With Sara Scalia, it’s about subtlety.
She’s never been the type to show much emotion on the court. If she puts up three fingers to the crowd after making a big shot — the way nearly every other college basketball player would — that’s a lot for her. Scalia’s reactions are subdued, even as her game speaks volumes.
That was the case on Wednesday, as she made Indiana women’s basketball history during a 68-54 win at Wisconsin. The fifth-year set a new program record for 3-pointers made in a single season with 79, passing Amanda Cahill.
“I had heard some things about how I was close to breaking the record, before coming into the game. But honestly, I didn’t really know for sure how many away I was,” Scalia said after the game. “I was just honestly trying to focus on the game, think about really nothing else other than that. And then, obviously after the game, they told me. It was obviously a good feeling, for sure.”
The guard has a chance surpassing Steve Alford’s Indiana men’s basketball record of 107 3-pointers. The 14th-ranked IU women have four games left in the regular season, plus at least two postseason games — and likely more than that. Scalia’s averaging 3.3 made threes per game, and is up to 4.3 per game over the last eight contests. At those clips, she’d be in position to eclipse Alford’s mark with one or two postseason wins.
She could top Alford and still not set a career high — she drained 111 threes in 2021-22, her last season at Minnesota.
Scalia left the Golden Gophers and transferred to IU ahead of last season, and helped transform the Hoosiers from a low-volume 3-point team into one of the more lethal outside shooting teams in the country. But that campaign didn’t go as well as she or Indiana had hoped. She had to adjust to Indiana’s playing style, with a heavier emphasis on defense than she saw at Minnesota.
She didn’t necessarily mind coming off the bench or the dip in numbers, because she just wanted to win. But both Scalia and IU’s coaches knew she was capable of playing much better. And that’s come to fruition this year.
“She’s been terrific,” IU head coach Teri Moren said. “She has played with confidence.”
The guard is shooting a career-best 44.6 percent from 3-point range, which ranks 11th in the nation and first in the Big Ten. Scalia’s 44.4 field-goal percentage would also be a career-high — she’s never finished a season above 40 percent. She’s averaging 16.3 points, 3.8 rebounds, a career-high 2.54 assists, and 1.0 steals per game.
The outside shooting ability is obvious. But it’s the subtleties that have made Scalia so much better this year and much more well-rounded.
Everything about her game feels sharper this year. Her quick release, set up by her efficient load-up and receiving passes ready to immediately fire. She’s a lot more decisive than she was last season. Pairing her shooting — along with other good outside options in Yarden Garzon, Chloe Moore-McNeil, and Sydney Parrish — with strong post play from Mackenzie Holmes is what makes IU dangerous.
“When we’re on the same side of the floor, you make a decision if you want to help off Sara Scalia. And usually, I don’t think you should ever help off Sara Scalia, because every time the ball leaves her hands, I think it’s going in,” Holmes said. “I think it’s the confidence she has in herself, and she knows we have confidence in her as well. But she’s an elite shooter.”
But it’s not just the outside shooting for Scalia. She’s an underrated passer, with ability to fire to teammates through tight windows or at tough angles as well as anyone on IU.
The fifth-year has also become so much more aggressive — and effective — at driving to the rim. It’s allowed her speed to shine — her burst when cutting or driving into the paint may be the quickest of any Hoosier. It’s opened up a lot for her on offense; Scalia has able to create her own shots this season more regularly than she did last year.
And she’s continued to make strides defensively, turning into one of the better defenders on the roster.
“She’s continued to shoot it at a really high, high level for us. I’ve talked about her ability to put it on the deck and be aggressive, and just not be a catch-and-shoot kind of kid. And so I love how aggressive she’s played. She also has to guard on the other end, really hard,” Moren said. “And so I’m really, really happy that she was able to get the new record tonight.”
Scalia, at her best, elevates Indiana’s ceiling. She can heat up in a flash, and force teams to help off other players to guard her.
Too often, last season, she’d struggle to impact games when her 3-pointers weren’t falling. That hasn’t been the case this season — both because she’s hitting more shots, and she’s doing so many other things well. And the combination of those things has brought Sara Scalia back to an All-Big Ten level at Indiana.
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