The Hoosiers’ head coach addressed the media ahead of Friday’s matchup against the Utes.
Indiana women’s basketball head coach Teri Moren was made available to the media ahead of the 9-seed Hoosiers’ first round matchup against 8-seed Utah in the NCAA Tournament.
Here’s what she had to say:
MOREN: Well, it’s the greatest time the year if you’re passionate about this game the way we are, and so we are grateful to not just be in the field, but grateful to be in Columbia, South Carolina.
Just look forward to what’s next tomorrow inside of our game. You know, want to give a shoutout to the Big Ten Conference as a whole for preparing us for this moment.
Again, Hoosiers are grateful to be here and really look forward to tomorrow.
Q: I wanted to ask about Chloe. Obviously been with you for five years and going into her last tournament. What has she meant to the program over the last five years?
MOREN: Well, she’s meant so much, not just to this program, but I think the people that are inside our locker room and the people at the university. She’s touched more than just her teammates and us as coaches.
But I think Shay said it: When you have three seniors in Syd and Chloe and Strip, you want them to have their moment, but you want to help them have an experience here that they’re going to remember for a lifetime.
Even on Selection Sunday, you know, I reminded our players just how important it was to be grateful. Not everybody gets to play in this field and it’s hard to get into.
Chloe has been in a lot of these tournaments and she’s been instrumental in why we have been able to play in the last six of these, just because of her leadership on the floor, off the floor. Just she draws the toughest defensive assignment night in and night out for us.
I can tell you that we’re going to miss that when she’s gone.
Q: Been a lot of talk over the last few years about how the women’s tournament is different than the men’s tournament. This format, first two rounds, it’s kind of a unique situation. Seems like a great reward for teams that can have one of the top 16 seeds and get to host for a couple of days. Would you be open to a discussion of a neutral site throughout the tournament, or do you like this format we have?
MOREN: Yeah, that’s a great question. We been so fortunate the last couple years, right? We’ve been at home and been able to host.
You know, I didn’t like having to pack, right, the other day, because like I said, we’ve had the luxury. But I do think it would be worth having a conversation because there is — we felt it. There is such a thing as a home environment where your fans can get you to the finish line. I do think that rings true for the top 16 seeds. There is no doubt that there is an advantage.
And so I would be open to having that discuss. I think it probably needs to be — we’re in a different time with our game, the popularity and the players that are playing it at such a high level. And so for it to be on neutral sites feels a little bit probably more fair.
And so I do think that it’s probably going to happen, whether it’s next year, in the next couple years. I do think it’s something that will change.
And the parity, too, is incredible in our game right now as well. So to answer your question, yes, I think it’s probably due time that we have that conversation.
Q: A win tomorrow means it’s ten straight 20-win seasons for you. What have you brought to this program to install such a culture and such a winning mentality? What could you say is the main thing that you brought to Indiana to lead to such winning?
MOREN: That’s easy. It’s the players. You can only win with high level, skilled players that really understand that it’s more about we than me. In order to be able to have the success we’ve had, we have to do it together. Nobody is bigger than this program including myself.
So it’s always just been about bringing in the right players and protecting the locker room and making sure that we are living up to the standards in which we hold ourselves up to every single day.
We do pride ourselves on the work piece, but you have to have interested players that want — that believe in that. As Shay mentioned, it’s not like we have to twist their arm to get into the gym. They do that on their own.
We’ve been able to do it because of the special players inside that locker room. I think there is a love. They want to see each other be successful.
Q: You did mention the parity in this game. Couple years ago, two, three years ago, Utah-Indiana might have been a round of 16 or Elite 8 game.
MOREN: Yeah.
Q. Because of all the parity, this is where you are. Is that good for the game? Just force everybody, hey, we have to take the next step forward in order to keep building.
MOREN: I think it’s great. For the longest time we’ve seen the same teams, right, year in and year out. Probably in the last, what, probably three or for years that’s changed and continues to change.
