YARDEN GARZON’S SIDEKICK IS A REVOLVING DOOR

WRITTEN + EDITED BY JORDYN BONTRAGER

If you are having any difficulty deciphering Teri Moren’s alpha dog this year, go back and re-watch the Hoosiers’ highlights from their wire-to-wire win back on January 12th over Washington in Seattle. Upon doing so, any prior existing confusion connected to this subject will be erased immediately.

Yarden Garzon’s numbers (33.4 MPG | 14.6 PPG | 4.9 RPG | 3.3 APG | 1.3 SPG | 0.7 BPG | 42.7% FG | 41.1% 3FG | 91.3% FT) speak for themselves, but it is the Israelian queen’s collected composure on the court which makes her so special. Besides some heated bickering back and forth with the NCAA’s greatest player of all time, it is always impossible to estimate Yardy’s mood when you monitor her expressions/body language. Along with the steady demeanor, her unwavering confidence follows her onto the floor each and every time she laces up the sneakers. She is a silent killer.

Garzon’s teammates may not be quite as lethal as their leader, although that is not to say that they have been lousy. But unlike last season when should-have-been-WNBA player turned European league MVP Sara Scalia was the team’s clear-cut second option next to Mackenzie Holmes each and every night, the 2024-2025 key rotational pieces seem content with splitting Robin duties on a nightly basis.

Each of the Hoosiers’ support pieces brings their own respective elements to the game. Sydney Parrish, who has led the team in scoring four times thus far (maybe more if she would not have missed 5x games back in late November/December), actually provides her strongest contributions on the less glamorous end and around the edges. Spicy P leads the team in rebounds (5.8 RPG) and rejections (1.1 BPG), and has recovered nicely from a stupendously sluggish start shooting the ball (hit just 3-25 triples in the opening six games before she went down with the knee injury). She is probably the safest selection for sidekick honors.

SP + YG’s primary frontcourt partners, Karoline Striplin and Lilly Meister (who have each led the team in scoring 3x), have both also been solid. Neither is mistaking anyone for their predecessor, but aside from some slightly less efficient shooting numbers the twin towers have collectively (nearly) replicated Holmes’ statistical output from a season ago:

2023-2024 Mackenzie Holmes = 28.2 MPG | 19.8 PPG | 6.8 RPG | 1.4 APG | 0.9 SPG | 1.6 BPG | 65% FG | 16.7% 3FG | 71.6% FT

2024-2025 Striplin + Meister = 38.1 MPG | 17.9 PPG | 8.0 RPG | 1.6 APG | 1.2 SPG | 1.3 BPG | 55.2% FG | 16.7% 3FG | 76.5% FT

From a backcourt perspective, Shay Ciezki (tied with Garzon as the team’s leading scorer in 5x games this year) and Chloe Moore-McNeil (2x games with team-high scoring recognition) have also been solid. It took Ciezki a few games to acclimate herself in her new B1G jersey, but you can tell she has continued building her level of comfort as time goes by. The gravity that her jumper creates on the perimeter makes her a constant threat for opposing resistance’s to tend to, but she has also showcased an impressive ability to penetrate to the rim and finish and/or make plays for her teammates. Perhaps she is not the most lockdown defender at the point of attack, but fortunately her running mate is among the top wing defenders in the nation (just ask Caitlin Clark).

CMM recently became IUWBB’s 32nd member of the 1,000 point club (followed shortly a few games thereafter by Garzon), yet scoring is not among her chief specialties. You just read about her billing as a top shelf perimeter defender, and if you have never witnessed her textbook style of stifling then you should really get on that pronto. She is always in a stance ready to react, keeps her hands active when guarding on the ball while using her instincts to make plays in the passing lanes, and really just has a certain grit to her game that you want in a basketball player. Factor in her tendencies as a top notch table -setter, and you have all the makings of coaches dream come true at the point guard position.

With each of these ladies bringing their own unique dynamics to the table and contributing steadily thus far (even amidst their struggles and growing pains), pinpointing which has been the most reliable from an overall perspective is virtually impossible. But regardless of the uncertainty tied to who exactly that individual is, it must be pleasant for Teri Moren and her coaching staff knowing that there are at least a half dozen players in the active rotation capable of sitting in the co-pilot’s seat on any given night.

Bring a W back to Bloomington today, ladies!