The Indiana Hoosiers paired up against a top-10 opponent in North Carolina on Wednesday as they were looking to earn their second win over a top-25 team this season. Even though Indiana went on to take down the Tar Heels, 87-63, it didn’t look like it was going to be an easy night for the Hoosiers in the opening moments.
The Tar Heels started the game by scoring the first seven points of the game but then Indiana turned things around. The Hoosiers then went on a 13-0 run sparked by two Sydney Parrish 3s. Those two 3-pointers gave Indiana the lead while Parrish and the Hoosiers never looked back.
A lot of Indiana’s shooting success came from the Fishers, Indiana native. Parrish finished with her career high in an Indiana jersey with 24 points on the night helping Indiana win its eighth consecutive game. The win was an overall team effort but with the Hoosiers missing their star player, Parrish stepped up when the bright lights were on.
With graduate guard Grace Berger going down with an injury two games ago, Parrish was inserted into the starting lineup for Thursday's game. This was just the second game of the year in which Parrish was given the start but she made the best out of it in one of Indiana’s biggest games.
So far this season, Parrish has been used as the main person to come off the bench — effectively serving as a sixth starter for the Hoosiers — but when she was given the chance to shine Thursday, Parrish took full advantage.
Parrish played 36 minutes against the Tar Heels, reeling in 24 points, six rebounds and one assist. The Indiana native shot exceptionally well from 3, taking a third of Indiana’s 3-point shots. Parrish finished the game 9-for-15 from the field and 4-for-7 from 3. After the game, Parrish mentioned that head coach Teri Moren helped make adjustments to her shot two days ago in practice. Whatever changed seemed to work for her as she helped lead the Hoosiers to victory.
“Coming into this year we knew 3-point shooting was going to be big for us,” Parrish said. “I think we all just work really hard in practice. I mean I changed my shot this week, two days ago. Coach decided to change my shot and I guess it worked for today.”
Three-point shooting as a whole was a key factor in the win. As a team, Indiana shot over 50 percent going 12-for-22 from deep. Five different Hoosiers were able to make at least one 3-pointer against the Tar Heels. This is a new skill that this Indiana team possesses after not being able to shoot the ball well in the 2021 season. Indiana tackled 3-point shooting heavily in the transfer portal this offseason and with the acquisition of Parrish, and it clearly paid off for Moren and her squad.
“Tonight we need to be really good outside the arc and we were able to do that,” Moren said. “Give our kids credit because that's who they are. Whether it’s Yarden (Garzon), Sara Scalia, Chloe, Syd, or Henna (Sandvik) they all have the ability to step out and shoot behind the arc. Tonight it just seemed like things were going our way.”
This game would be the second matchup against a top-25 opponent after the Hoosiers took down Tennessee earlier this year back on Nov. 14. Thursday’s game is one of the most significant games on the Indiana schedule this year but Moren said that Indiana’s route to the win came from her experienced players. Parrish, Mackenzie Holmes and Scalia have all played in these types of games so Indiana’s head coach was pleased to see that the players fused well in the moment.
“This is a veteran group,” Moren said. “You have Syd who has played in big games. Obviously Chloe (Moore-McNeil), Mack have played in big games. Sara Scalia has played in big games, when you play in the Big (Ten) you play in big games. These are women that are, one, mature but two, this isn't foreign to them playing in a big-time environment, a big-time game like we did tonight.”
It was never much of a contest for North Carolina. Indiana was able to punish the Tar Heels with consistent shots across the entire floor and they just simply couldn't catch up. Indiana finished the game shooting 53 percent from the field, its highest percentage so far this season. It was a big win for the program and everyone for Indiana seemed to be clicking but the Hoosiers did it with the hometown kid taking charge.
