Battling a poor offensive night, IU women’s basketball earns ugly win against Marshall

BLOOMINGTON – Sometimes, an early nonconference test can result in a sluggish performance.

But there’s a difference between underwhelming and downright ugly. The latter was the case during Indiana women’s basketball’s victory against Marshall on Tuesday night, as the Hoosiers battled through a very poor offensive performance to come away with a 57-51 win.

Indiana (3-0) simply did not have anything going in the first half. Marshall’s press caused Teri Moren’s offense issues from the jump, forcing 14 Hoosier turnovers in the half.

Even when they did get it across half-court, not much went in their favor. IU shot 31 percent from the field in the half and went just 2 for 9 from 3-point range. The Hoosiers played better in the second half, but not by a significant margin. Indiana finished at 41 percent from the field, but still committed an astounding 28 turnovers, which is the most by the team since 2016.

But Marshall (2-1) was even worse.

The Thundering Herd shot just 17 percent from the field in the first half and had eight turnovers of their own. IU led 24-17 at halftime. The Herd had more of the same troubles in the second half, though, finishing 29 percent from the field, which helped give Indiana the edge.

Sophomore Zania Socka-Nguemen had an efficient night with 13 points and seven rebounds. IU’s center had to sit early due to two quick fouls in the first three minutes, but she was the team’s most valuable asset when on the court. Meanwhile, Shay Ciezki helped pace the Hoosiers with 13 points as well, and she grabbed a career-high 10 rebounds to give the senior her first career double-double.

Ultimately, a game like this shows Moren’s squad still has a lot of work to do ahead of conference play. IU returned only 18 percent of its minutes from last season, so learning after each game will be crucial.

They’ll need to grow in a hurry. IU now has a bigger test upcoming as they face Florida State in Tallahassee on Sunday. Tip-off is scheduled for 5 p.m. ET on ACC Network.