is suffering right there with the offense too.
• Harvard 25-12, 825 2Q. Don’t think I’ve seen Chloe Moore-McNeil get the ball tipped away from her from behind for an easy Crimson transition bucket. Some good news for Indiana? Lilly Meister drew the second foul on Gabby Anderson, who is instrumental in Harvard’s attack.
• Harvard 26-17, 523 2Q. You don’t have to be an analytics wizard to understand that when a team shoots almost twice as many shots (26-14) as the opposition? They’re probably going to be ahead regardless of how good they shoot it. Indiana’s defense has clamped down on the Crimson – they’ve missed their last four shots. Chloe Moore-McNeil just converted a traditional three-point play, but the going is still tough for the Hoosiers on the offensive end.
• Harvard 28-17, 405 2Q. Hoosiers finding their feet a bit, certainly on the defensive end they have. Crimson are 3 of 9 from the field in the second quarter and two of those makes were early. Hoosiers are shooting 40% in the second quarter.
The bigger problem is just getting shots at all. Harvard doesn’t stop trapping when the ball crosses mid-court and while Indiana has found some seams, it’s still difficult to get any good looks. Another issue is Indiana is using a short rotation with its backcourt injuries. Shay Ciezki has 2 fouls and this style will wear a team down after a while.
• Harvard 32-24, 232 2Q. Harvard calls timeout as Yarden Garzon hits the first 3-pointer of the game for the Hoosiers (1 of 7 from 3-point range). Indiana defense has forced five turnovers and has held the Crimson to 4 of 11 shooting in the second quarter, but the hole Indiana dug for itself is sizable.
• Harvard 32-28, :30 2Q. Major downfall of Harvard’s physical style? The Crimson have serious foul trouble. Post player Katie Krupa just picked up her third foul. Four other Crimson players have two fouls.
Indiana has been playing a 2-3 zone to force Harvard to produce points from the arc and it’s working.
• End first half – Harvard 32, Indiana 30. Hoosiers finally put it all together in the final three minutes of the half. An 11-0 run, fueled in large part by Indiana foul shots and Harvard foul trouble, made a big difference as did Indiana’s zone defense which Harvard had trouble with. Good response by Indiana after Harvard started so well.
• Harvard 40-34, 540 3Q. Indiana briefly took the lead, but the Crimson aren’t going away. One notable stat? Plus-minus can be very misleading, but Harvard is clearly better with Gabby Anderson on the floor and the plus-minus bears that out. Anderson is at a plus-16. Only one other Crimson player (Harmoni Turner +14) is in double-digits.
• Harvard 43-35, 459 3Q. Crimson have assumed control again. Indiana hasn’t scored a bucket in 3 minutes, 38 seconds. Hoosiers have 4 turnovers in that stretch too. Harvard has found its accuracy from long range. Three of its last four attempts from long range have found the mark.
• End third quarter – Harvard 48, Indiana 46. Crimson only made two field goals in the final five minutes of the quarter and it allowed the Hoosiers to get back in it. Indiana briefly took the lead again before a Karlee White 3-pointer helped the Crimson slip ahead in the final minute.
All to play for in Bloomington. Harvard has done a decent job managing its foul trouble. Only one player with four fouls for the Crimson. Indiana has comeback, but needs more connectivity, especially on the offensive end. Harvard has had trouble with Lilly Meister at times. She could be a big key in the final quarter.
• Long delay at the end of the third quarter. Officials reviewed something, but whatever it was, it was determined to their satisfaction without any announcement to the crowd.
• Technical difficulties at Assembly Hall. Sydney Parrish forced her way up-court and dared Harvard to foul her to avoid her crossing mid-court. They did and Parrish sailed out of bounds. She’s fine, but in the process she ran into the TV table and dislodged the padding on the side, and with it, one of the Big Ten-plus crowd mikes.
• Harvard 54-53, 648 4Q. Crimson press continues to cause trouble. Hoosiers with a violation while trying to get the ball past mid-court. Indiana has made both of its fourth quarter shots, but are having trouble setting shots up.
• Harvard 57-54, 500 4Q. Neither sideline nor the fans are very happy with the officials right now. Been some touch fouls called, others not. Harvard got away with a travel on a bucket which incensed the Assembly Hall faithful – along with fouls called on Yarden Garzon and Chloe Moore-McNeil. My only complaint is the sheer volume of fouls … which means a lot of free throws.
• Harvard 57-54, 452 4Q. Time ticking away for the Hoosiers. Indiana has only taken three shots in the quarter. Part of that is due to Harvard fouls. Part of it is the non-stop whistles. Teams have combined for 12 fouls in the fourth quarter. It’s a physical game, but there hasn’t been consistency in calling physical fouls vs. some ticky-tacky touch fouls.
Yarden Garzon has seven of the 8 points Indiana has scored in the quarter. That’s good, but other Hoosiers need to get involved.
• Harvard has kind of gone into a prevent offense. I get it, but it’s too early for that.
• Indiana 60-57, 242 4Q. A pair of Shay Ciezki free throws put the Hoosiers on top. We’ve seen the best and worst of Yarden Garzon this quarter. Her offensive confidence has helped her score seven in the quarter. Her offensive confidence also causes her to put her down and drive into multiple Harvard defenders for a charge.
Gabby Anderson just fouled out for Harvard. A huge loss for the Crimson.
• Indiana 60-57, 228 4Q. Shay Ciezki fouls out. That’s also big. Takes away Indiana’s best free throw shooter.
