Latest news with #TeriMoren
Indianapolis Star
3 days ago
- Sport
- Indianapolis Star
'Most challenging' year of decade of IU women's basketball had coach Teri Moren ponder future
BLOOMINGTON — Indiana women's basketball coach Teri Moren was ready to roll up the sleeves on her pink adidas sweatshirt and get to work. The only thing that was missing was her team. Moren spoke with The Herald-Times a few days before her new-look Hoosiers roster arrived in Bloomington. She talked at length about the unexpected departure of Yarden Garzon and the challenges her staff faced replacing nine scholarship players. With the daunting task of building the roster in the rear-mirror, Moren said there's real excitement in the building about making all the pieces fit together. 'We brought them here to help us and be competitive, and be competitive in this league,' Moren said. 'There's something that energizes me about it. That's not to say I'm not going to miss the kids that were in the program, they gave me a lot of comfort, but we got a new group, lot of new faces and it's our job to get them ready.' It's a welcome feeling for Moren after a 2024-25 season — her 11th with the Hoosiers and 22nd as a head coach — that left her contemplating her coaching future for reasons that had little to do with the up-and-down nature of her team's performance. 'There were some curveballs,' Moren said. 'Some that none of us were prepared for.' Among them was Moren's 90-yard father Dick, a constant courtside presence at Assembly Hall throughout her tenure, facing a fresh round of health battles. She made frequent trips out to Seymour to spend time with him. The team faced other hurdles along the way in private and shared emotional moments behind the scenes. Our book on Bob Knight makes a great Father's Day gift 'By far the most (challenging), outside of Year 1,' Moren said. 'Just challenging in so many ways off the floor.' There were a few times when Moren thought retirement might be an option after the season, but they faded just as quickly. Her passion for women's hoops (and coaching) never wavered, and she went into the offseason focused on building another winner. That's kept her busy since a loss to South Carolina in the second round of the NCAA tournament. Moren was even tethered to her phone when she traveled to Florida for a brief vacation during a dead period in May. She regularly checked in with her staff and worked on recruiting plans for the summer. 'It's a never-ending treadmill,' Moren said with a smile. 'First for all of us': How Teri Moren navigated IU women's basketball rebuild, revenue-sharing Moren's calendar isn't clearing up anytime soon either. She'll spend much of June getting to know the new faces on her team, head to Czech Republic in July as the coach of the Under-19 Women's National team then come right back to Bloomington to continue prepping for the 2025-26 season. When Moren committed to USA Basketball, she didn't expect her roster would experience quite so much turnover. She's leaned on her veteran leadership in recent years when her commitments to USA Basketball have taken her away from Cook Hall, but she doesn't have that luxury this summer. It's why she underlined the importance of the next few weeks and making sure her team gets everything they can out of their time on the floor together. 'It's a fresh kind of canvas and it's a challenge, but it's one I'm looking forward to,' Moren said. 'The expectations don't change, the standards don't change. Trust me, they came here for those reasons. We lay it out pretty clearly, this is how we've built it, and our day-to-day approach is what matters.'
