Wednesday, January 8
Evanston, Ill.
7 p.m. CT
Northwestern
7-9,0-5Big Ten
64
vs
68
Indiana
11-4,3-1Big Ten
1
2
3
4
F
Indiana
20
11
15
22
68
Northwestern
11
15
15
23
64
Photo by: Ryan Kuttler/Northwestern Athletics
Northwestern Battles, Drops 68-64 Decision To Indiana
1/8/2025 11:00:00 PM | Women's Basketball
Williams records sixth double-double of 2024-25
EVANSTON, Ill. (January 8, 2025) – Taylor Williams posted her sixth double-double of the season, leading a group of three 'Cats to score in double figures, as Northwestern (7-9, 0-5 B1G) came up just short in a 68-64 defeat at the hands of Indiana (11-4, 3-1 B1G) this evening inside Welsh-Ryan Arena.
Gallery: (1-8-2025) Women's Basketball vs. Indiana
How It Happened
Both teams came out ice cold to begin the night, combining to miss on their first seven attempts from the field. Following two Yardon Garzon free throws that broke the scoreless deadlock, Caileigh Walsh rattled home a three at the 7:28 mark to give the 'Cats a 3-2 edge. With Indiana holding on to a 10-9 lead just past the midway point of the frame, the Hoosiers finished with a flurry, closing the quarter on a 10-2 spurt to establish a 20-11 advantage.
Northwestern flipped the script to begin the second quarter, ripping off an 8-0 run to close back within one. After a Walsh layup opened the scoring, Williams muscled her way inside on three straight trips, with the final finish pulling the Wildcats back within one, 20-19. Five straight points from Melannie Daley again trimmed the gap to one, 25-24, before Indiana responded, building its lead back up to five, 31-26, at halftime.
Slowly but surely, Northwestern chipped away in the third quarter, ultimately pulling even on a Walsh trey that made it 37-37 with 4:40 to go. Indiana countered with back-to-back triples, reestablishing a six-point margin, 43-37. Kyla Jones looked to provide a spark going into the fourth quarter, denying Lexus Bargesser's attempt before going coast-to-coast to make it a one-score game, 43-41. On Indiana's ensuing possession, Sydney Parrish beat the buzzer from beyond the three-point arc to put the Hoosiers up five, 46-41.
Casey Harter drilled a corner three with 6:16 to play in regulation that again saw the 'Cats claw within two, 51-49. With the visitors' lead sitting at 58-53 at the 3:24 mark, buckets on consecutive trips from Grace Sullivan and Jones, respectively, closed the deficit to one, 58-57. Daley gave Northwestern its first lead since the early minutes, connecting on a mid-range jumper with only 1:34 to play that staked the 'Cats to a narrow 59-58 edge. Shay Ciezki put Indiana in front for good 30 seconds later, hitting on a three with the shot clock winding down to vault the Hoosiers back in front, 61-59. Indiana went on to salt the game away from the charity stripe in the final minute, as it escaped with its third conference win of the season.
Inside The Box Score
- Williams was outstanding in her return to the Northwestern lineup, finishing with 15 points (5-6 FGs, 5-6 FTs) and a team-high 13 rebounds.
- Williams, who has six double-doubles to her name as a Wildcat, has piled up 34 double-doubles throughout her collegiate career.
- Daley continued her scorching play of late, pouring in a team-high 17 points (8-17 FGs, 1-2 3FGs), in addition to dishing out a career-high tying six assists.
- Daley has scored in double figures in seven straight games.
- Walsh reached double figures in scoring for the ninth time in 10 outings, closing her evening with 12 points (4-9 FGs, 2-2 3FGs, 2-2 FTs).
- Ciezki paced a group of four Hoosiers in double figures with 20 points (6-12 FGs, 3-6 3FGs, 5-5 FTs) to lead all scorers.
Up Next
Northwestern hits the road for a two-game swing through Los Angeles, Calif., with matchups against No. 1 UCLA (January 12) and No. 4 USC (January 15) on the docket.
How It Happened
Both teams came out ice cold to begin the night, combining to miss on their first seven attempts from the field. Following two Yardon Garzon free throws that broke the scoreless deadlock, Caileigh Walsh rattled home a three at the 7:28 mark to give the 'Cats a 3-2 edge. With Indiana holding on to a 10-9 lead just past the midway point of the frame, the Hoosiers finished with a flurry, closing the quarter on a 10-2 spurt to establish a 20-11 advantage.
Northwestern flipped the script to begin the second quarter, ripping off an 8-0 run to close back within one. After a Walsh layup opened the scoring, Williams muscled her way inside on three straight trips, with the final finish pulling the Wildcats back within one, 20-19. Five straight points from Melannie Daley again trimmed the gap to one, 25-24, before Indiana responded, building its lead back up to five, 31-26, at halftime.
Slowly but surely, Northwestern chipped away in the third quarter, ultimately pulling even on a Walsh trey that made it 37-37 with 4:40 to go. Indiana countered with back-to-back triples, reestablishing a six-point margin, 43-37. Kyla Jones looked to provide a spark going into the fourth quarter, denying Lexus Bargesser's attempt before going coast-to-coast to make it a one-score game, 43-41. On Indiana's ensuing possession, Sydney Parrish beat the buzzer from beyond the three-point arc to put the Hoosiers up five, 46-41.
Casey Harter drilled a corner three with 6:16 to play in regulation that again saw the 'Cats claw within two, 51-49. With the visitors' lead sitting at 58-53 at the 3:24 mark, buckets on consecutive trips from Grace Sullivan and Jones, respectively, closed the deficit to one, 58-57. Daley gave Northwestern its first lead since the early minutes, connecting on a mid-range jumper with only 1:34 to play that staked the 'Cats to a narrow 59-58 edge. Shay Ciezki put Indiana in front for good 30 seconds later, hitting on a three with the shot clock winding down to vault the Hoosiers back in front, 61-59. Indiana went on to salt the game away from the charity stripe in the final minute, as it escaped with its third conference win of the season.
Inside The Box Score
- Williams was outstanding in her return to the Northwestern lineup, finishing with 15 points (5-6 FGs, 5-6 FTs) and a team-high 13 rebounds.
- Williams, who has six double-doubles to her name as a Wildcat, has piled up 34 double-doubles throughout her collegiate career.
- Daley continued her scorching play of late, pouring in a team-high 17 points (8-17 FGs, 1-2 3FGs), in addition to dishing out a career-high tying six assists.
- Daley has scored in double figures in seven straight games.
- Walsh reached double figures in scoring for the ninth time in 10 outings, closing her evening with 12 points (4-9 FGs, 2-2 3FGs, 2-2 FTs).
- Ciezki paced a group of four Hoosiers in double figures with 20 points (6-12 FGs, 3-6 3FGs, 5-5 FTs) to lead all scorers.
Up Next
Northwestern hits the road for a two-game swing through Los Angeles, Calif., with matchups against No. 1 UCLA (January 12) and No. 4 USC (January 15) on the docket.
Team Stats
IND
NU
FG%
.393
.431
3FG%
.364
.357
FT%
.889
.600
RB
32
35
TO
13
12
STL
7
6
Game Leaders
Scoring
Pts
17
FGM
8
3FGM
1
FTM
0
Pts
15
FGM
5
3FGM
0
FTM
5
Pts
12
FGM
4
3FGM
2
FTM
2
Pts
8
FGM
3
3FGM
0
FTM
2
Players Mentioned
G
/ Women's Basketball
G
/ Women's BasketballG
/ Women's Basketball
F
/ Women's BasketballF
/ Women's BasketballF
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