• Indiana 62-58, 210 4Q. Fouls have caught up with the Crimson. Post player Elena Rodriguez fouls out. If the Hoosiers can make their free throws, they will escape.
• Indiana 63-60, :35 4Q. It’s not over yet. Lilly Meister made 1 of 2 at the line. Henna Sandvik had a big rebound on her miss. However, Yarden Garzon forced a shot in the lane the Hoosiers didn’t need and Harvard rebounded. Crimson have the ball with a 6-second disparity in the game to shot clock.
• 63-63, :19 4Q. Despite the fact Indiana had extended its defense to the 3-point arc, Alayna Rocco managed to get an open look and she buried it. The freshman with some ice cold composure.
• 63-63, :01 4Q. Chloe Moore-McNeil managed to get 1-on-1 isolation on a drive to the rim, but she drove too deep and her shot was off the mark. Harvard rebounds. Review to check for when the clock stopped. Harvard might get a few extra ticks. Well, one extra tick. One second left.
• End of regulation – Indiana 63, Harvard 63. Overtime! Katie Krupa’s shot from about 13 feet wasn’t a bad look, but Sydney Parrish got a hand up, may have even got a piece of the ball, and it fell short.
• Harvard 65-63, 352 OT. Indiana forced to call a timeout as Sydney Parrish came up hobbling on a loose ball on Harvard’s end. She tried to run the floor, but was clearly slowed. Julianna LaMendola takes Parrish’s place.
• Sydney Parrish returns for Indiana.
• Harvard 67-66, 140 OT. Decision-making on the offensive end has been suspect for Indiana. Chloe Moore-McNeil dribbled into a double-team in the lane. She got bailed out by a whistle which was fortunate.
• Harvard 69-68, :32.5 OT. Indiana had the ball with the chance to take the lead and also has two timeouts. Teri Moren elected not to use a timeout, but I don’t think she had Yarden Garzon driving into the teeth of four Harvard defenders in-mind when she made that decision. Garzon called for a charge and the Crimson have the ball and a two-second differential on the shot clock.
• Harvard 70-68, :17.5 OT. Saniyah Glenn makes one of two at the line, so the Hoosiers have a good opportunity in front of them. Offensive decision-making has to be better, though.
• Moore-McNeil, Meister, Garzon, LaMendola and Parrish on the floor for the Hoosiers.
• Harvard 70-68, :03.1 OT. Hoosiers in big, big trouble. LaMendola drove the lane and got off a decent shot. It was short, however. Meister tried to rebound, but had the ball stolen from her by Karlee White. Harvard ball.
• Harvard 72-68, :02.4 OT. Mona Zaric makes a pair at the line for Harvard and the Hoosiers will need a miracle to pull this one out.
• FINAL – Harvard 72, Indiana 68, OT. The gleeful Crimson celebrate at mid-court in a shocking upset over 25th-ranked Indiana. It’s the first time since 2021 that Indiana has lost on its home floor in a regular season game to a nonconference opponent. Crimson celebration continues. They earned it. Hoosiers have some soul-searching to do.
• FINAL STATS: Indiana scoring – Lilly Meister 20, Yarden Garzon 20, Chloe Moore-McNeil 10, Sydney Parrish 7, Shay Ciezki 4, Karoline Striplin 4, Julianna LaMendola 3, Henna Sandvik 0.
Harvard scoring – Harmoni Turner 24, Alayna Rocco 9, Mona Zaric 8, Gabby Anderson 5, Saniyah Glenn 3, Karlee White 3, Abigail Wright 3, Lydia Chatira 2, Katie Krupa 0.
The big number for Indiana? The Hoosiers had 27 turnovers and Harvard scored 32 points from those turnovers.
Pregame
• Starters – Indiana: Shay Ciezki, Yarden Garzon, Chloe Moore-McNeil, Sydney Parrish, Lilly Meister.
Harvard: Gabby Anderson, Lydia Chatira, Elena Rodriguez, Harmoni Turner, Saniyah Glenn.
• Crowd is similar to Monday’s showing. Decent turnout with plenty of fans under the concourse entrances.
• The Big Ten availability report lists Lexus Bargesser and Lenee Beaumont as out. So Indiana’s personnel dynamic will be the same as it was on Monday against Brown.
• The statistic that stands out in Harvard’s win over UMass was the 33 turnovers Harvard forced. When UMass was able to stay turnover-free, they actually shot the ball well – 44.2%. Obviously, Indiana will have to be careful with the ball against the Crimson.
• Offensively, Harvard will shoot its share of threes. The Crimson hoisted 26 3-pointers against UMass, making eight of them. Gabby Anderson was their most accurate 3-point shooter by far as she was 4 of 7 in Harvard’s victory.
• Teri Moren was critical of the Hoosiers after their win over Brown. Cited defensive lapses and used words like “undisciplined” to describe Indiana’s effort. I thought as I watched the game that Indiana kind of coasted after building a lead, Brown did cut its deficit to 11 at one point, but I didn’t walk out off the floor postgame thinking it was anything serious.
That’s why I’m not a coach! It’s not my job to set standards. It is Teri Moren’s job and she sent a clear message on Monday that Indiana’s performance wasn’t to her standard. That’s what good coaches do. Her words may have taken some people by surprise, but in setting a tone, it was done to make the Hoosiers better.
• Here’s our How To Watch story. The game is on Big Ten-plus tonight. If you don’t want to fork over money for Big Ten-plus, I’ve got you here on the live blog.