And even in our season this year, I mean, this gentlemen talked about the ups and downs. I mean, the Big Ten is so good, and some of the losses that we’ve had are because this league is really fricking good.
We’re one of those. To be in this league night in and night out it’s like you’re playing in a Final Four, playing in a Sweet 16, Elite 8, which we’ve done all that.
So it certainly prepared us, like I said, for this moment. But it has been incredible to be a part of it. I just think it’s going to continue to be what it is right now. Some would say it’s — I don’t know that you can this year pick who is going to win the Final Four or the national championship just because of that.
Q: Utah shoots the three ball very well. Obviously they have Gianna averaging almost 20 points a game. How are you guys going to combat that and limit them from the perimeter?
MOREN: We feel like we have great defenders. We only gave up about 64 points this year. Our offense probably gets talked about more because of our shooters and our offense, how we can spread people out and certainly move the ball and all that.
But I think sometimes what gets missed is how good our guys are on the defensive side of the ball, you know, how good our preparation is.
So we understand the assignment. She’s really good. She also has — this is an old Utah team. There is more than just No. 5 out there. There is a lot of those guys at that can shoot it.
We do feel like we have a sound scouting report, game plan, for how we have to guard them in order to give ourselves a chance to win the game.
I think it’ll be a really good basketball game tomorrow.
Q: Welcome to Columbia.
MOREN: Thank you.
Q: Obviously some big news out of the Indiana this week is a new basketball coach being hired. You think having a successful men’s program helps generate some buzz around your program or benefits your program in any way? Any similarity between the two programs?
MOREN: You know, great question. I haven’t even met Coach yet, but I’ll say this: We’ve created a lot of buzz, right? We haven’t needed men’s basketball for that.
And so by what we’ve been able to do the last few years and what we continue to do inside of this program.
But does it help? Also helps to have a good football team, right? And so there is 24 sports at Indiana. We love them all. We all want to be successful. But to have a successful football program, to have a successful men’s program only helps everybody else, and so we cheer like crazy for everybody.
I’m excited for what’s next for men’s basketball. Indiana is such a special place and it takes somebody special to be the leader over there in men’s basketball.
Like I said, I haven’t met Coach yet, but just in the things I’ve read I’m really looking forward to not only meeting him, but watching him work and feel like he’s going to do some really special things at Indiana.
Q: Hey, Teri.
MOREN: Hey, Seth.
Q. This is a little off the wall. Felt like I didn’t have a great chance to ask you about some of this stuff earlier in the season. Valentyna signed on really late. I think that was in August when students were already on campus. I have a two-parter. First, just how did that come together and how did you find her? Secondly, between her, Faith, Sharnecce, Lenée and Syndey Fenn in their recoveries, players we don’t see much on game day. Can you just touch on the development they’ve made this season?
MOREN: Sure. Val came late, as you mentioned. She was somebody that Coach Rhet got to see throughout his travels. Again, it always comes down to some things from an academic perspective with some of our international students.
She was a late add. We had to get some things in order, she did, academically for her to be able to come over and become part of our program.
And then the rest, Sharnecce, Syd, Beau, all making progress. You know, especially Beau and Syd who had the knee issues and took the year off. Have been making progress with Kylie and Ben our trainer.
Then Sharnecce, Faith, got to see Faith a little bit in the Big Ten tournament step up in a big way when we got into foul trouble.
Again, those guys that might not get — we don’t talk about them often, but I can’t overstate enough how important they are in practice for us and the reps they get, but also being on that other team and pushing our other players.
Sometimes they’re scout team; sometimes it’s just five-on-five, which we played a lot of in hoping it’s a competitive environment for our players to be able to play in.
And so all of them have done a great job. We missed Beau. We have missed Beau tremendously because she had a great summer and thought we were going to have her as we went into the season. Another really sound guard for us.
So she’s doing terrific in her rehab and we’ll look forward to getting her back here soon for the summer.