Indianapolis Star
03-06-2025
- Business
- Indianapolis Star
'First for all of us': How Teri Moren navigated IU women's basketball rebuild, revenue-sharing
Show Caption Teri Moren's sitdown interview with USA Today Network revealed how she and her IU women's basketball staff rebuilt a roster, took on new roles and navigated a new era of recruiting. Moren believes her coaching resume - 10 straight 20-win seasons, a Big Ten coach of the year winner and consistent NCAA tournament wins - gives her a chance to land top recruits. BLOOMINGTON — The Indiana women's basketball team transformed a little-used conference room in Cook Hall into a war room at the end of March. The Hoosiers were prepared for life without their three graduating seniors Chloe Moore-McNeil, Sydney Parrish and Karoline Striplin, but the offseason turned into a full-blown rebuild in the days following a 64-53 loss at No. 1 seed South Carolina in the second round of the NCAA tournament. Indiana had six scholarship players, including versatile starting forward Yarden Garzon, enter the transfer portal in the span of a week. Rebuilding the roster was an all-hands-on-deck operation with the staff arriving before 7 a.m. each morning when new portal entries started showing up in the database. The coaching staff spent much of April scouting, contacting and hosting recruits on campus. IU women's basketball coach Teri Moren walked The Herald-Times through what turned into the most consequential offseason of her coaching career in a sit-down interview and detailed how the Hoosiers retooled their roster in a ever-changing recruiting landscape. 'It was so fast,' Moren said. 'And when I say fast? I mean like laser fast, the whole pace of it. It felt like every day was something new.' Indiana women's basketball faced chaotic transfer portal to rebuild roster Moren identified the areas where IU needed to improve before a single player hit the portal. While the Hoosiers (20-13, 10-8 Big Ten) were coming off their 10th straight 20-win season, they never quite put things together and Moren wanted to combat that inconsistency by getting bigger in the post and more athletic at the guard positions to better match up against the top teams in the conference. She recounted lively debates her coaches had over potential transfer targets and how their skillsets aligned with that vision. Our book on legendary IU coach Bob Knight is the perfect Father's Day gift The large flat screen television they set up in the middle of their war room got plenty of use as Moren's entire staff poured over film together — in some cases they had to go back to high school tape for transfers who didn't get much playing time in college — before discussing as a group whether or not they were a fit for the Hoosiers. Indiana wound up targeting a handful of transfers who they recruited coming out of high school, including the likes of UCLA's Zania Socka-Nguemen and Alabama's Chloe Spreen, but there were dozens of names that they didn't have that same familiarity with. The bigger hurdles came from actually getting recruits on campus for a visit. There was intense competition over top talent and Moren was constantly getting calls and texts from transfers letting her know they had changed their plans. Moren even received a text in the middle of the night from one recruit who planned on visiting Indiana after stopping by two other schools, but she ended up committing on the first leg of her trip. Teams have traditionally wanted to have the last scheduled visit for a recruit, but that was a major disadvantage this cycle. The other challenge IU faced was transfers being a bit reluctant to be the first player to verbally commit. 'When Z (Socka-Nguemen) came to us from UCLA, her first question was, 'Who are my teammates?'' Moren said. 'They all wanted to know who was going to be there with them.' Moren highlighted Shay Ciezcki 's experience in those conservations. The former Penn State transfer guard stuck it out in Bloomington and gave Moren someone to build around as a three-year starter who has averaged 11.7 points and 1.9 made 3-pointers per game during her career. Redshirt sophomore Lenée Beaumont was also part of those discussions. The former Miss Illinois Basketball missed last season with a knee injury after showing promise as a freshman. The Hoosiers will also have a handful of underclassmen they signed coming out of high school in recent years, including Faith Wiseman and Maya Makalusky, who will be looking to establish themselves. 'I think people forget about Beau,' Moren said. 'We are going to rely heavily on her.' One of the key early dominoes to fall was landing a commitment from Arkansas transfer Phoenix Stotijn on April 6 over a group of finalists that included Michigan State, Illinois and Arizona State. The Netherlands native was the type of athletic guard that Moren coveted and got plenty of experience as a freshman last season after being cleared to play in mid-December. Stotijn, who has high-level international experience, ended the season in the starting lineup for the Razorbacks. Indiana's new-look frontcourt fell into place a week later with the addition of Socka-Ngueman and Virginia's Edessa Noyan. Socka-Ngueman was a five-star recruit (ranked No. 26 by ESPN in the 2024 signing class) coming out of Sidwell Friends in Maryland and a former McDonald's All American, while Noyan is another recruit with international experience (she's spent years playing for the Swedish National Team) and made 26 starts for the Cavaliers. Proposed revenue-sharing looms large over IU women's basketball The House v. NCAA settlement hasn't been finalized yet, but Power Four schools are already adopting the revenue-sharing model that's expected to be approved. Under the settlement terms, schools will be able to share up to $20.5 million of revenue with athletes starting on July 1. It made for a one-of-a-kind offseason that impacted every decision and conversation Moren had in April. 