After winning its opening-round matchup of the 2024 Battle 4 Atlantis against Columbia, Indiana was presented with a formidable foe in No. 18 Baylor in the tournament's semi-final.
The Hoosiers upset the Bears 73-65 on Sunday afternoon behind a quick start, strong interior defense and a massive night from Shay Ciezki.
With the win, Indiana advances to the Battle 4 Atlantis Championship. Indiana will play the winner of North Carolina and Villanova on Monday at 12pm ET.
Here's how it happened in the Bahamas.
EFFICIENT FIRST QUARTER GIVES HOOSIERS EARLY LEAD
Indiana needed to throw the first punch on Sunday, and that's exactly what the Hoosiers did. The Hoosiers were efficient on the offensive end, essentially outscoring the Bears in a high-scoring opening 10 minutes.
Indiana won the first quarter 27-18, shooting 8-of-14 (57.1%) from the field and 3-of-4 (75.0%) from 3-point range. During what has been an up-and-down start to the season, the Hoosiers have had a lot of problems finding efficient and consistent offense.
On Sunday against Baylor, Penn State transfer Shay Ciezki paced the Hoosiers in scoring. Ciezki tallied nine first quarter points, drilling both of her attempts from distance in the opening frame.
Fifth-year guard Chloe Moore-McNeil added five points in the first quarter as well. Moore-McNeil converted on two of her four field goal attempts, including her lone 3-pointer. She also pulled down four rebounds.
It wasn't just Ciezki and Moore-McNeil that did all the scoring for the Hoosiers. Indiana's 27 first quarter points came from seven different players. Seven of the eight Hoosiers that saw the floor in the first quarter tallied at least two points.
INDIANA'S INTERIOR DEFENSE DOMINATES BAYLOR
Indiana's interior defense was great throughout the second-round matchup against Baylor. While the Bears were strong from outside the 3-point line on Sunday, Indiana limited the damage Baylor was able to do inside the arc.
Another aspect of Indiana's strong first quarter performance was the Hoosiers' ability to protect the rim. Baylor went 3-for-5 from distance in the opening quarter. However, inside the 3-point line, the Bears went just 4-for-13. Indiana recorded just one block in the frame, but the Hoosiers still altered plenty 2-point shots.
That lack of success for Baylor inside the arc continued throughout the rest of the contest. On the afternoon, the Bears shot 14-of-40 (35%) from inside the 3-point line. The Hoosiers also tallied four blocks.
CIEZKI ERUPTS FOR SEASON-HIGH 34 POINTS
After Shay Ciezki's strong first quarter performance, in which she scored nine points, the Penn State transfer continued to be Indiana's best source of offense against Baylor.
Whether it was inside the arc at the rim, or from behind the 3-point line, Ciezki could do no wrong on Sunday against Baylor on the offensive end.
Ciezki went for a season-high 34 points against the Bears. She connected on nine of her 16 field goal attempts. She also went 4-of-5 from downtown and 12-13 from the charity stripe.
Shooting as well as she did from deep, Ciezki gave the Bears fits defensively. Because of her strong shooting afternoon from deep, it forced Baylor to close out strong against her.
That opened up driving lanes for Ciezki, who was consistently able to finish through contact and over taller defenders at the rim. She was also integral in closing out the Bears at the free throw line late in the game.
The Hoosiers have been searching for a go-to scoring option throughout the early stages of this season. On Sunday, Indiana may have found that No. 1 scoring option in Ciezki.
FINAL STATS
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