Indiana University Athletics
Special IU Senior Day More Than Just a Song
3/4/2024 11:31:00 AM | Women's Basketball
By Pete DiPrimio
IUHoosiers.com
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. - Mackenzie Holmes earned a crowd's roar just by jogging to the bench.
For this, Hoosier Nation gave thanks.
Arielle Wisne sang the heck out of the National Anthem.
For this, the Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall crowd of 12,000-plus cheered approval.
Sara Scalia did what Sara Scalia does -- drained three-pointers at a stunning pace.
For this, you guessed it, more cheers.
Welcome to the latest women's basketball Senior Day, where thrills thrived everywhere except in the game itself, which the Hoosiers dominated by a 71-54 score against Maryland on Sunday.
They finished with a 15-0 home record, 24-4 overall, and have won 30 straight at Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall. They also became just the fourth Big Ten women's basketball team to average more than 10,000 attendance a home game in a season.
"This is always a bittersweet day," coach Teri Moren says. "Your focus certainly wants to be on the task at hand, but you also reflect on your seniors, and what they've meant. You try to make the main thing the main thing. I thought we did that."
Let's start with Holmes, an All-American who's on-and-off-the-court importance can't be overstated. Sophomore guard Yarden Garzon is proof of that. Holmes has spent a lot of time helping her improve her game, which rates among the Big Ten's best by averaging 2.0 three-pointers and 11.7 points per game.
"I worked out with her every day," Garzon says. "You work with an All-American and see the kind of person she is, how she works out, how she is outside the court. She's such a good player and person. She tried to teach me everything, doing things the right way, what this program means."
On Sunday, Holmes had totaled 11 points and six rebounds in 23 minutes in her final regular season home game before a late third-quarter knee injury sent her to the locker room.
Given Holmes' previous knee injuries, concern erupted.
"It's scary when she goes down," Scalia says. 'She's dealt with a lot of injuries. We hope for the best."
In the closing minutes, Holmes jogged to the bench to join her teammates in celebration, and the cheers reflected relief and acknowledgement of sustained career excellence.
Holmes seemed fine in that setting, but she wasn't trying to power her way through Big Ten defenses, as the Hoosiers hope she will do starting Friday in the Big Ten tourney in Minneapolis.
A healthy Holmes is crucial for IU postseason prospects. She is, after all, the greatest scorer in program history, second only in Indiana basketball to Calbert Cheaney. She's second to Iowa's Cailin Clark in Big Ten scoring (21.0 points to 32.3), leads in shooting (66.6 percent) and averages 7.1 rebounds
"She has had some bad luck in late February," Moren says. "I will be hopeful and optimistic it will turn out the way we want it to. She's a tough and resilient kid. We have a great medical staff."
When Holmes went down, Moren adds, "You try not to let you mind go where it shouldn't. You focus on the kids on the floor. I'll be optimistic until they tell me differently."
Scalia, also playing in her last regular-season home game, had 19 points while adding four more three-pointers to her program record single-season total -- it's up to 91.
It was another special performance in a special season that Scalia dedicated to her late grandfather.
"It's been tough without him," she says, "but he's definitely been a source of strength to me."
That's true of her entire family.
"They give me a lot of strength. They've been there for me through all the highs and lows."
As for her two Hoosier seasons after transferring from Minnesota, Scalia adds, "It's the people. They're awesome. The whole program welcomed me. They made me feel comfortable. It's been a lot of fun."
Wisne, a redshirt senior forward, certainly had fun with her knockout rendition of the National Anthem, which showed it wasn't her first vocal rodeo.
"How about the National Anthem that she crushed?" Moren says. "That was a nice surprise … Her teammates didn't know she was going to do that."
Wisne played the final minute and added a block that left teammates celebrating.
"She's been so special," Moren says. "She is the greatest teammate and I can't overstate it enough.
"She's such a beautiful person inside and out. To put her on the floor and have her do something positive like that was great. You can sense the excitement from her teammates."
Senior Day did not include seniors Chloe Moore-McNeil and Sydney Parrish, who will return for fifth seasons.
Moore-McNeil totaled 10 points and eight assists. She was a catalyst in the final quarter, with Holmes out and forward Lilly Meister suffering an ankle injury.
"We couldn't get any rhythm offensively," Moren says, "but I loved how Chloe took over in the moment and tried to get to the rim and get to the free throw line. She was a big reason why we were able to maintain the lead."
All five IU starters scored in double figures. Defensively, the Hoosiers held Maryland to 28 percent shooting.
IU bolted to a 16-2 lead on 6-for-6 shooting that included a pair of Garzon three-pointers. Maryland countered with a 12-0 run. IU countered back with a Scalia three-pointer, a Holmes layup and a Moore-McNeil block to restore Cream 'n Crimson order.
Midway through the second quarter they led 33-16. Consecutive Scalia three-pointers made it 39-18.
The Terrapins had no answer then or the rest of the way.
"Maryland is a physical team," Moren says. "I'm proud of the way our kids fought and battled."
IU earned the No. 3 seed in the Big Ten tourney behind champion Ohio State and Iowa, although Indiana tied the Hawkeyes with 15-3 conference records. The Buckeyes finished 16-2.
The Hoosiers will play Friday night against No. 6 seed Michigan, No. 11 Minnesota or No. 14 Rutgers. Barring upsets, they would play Iowa in Saturday's semifinals.