'This is the first for all of us, what we are doing right now and having these conversations from the agents and handlers, kids holding out for more money,' Moren said. 'I have a lot of colleagues, we are all talking about it. I've been doing it for so long now — I've been struck by conversations that have been less about culture, academics and things that used to matter to parents and players. The first question is usually around who is her agent? What's the range? How much are we going to have to pay for this player?" Moren said there were multiple players they reached out to who were looking for a minimum seven-figure deal. This was the first offseason for Moren where the initial point of contact in most cases was a player's agent. 'There's no easy formula to it,' Moren said. 'It was an early test for all of us for how we are doing it and it was hard to figure out until you go through it. You found out real fast the market for those fours and fives was going to be way higher. This is a whole new world, right.' 'This means so much to me.' IU freshman wins 2025 Indiana Miss Basketball Moren didn't share an exact percentage the IU women's team will receive of the $20.5 million IU has committed to share with athletes, but she said the Hoosiers were in a 'good position' to maintain the level of success they've had since she arrived. Moren appreciated Indiana athletic director Scott Dolson 's transparent approach throughout the process of establishing what her team's salary cap will be in the coming years. 'Does everybody want more? Yeah,' Moren said with a laugh. 'But I think Scott, and I've always felt this way about him, he's always been super supportive, and wants us to be able to stay at the top of the Big Ten.' One early offseason move that helped Moren navigate the revenue-sharing model was having conversations with football coach Curt Cignetti and his staff about how built their roster for 2025. Moren appreciated Cignetti's insight into how he approached managing their budget, establishing positional values and spreading out the money to keep both incoming signees and returning players happy. She positioned assistant coach Ali Patberg in a lead role to handle many of the general manger-type responsibilities that come with a salary cap. Indiana is also leaning on the framework that Dolson built alongside his deputy Stephen Harper to assist teams in executing revenue-sharing agreements and navigating the various issues that come up. Jeremiah Gutjahr, IU's assistant athletic director for revenue share, was also on hand throughout the offseason to speak with recruits and give detailed 30-minute presentations on the topic. In early April, Moren brought in Colsten Thompson as the program's new recruiting coordinator to replace Linda Sayavongchanh. Thompson came from Alabama where he had a similar role and helped the team put together a pair of top 15 recruiting classes. She described Thompson as a 'grinder' on the recruiting trail who brought a wealth of contacts to the table that helped shape IU's transfer class. 'I think it will be really critical as we move forward,' Moren said of Thompson. 'As I said to him, we've done enough from a success standpoint, I feel like we should be in the conversation for some of these top kids and I don't feel like we have been. I'm hopeful that by bringing Colsten in, he can help us with that." Moren will get her first real look at the roster with players returning to Bloomington this week for summer workouts. She's eager to see how the various pieces fit together during the next phase of the offseason. "There's a little bit of excitement to it," Moren said. "Is it going to be a challenge? No doubt, but all these kids left (their previous teams) for a reason, they weren't happy with their situation and it becomes an opportunity for me to help them. They all want to be pros at some point and be a part of a program that has won. I feel like we can provide that for them." Indiana women's basketball transfer signees
Indianapolis Star
14-05-2025
- Sport
- Indianapolis Star
2 former Indiana women's basketball players part of WNBA roster cuts
A pair of former Indiana women's basketball players hoping to land on WNBA rosters will have to wait and see if another team has a roster spot for them. Grace Berger on Wednesday was waived by the Minnesota Lynx. Two days prior, Mackenzie Holmes was cut by the Seattle Storm. WNBA teams had to finalize their rosters before the regular season openers this weekend, cutting them to 12. The former Hoosiers helped IU coach Teri Moren elevate the program by both hosting NCAA tournament games and also earning a No. 1 seed in 2023. Berger, a 25-year-old guard, played two seasons for the Indiana Fever before being waived in February to accommodate the title-contending moves. She was added by the Lynx, and was thought of highly by coach Cheryl Reeve. "Her ability to get to her spots, I think is uncanny. I watched it in college and though, 'Well, is she going to be able to do that in our league?' The answer is yes," Reeve said May 3. "... She's actually expanded her game as well. ... Expanding your game to the 3 and adding more value in that space, she's also expanded that value by playing more than one position." Gold standard: IU coach Teri Moren seeks another golden summer with USA Basketball Berger continued to work out late after a practice Tuesday night, even. The 6-foot guard played 47 games for the Fever after being selected seventh overall in the 2023 WNBA Draft. Berger, a Louisville native, averaged 3.9 points, 1.6 assists and 1.5 rebounds while shooting 44.1% from the field and 46.2% on 3-pointers (18 for 39) across her career. Holmes, meanwhile, has not yet made her WNBA debut. She was drafted 26th overall in the 2024 WNBA Draft but she had major knee surgery and missed that season. Still, she signed a rookie scale contract which was set to begin in 2025. An IU legend, Holmes was the first in program history to become a first-team All American. She spent last season as a graduate assistant for Moren and her staff.
