Indiana stunned by Michigan, 69-56, in Big Ten tournament quarterfinals
MINNEAPOLIS — With under six and a half minutes left in the fourth quarter, Mackenzie Holmes stood up from Indiana’s bench and took her warmup shirt off. She sat down in the team huddle for the first time all night, bouncing her legs and nodding as Teri Moren spoke.
No. 3-seed Indiana was trailing 52-48 to No. 6-seed Michigan, in danger of falling victim to the third upset of the day at the Big Ten Tournament. Holmes’s preparation to enter the game was rejuvenating for the Indiana fans in attendance, as they knew their team was in desperate need of some scoring and fast.
It didn’t come.
Holmes was cold — she hadn’t done more than go through pregame warmups up to that point—and Michigan was ready for her. In the five minutes she played, she missed the only two shots she took and was called for two personal fouls.
Her presence, or lack thereof, wasn’t the difference-maker in Indiana’s 69-56 loss to Michigan Friday night, however. To beat the Wolverines would have required a full team effort. To lose to them meant the Hoosiers weren’t clicking as a unit.
It’s not that they weren’t trying. They were; they just weren’t connecting with each other. And at times, they were trying too hard in the wrong ways.
“I felt like we were all just guilty of trying to do a little bit too much as individuals,” Teri Moren said postgame.
Everyone knew they had to do a little more without Holmes on the floor — the All-American brings an undeniable spark to the team in measurable and immeasurable ways. But that knowledge meant Indiana was taking ill-advised shots, rushing through movements and not slowing down enough to take care of the ball in its efforts to do more.
Sloppiness was a common theme throughout the game for both teams. Indiana and Michigan alike struggled from the jump to make shots, no matter how good the looks were. Any rhythm on either end of the floor was nonexistent in the first quarter, but Indiana pulled it together enough in the second quarter to hold a 14-point lead heading into the locker room.
The Hoosiers weren’t naive; they knew it was far from over. But knowing something is coming and actually being a part of it are two different things. As mentally prepared as they may have been for Michigan to come out with a vengeance, they couldn’t stop it and didn’t help themselves in the process.
Indiana only scored eight points in the third quarter and turned the ball over seven times, providing Michigan with ample opportunity to take the ball and run with it. The Wolverines did just that, figuratively and literally.
“Turnovers lead to fast-break layups,” Sydney Parrish said. “It’s hard to play defense when there are live ball turnovers. I think that’s really what happened towards the end of the game.”
By the time Holmes stepped foot on the hardwood, it seemed like the Hoosiers were in emergency mode. In a way, though, they were like that the entire game. Lilly Meister was working through her own foot injury and Sydney Parrish briefly exited the floor after being shaken up in the first half. Holmes’ minutes were something of a last-ditch attempt to turn the tide.
Why didn’t she play earlier? Indiana expected to be in Minneapolis until Sunday. Holmes’ talents would be much more critical for a semifinal or championship game. But it’s March and Indiana isn’t fully healthy and didn’t win. So, questions abound.
What would have happened if Holmes played more? Should she have played more? Should she have played at all? Would any of it have made a difference?
“It was just trying to figure out a balance,” Moren said. “In terms of how healthy she is, she could have easily played tonight. We were just trying to hold her out as much as we could to see what the pieces that we did have that we did feel were healthy enough, if we could get past Michigan.”
To the frustration and disappointment of Indiana, that didn’t happen. Instead, the team will leave Minneapolis wondering what could have happened if they had made better decisions, taken better care of the ball and been healthy.
“I think I’m most disappointed because I know what this group is capable of,” Parrish said. “I know we could have made it to championship Sunday. I know we’re one of the best teams in the league, if not the best. And I think that’s where I really got, I guess, emotional and upset because I know we’re enough.”
Now, Indiana must wait until Selection Sunday on March 17 to see where to go from here. There is plenty of time to regroup, learn from Friday’s loss and become fully healthy. There are no questions about that. The biggest question is what happens after Selection Sunday; the chances of hosting the first two rounds of the NCAA tournament at Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall seem slim, but it’s not completely out of the question. At this point, only time — and the selection committee — will tell.
“I think our body of work speaks for itself,” Moren said. “We’re not healthy by any stretch of the means. I think that has to be part of the criteria or whatever they look at. This is not Indiana at full health right now. It’s not a healthy squad. But I do believe this, that come tournament time in two weeks we will have a much different looking, healthier basketball team.”
(Photo credit: IU Athletics)
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