IUHoosiers.com
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. - Mackenzie Holmes earned a crowd's roar just by jogging to the bench.
For this, Hoosier Nation gave thanks.
Arielle Wisne sang the heck out of the National Anthem.
For this, the Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall crowd of 12,000-plus cheered approval.
Sara Scalia did what Sara Scalia does -- drained three-pointers at a stunning pace.
For this, you guessed it, more cheers.
Welcome to the latest women's basketball Senior Day, where thrills thrived everywhere except in the game itself, which the Hoosiers dominated by a 71-54 score against Maryland on Sunday.
They finished with a 15-0 home record, 24-4 overall, and have won 30 straight at Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall. They also became just the fourth Big Ten women's basketball team to average more than 10,000 attendance a home game in a season.
"This is always a bittersweet day," coach Teri Moren says. "Your focus certainly wants to be on the task at hand, but you also reflect on your seniors, and what they've meant. You try to make the main thing the main thing. I thought we did that."
Let's start with Holmes, an All-American who's on-and-off-the-court importance can't be overstated. Sophomore guard Yarden Garzon is proof of that. Holmes has spent a lot of time helping her improve her game, which rates among the Big Ten's best by averaging 2.0 three-pointers and 11.7 points per game.
"I worked out with her every day," Garzon says. "You work with an All-American and see the kind of person she is, how she works out, how she is outside the court. She's such a good player and person. She tried to teach me everything, doing things the right way, what this program means."
On Sunday, Holmes had totaled 11 points and six rebounds in 23 minutes in her final regular season home game before a late third-quarter knee injury sent her to the locker room.
Given Holmes' previous knee injuries, concern erupted.
"It's scary when she goes down," Scalia says. 'She's dealt with a lot of injuries. We hope for the best."
In the closing minutes, Holmes jogged to the bench to join her teammates in celebration, and the cheers reflected relief and acknowledgement of sustained career excellence.
Holmes seemed fine in that setting, but she wasn't trying to power her way through Big Ten defenses, as the Hoosiers hope she will do starting Friday in the Big Ten tourney in Minneapolis.
A healthy Holmes is crucial for IU postseason prospects. She is, after all, the greatest scorer in program history, second only in Indiana basketball to Calbert Cheaney. She's second to Iowa's Cailin Clark in Big Ten scoring (21.0 points to 32.3), leads in shooting (66.6 percent) and averages 7.1 rebounds
"She has had some bad luck in late February," Moren says. "I will be hopeful and optimistic it will turn out the way we want it to. She's a tough and resilient kid. We have a great medical staff."
When Holmes went down, Moren adds, "You try not to let you mind go where it shouldn't. You focus on the kids on the floor. I'll be optimistic until they tell me differently."
Scalia, also playing in her last regular-season home game, had 19 points while adding four more three-pointers to her program record single-season total -- it's up to 91.
It was another special performance in a special season that Scalia dedicated to her late grandfather.
"It's been tough without him," she says, "but he's definitely been a source of strength to me."
That's true of her entire family.
"They give me a lot of strength. They've been there for me through all the highs and lows."
As for her two Hoosier seasons after transferring from Minnesota, Scalia adds, "It's the people. They're awesome. The whole program welcomed me. They made me feel comfortable. It's been a lot of fun."
Wisne, a redshirt senior forward, certainly had fun with her knockout rendition of the National Anthem, which showed it wasn't her first vocal rodeo.
"How about the National Anthem that she crushed?" Moren says. "That was a nice surprise … Her teammates didn't know she was going to do that."
Wisne played the final minute and added a block that left teammates celebrating.
"She's been so special," Moren says. "She is the greatest teammate and I can't overstate it enough.
"She's such a beautiful person inside and out. To put her on the floor and have her do something positive like that was great. You can sense the excitement from her teammates."
Senior Day did not include seniors Chloe Moore-McNeil and Sydney Parrish, who will return for fifth seasons.
Moore-McNeil totaled 10 points and eight assists. She was a catalyst in the final quarter, with Holmes out and forward Lilly Meister suffering an ankle injury.
"We couldn't get any rhythm offensively," Moren says, "but I loved how Chloe took over in the moment and tried to get to the rim and get to the free throw line. She was a big reason why we were able to maintain the lead."
All five IU starters scored in double figures. Defensively, the Hoosiers held Maryland to 28 percent shooting.
IU bolted to a 16-2 lead on 6-for-6 shooting that included a pair of Garzon three-pointers. Maryland countered with a 12-0 run. IU countered back with a Scalia three-pointer, a Holmes layup and a Moore-McNeil block to restore Cream 'n Crimson order.
Midway through the second quarter they led 33-16. Consecutive Scalia three-pointers made it 39-18.
The Terrapins had no answer then or the rest of the way.
"Maryland is a physical team," Moren says. "I'm proud of the way our kids fought and battled."
IU earned the No. 3 seed in the Big Ten tourney behind champion Ohio State and Iowa, although Indiana tied the Hawkeyes with 15-3 conference records. The Buckeyes finished 16-2.
The Hoosiers will play Friday night against No. 6 seed Michigan, No. 11 Minnesota or No. 14 Rutgers. Barring upsets, they would play Iowa in Saturday's semifinals.
Players Mentioned
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Forward
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Center
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