Indianapolis Star
05-05-2025
- Sport
- Indianapolis Star
Indiana women's basketball coach Teri Moren seeks another golden summer with USA Basketball
Show Caption IU coach Teri Moren for the second straight summer will lead a USA Basketball women's national underclass team. Moren has 10 straight seasons of 20 or more wins at IU, including seven NCAA tournament appearances, three Sweet 16s and an Elite Eight. Moren had to rebuild her IU roster, which continues still, after losing four starters. There is no doubting how great a coach Teri Moren is given what she's built Indiana women's basketball into, and those coaching duties will expand to USA Basketball. Moren in 11 season leading the Hoosiers had 10 straight seasons with 20 or more wins, seven NCAA tournament appearances, three Sweet 16s and an Elite Eight. She was national coach of the year in 2023 and is two-time Big Ten coach of the year in 2016 and 2023. And in July, she will lead the USA Basketball Women's Under-19 National Team at that age division's FIBA World Cup in Brno, Czech Republic. Moren served as an assistant coach last summer but has been elevated with Notre Dame coach Niele Ivey and South Florida coach Jose Fernandez serving as her assistants. Moren served two summers ago as an assistant coach on the Under-19 national team alongside Joni Taylor, who is Texas A&M's coach, and Old Dominion coach Delisha Milton-Jones. Players on that team included Notre Dame's Hannah Hidalgo, South Carolina's Chloe Kitts, UCLA's Kiki Rice and Londynn Jones, Cotie McMahon, who was at Ohio State until transferring to Ole Miss this cycle, and others. They won a gold medal and this summer's team could make it four straight golds at the Under-19 level. They have good base to go off of, too. Moren led her first USA Basketball women's team last summer to a gold medal at the FIBA Under-18 Women's AmeriCup in Bucaramanga, Colombia. Conceivably, most of that team will remain, and there was star power to it. Connecticut's Sarah Strong turned into a dominant post for the Huskies, who won the national championship. Several of the top Class of 2025 recruits per On3 industry ratings were part of the roster, including No. 2 overall Jazzy Davidson (USC), No. 3 Sienna Betts (UCLA), No. 11 ZaKiya Johnson (LSU) and No. 16 Leah Macy (Notre Dame). USC's Kayleigh Heckel and Kennedy Smith, South Carolina's Joyce Edwards, Mississippi State's Madison Francis, Texas' Jordan Lee, Florida's Liv McGill and Duke's Arianna Roberson made up the rest of the team. Perhaps Moren's own players from that recruiting class could get attention. She'll have No. 42 Maya Makalusky, a 6-foot-3 forward from Hamilton Southeastern, and No. 61 Nevaeh Caffey, a 5-10 guard from Incarnate Ward in St. Louis, on campus as part of a rebuilt roster. They are both Ms. Basketball winners, Makalusky in Indiana and Caffey in Missouri. The transfer portal has helped rebuild an IU roster that lost four of its starters, three to graduation and the surprising entry of Yarden Garzon as the program's all-time leading 3-point shooter left to go to Maryland. Shay Ciezki is the lone returning starter, but there was talent added, too. The 2024 Indiana Ms. Basketball winner hailed from 25 miles away, Bedford North Lawrence's Chloe Spreen. She decided to return to the Hoosier State after a season at Alabama. Dutch guard Phoenix Stotijn transferred from Arkansas and fellow backcourt 'mate Jerni Kiaku committed from Duquesne. Former McDonald's All American Zania Socka-Nguemen was the lone forward to commit to IU so far. She decided to leave from UCLA. Then 6-0 wing Emely Rodriguez entered the transfer portal from UCF and has visits scheduled to Iowa on May 12 and IU on May 13, per Prep Girls Hoops.
