“Our kids, they read. They know that we are not expected to win this game. But does it fuel them? I hope it does.”
ALBANY, NY — Teri Moren isn’t sugarcoating anything heading into the Hoosiers’ third Sweet 16 appearance in four years.
The experienced coach knows what Indiana (26-5) is up against in No. 1 overall seed South Carolina (32-0). She knows the majority of women’s basketball fans expect South Carolina to win the national title.
“As I said to our kids, yes, we’re the underdog, but I think everybody else except for South Carolina right now is the underdog because of their perfect record,” Moren said. “I don’t know that anybody believes that South Carolina can be beaten.”
Historical dominance. What is IU up against South Carolina in the Sweet 16?
She knows her players know that, too.
South Carolina is the heavy betting favorite to not only win against IU, but win the entire NCAA tournament. The Gamecocks sit at -150 to take the national title, and Iowa has the next-best odds at +600.
“Our kids, they read,” the mother said. “They know that we are not expected to win this game. But does it fuel them? I hope it does. I hope it motivates them. I do think there is an aspect of that that you can use to your advantage. You’re playing with house money. You have nothing to lose.”
The mother hopes this lack of added pressure can help the Hoosiers play freely.
“We really don’t feel any pressure at all,” senior Chloe Moore-McNeil said. “We know everybody expects South Carolina to win. They’re a great team, and obviously they’re undefeated. But it’s March Madness, so you kind of have to throw all those things out of the window and just focus on yourself and winning.”
Fourth-seeded IU, with the home loss in the 2023 NCAA tournament in the back of its mind, felt a lot of pressure for its second-round game against No. 5 Oklahoma on Monday night. That led to the Hoosiers playing disjointed — multiple shots rimmed in and out, and IU trailed for much of the first half.
But the Hoosiers found their flow in the second, leading to 20 lead changes and an eventual seven-point victory.
This time around, IU can’t afford to be incohesive in the first half (or in the second). South Carolina is a team that can quickly build momentum in the first half, jumping out to big leads and coasting the rest of the game. That was evident especially in South Carolina’s second-round game against North Carolina — the Gamecocks had a 56-19 lead at halftime and could rest its starters in the second, coasting to an 88-41 victory.
A tall task, literally. IU vs. South Carolina predictions in Sweet 16
“We know how great of a task this is, they’re not an undefeated team for no reason,” senior All-American Mackenzie Holmes said. “But just embracing the moment, not shying away from the challenge we have in front of us, and not giving up for 40 minutes is going to be the biggest thing.”
IU opened as a 15.5-point underdog to South Carolina for their 5 pm, Friday matchup at MVP Arena. The winner will face the winner of No. 2 Notre Dame and No. 3 Oregon State in the Elite Eight on Sunday.
The Hoosiers have only been to the Elite Eight once in program history — IU lost to Arizona, who advanced to the national championship game, in 2021.
Sydney Parrish wasn’t on IU’s roster in the Elite Eight run, but this is still her second appearance in the Sweet 16 — one with Oregon, and one with Indiana.
Parrish said Friday she’s already surpassed her dad, Shawn Parrish, who went to the Sweet 16 once with Ball State in 1990. But she wants to one-up him once again with a trip to the Elite Eight — and her mentality is that they’ re going to get there.
“To win, I think that’s the biggest thing — we have to believe in ourselves and we have to have trust that we can go into this game and win, we can’t think that we are the underdogs,” Parrish said. “Something I always live by is that we have to act as if you are the best, act as if you can beat South Carolina, and that’s gonna be the biggest thing for us tomorrow as the No. 1 team in the country is going to be on the other side of the court.”
