Indiana defeated No. 18 Baylor 73-65 Sunday in the Battle 4 Atlantis semifinals in the Bahamas.
Shay Ciezki had the highest-scoring game of her Indiana career, totaling 34 points on 9-for-16 shooting. The transfer from Penn State made 4-of-5 3-point attempts and 12-of-13 free throws in 39 minutes of action. Forward Karoline Striplin, a transfer from Tennessee, finished second among Hoosiers with eight points. Senior guard Chloe Moore-McNeil had a team-high 10 rebounds.
With this win, Indiana (4-2) advances to the Battle 4 Atlantis championship. Coach Teri Moren and the Hoosiers will face the winner of No. 16 North Carolina vs. Villanova, which tipped off at 4 p.m. ET on Sunday. The championship is scheduled for noon ET Monday in the Bahamas, and it will air on ESPN2.
Baylor struggled offensively all over the court, shooting 33.3% from the field, 61.5% from the free throw line and committing 18 turnovers. Yaya Felder led the Bears with 20 points off the bench, connecting on 5-of-8 3-point attempts.
Indiana jumped out to 27-18 lead after the first quarter, but Baylor cut the Hoosiers’ halftime lead to four points. The game was tied 46-46 with 4:49 left in the third quarter, but Indiana went on a 9-3 run to gain some breathing room heading into the fourth quarter.
That momentum continued in the fourth quarter, with the Hoosiers scoring the first six points. There was a scoring drought from both teams from the 7:23 to 3:30 mark, but that was snapped by a 5-0 Indiana run.
At that point, the Hoosiers led 66-51, but Baylor responded with a 9-0 run to make it a six-point game. Ciezki came through in clutch moments, sinking six free throws in the final 20 seconds to secure the victory. Indiana finished the game shooting 37.5% from the field, 29.4% from 3-point range and 86.7% from the free throw line.
Indiana senior guard Sydney Parrish left Sunday’s game with a left leg injury in the second quarter. Moren said postgame that Parrish will “need some imaging” and does not expect her to play Monday.
“We’re gonna protect her,” Moren said. “We still got a lot of season left.”
