Indiana women's basketball remains winless in Big Ten as comeback bid falls short

5 days ago 2

Despite Shay Ciezki's 31 points, Indiana women's basketball dropped its fifth conference game of the season after a 78-73 loss to Nebraska on Thursday night in Lincoln.

Indiana is now 11-6 and 0-5 in the Big Ten. The Hoosiers have an uphill climb in conference play, too, with No. 14 Iowa coming to town Sunday.

Here are three observations:

Zania Socka-Nguemen returns to starting lineup after injury

Center Zania Socka-Nguemen made her return to the Hoosier starting lineup for the first time since November.

Socka-Nguemen suffered a lower leg injury during the Coconut Hoops Championship in late November, and ended up missing eight games — including the entire month of December — as the Hoosiers finished up nonconference play.

She returned against Maryland on Sunday, coming off the bench in her first game back. The Hoosiers had sorely missed her rebounding prowess and ability to control the paint throughout her injury, and she filled that gap again almost immediately.

She got off to a fast start, dropping in eight points on 4-of-4 shooting with three rebounds in the first 10 minutes to keep Indiana afloat. She finished the game with 19 points and 11 rebounds.

Scoring diversifies after just two players score in first quarter

Only two players scored for the Hoosiers in the first 10 minutes: Socka-Nguemen and Ciezki.

The two veterans kept Indiana afloat in the first half; Ciezki scored 12 points in the first 10 minutes, while Socka-Nguemen dropped in eight to keep Indiana within three points. The dominance by those two continued into the second quarter, as they went into halftime scoring all but four of the Hoosiers’ 30 first-half points.

It worked for a little bit, enough to keep the Hoosiers within striking distance. But they needed more help to have a chance at their first Big Ten win.

In the third quarter, they found some help from freshman Maya Makalusky.

Makalusky didn’t score at all in the first half, but put in seven in the third quarter alone — including a crucial four-point play that gave Indiana its first lead of the second half. She was limited, though, by foul trouble, taking away what was the third option for Indiana.

From last month: IU women's basketball has gaudy record before Big Ten play resumes, but issues remain

Strong third quarter falls flat in fourth

Fueled by Makalusky's seven third-quarter points, IU showed signs of life.

Makalusky's four-point play gave Indiana a crucial lead in the third quarter, giving the Hoosiers a boost when they most needed it. The two teams traded the lead for nearly the rest of the game, but Indiana's game fell flat at the end of the fourth.

A loose ball turnover from Ciezki with a minute left and an ill-advised shot well behind the 3-point line from Lenee Beaumont with 30 seconds left limited the Hoosiers' chances to close the gap at the end of the game.

Indiana's five-point loss to Nebraska was the closest loss the Hoosiers have had in Big Ten play so far; their last two losses were by 20 points to Michigan State and 15 points to Maryland. But there aren't any moral victories in conference play.

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This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: Nebraska vs Indiana women's basketball score, Shay Ciezki game stats

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