COLUMBIA, S.C.—Teri Moren first stepped on the Indiana University campus as its women's basketball head coach on Aug. 9, 2014. On that day, Indiana had previously gone to the NCAA Tournament four times and only advanced to the round of 32 once, in 1983.
Since Moren took over in Bloomington, her Hoosiers have advanced to the tournament seven times in her 11 years, with this year's Big Dance marking the sixth straight tournament that Indiana competed in.
In each of these tournaments—all seven of them—Indiana has won at least one game, with the Hoosiers' 76-68 win over Utah in the first round of the 2025 tournament extending the impressive streak to seven.
Even in what some have considered to be a "down year," Indiana still won an NCAA Tournament game, and that's become the expectation for Moren's teams. This year's team has proven that, even with all the highs and lows the 2024-25 season has brought, standards are still standards.
"But the standards never change, right? They always stay the same—what we're going to be about, what matters to us—and it's our job to find the kids that fit us, right?" Moren said, asking rhetorical questions to let everyone know that she holds her group to an extremely high standard.
She mentioned that the key has always been to find players that "fit our program, fit our culture. And then once we feel like it's a great fit, there are standards that we have, and we never lower the standards, no matter who you are—from the best player to the last person on the bench that might not see time, they're held to the very same standard."
In addition to winning at least one game in six straight tournaments and all seven tournaments in the Moren era, the Hoosiers' win over the Utes was IU's 20th win of the season, giving Moren her 10th straight season leading Indiana to at least 20 wins.
This is impressive on its own, but for her to do it in just 11 seasons at the helm makes it even more so. Yet the fact that the Hoosiers won 20 games in a season only six times in the 43 seasons before Moren arrived—compared to 10 of 11 with Moren in charge—makes it simply incredible.
Indiana's first-round game against Utah almost encapsulated its season as a whole. It was up and down for the majority of the first half, then the Hoosiers went on a run in the third quarter, only to let Utah creep back into the game through more ups and downs. In the end, though, Indiana did just enough to escape with the win—similar to how it did just enough to make the NCAA Tournament, which was similar to how it did just enough to keep up with Moren's 20-win standard.
"There were some ups and downs. There were some twists and turns. But I think through it all that we gained great experience," Moren said, outlining that this season wasn't always pretty, but her team always held tough, and IU's win over Utah proved that.
Indiana got out of the gate cold, though, shooting just 1-for-6 from the field, similar to how the Hoosiers struggled at the beginning of the season with losses to Harvard and Butler. Indiana responded, though, as it made 8 of 11 after its poor start—a nod to Indiana's nine wins in its next 10 games after starting the season 1-2.
This gave the Hoosiers a 20-17 lead, their first solid lead of the game, but Indiana wouldn't keep it up for long, as it missed 6 of 7, resulting in two scoring droughts over two minutes long. This was similar to Indiana losing 4 of 6 to begin the new year, as its Big Ten record was 4-4 after a once-promising start.
This was right before halftime, as both Indiana and Utah were going back and forth throughout the first half, with their hard-fought action resulting in a 31-31 score after the first 20 minutes.
This meant that, similar to the season as a whole, this game would be decided down the stretch.
"And, again, happy with the way they came out today, especially in the second half," Moren said. And she's exactly right, as the Hoosiers used their second half to survive and advance.
IU went on a 9-0 run in the opening minutes of the third quarter, giving the Hoosiers a 42-36 lead, but a 10-2 run later in the half gave IU its first double-digit lead of the ballgame at 56-45.
The Hoosiers extended their lead to as many as 13, as shots kept falling while Utah couldn't compete early in the second half. It was the combination of offense and defense that got this done, as it seemed like when IU got out of the locker room after the half, it had a new fire under it.
While Indiana didn't close out the game well and allowed Utah to cut its lead to as low as four, the Hoosiers held on—similar to how a senior night loss didn't faze Moren's group.
In a game filled with adversity, Indiana responded, taking a page out of its own book, as Moren's teams have always been known for responding.
"It takes everybody, and our group knows that," Moren said, adding, "A lot of good things. Some of these things never show up in here. Our heart and our effort and our toughness won us this game today. So just, again, really proud of our staff, really proud of our players."
The Hoosiers, despite a season that seemed to never click, found a way when their coach needed them most. The NCAA Tournament isn't easy to win in, and it's not supposed to be, but Indiana's consistent ability to win at least one game is something that most programs simply don't have.
Through thick and thin, through the ups and downs, and through the grind of trying to regroup after losing Mackenzie Holmes and Sara Scalia, Indiana still put itself in a position to be in the NCAA Tournament—and won.
Speaking on the season as a whole, Moren said, "There were nights that we played great and won, there were nights that maybe we didn't play as well, but at the end of the day, like I said, all of those experiences—we got a lot of reps throughout it—have put us in the position to win the game and hopefully can position us come Sunday."
On Sunday, Indiana will most likely face South Carolina for a chance to make the Sweet 16 but also to avenge its loss from the 2024 tournament. While the Hoosiers will have their work cut out for them, with Teri Moren manning the sidelines, Indiana always has a chance, particularly in postseason play.
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