3 Takeaways From IU Women's Basketball 78-56 Win Vs. Purdue

Hoosier Improve 16-9 Overall and 8-6 In League To Close In On NCAA Berth

Assembly Hall In Bloomington Where Indiana Played Purdue On Sunday

This Was A Banana Peel Game And Hoosiers Avoid Tripping

Bloomington-It was a proverbial banana peel game for IU where a slip-up could have knocked them out of the NCAA Tournament discussion but a win did little to help it. Purdue came in as one of the bottom five teams in the league along with Northwestern, Penn State, Rutgers, and Wisconsin. Going 6-0 was a must here to make postseason play. With today’s 78-56 win, the Hoosiers are now 5-0 vs. these squads. It is imperative to be perfect against this group and today gave the team one more victory in accomplishing that.

However, the ability to make a sixth straight NCAA Tournament rides on getting four wins against everyone else in the conference. So far Indiana has three victories here at Iowa and Washington and in Bloomington versus Nebraska against likely fellow postseason participants.

The ability to punch their ticket to March Madness rides on one more victory vs. either Ohio State or Maryland in Bloomington or at Michigan State. All of this takes us to the point where IU is now. They are 16-9 (8-6 in conference) and likely one more non-Boilermaker victory (they play on senior day in West Lafayette) away from ensuring a spot in postseason play.

Is IU Vs. Purdue Really A Rivalry In Women’s Basketball

On paper Indiana and Purdue are rivalries in all sports. However, much like the IU vs. Wisconsin matchups on the men’s side, the series is rarely competitive on the court with one side or the other completely dominant depending on the era.

Through the mid-1980’s the Cream and Crimson were victorious nearly every time. Then the Boilers built a powerhouse and won a national championship while coming out on top almost without exception for the next 30 years.

However, once the dynasty faded in West Lafayette, it reverted to what originally occurred when these two faced off as the Hoosiers have now been victorious in 12 straight and 16 of 17. They have not lost to their rival at home since 2012 or at all since 2019 as they continue to retain the travelling Barn Burner Trophy the sides play for.

While the in-state hatred still exists across the board, many Indiana supporters have more villainous feelings towards Iowa given both squads have competed at the very top of the league recently. Indeed, while beating up on what many around Bloomington would call “little brother” (or “sister” in this case), the recent era has seen the Hoosiers have bigger fish to fry than worrying about a Boilermaker side who has been almost exclusively at the bottom of the conference.

As described above, the upcoming home matchups to close Big Ten competition against the Buckeyes and Terps are the critical ones that will determine IU’s NCAA fate. Beating up on a hapless rival is nice. However, it was a must if 2024-2025 is to be a success.

Hoosiers Got Out In Transition For The Easy Win

IU used its far superior speed in transition and got easy baskets. The Hoosiers got off to a quick 20-2 lead and the Boilers never got any closer than that. Whether it be Shay Ciezki, Yarden Garzon, or Sydney Parrish, Indiana’s backcourt was able to out run Purdue for easy shots. This trio combined for 53 points while going 20-33 from the field and making 13 shots inside the arc.

Ciezki said it was great to see the team get out and run.

“Our goal going into the game was playing fast,” Ciezki said. “We knew that was gonna be a big priority for us and we came out swinging and knew that we had to keep going with that transition game.”

While Indiana was also good from the three-point line going 8-16, they took a smaller amount from here than usual with penetration and fast breaks getting simple looks at the hoops. While it was not the best of days for the post players, the versatility of the guards worked just fine given the opponent in the dominant victory.

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