Indiana Women's Basketball Looks For Fourth-Straight Win Over Purdue

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. — Over the last couple of seasons, Indiana women's basketball has had Purdue's number.

On Thursday in Mackey Arena, No. 18 Indiana will be looking to take down the Boilermakers for the fourth consecutive time dating back to the 2018-19 season.

"The Indiana-Purdue rivalry, whether it's football, basketball, swimming, soccer, doesn't matter, it's always a special occasion," head coach Teri Moren said. "I think it's a great rivalry. One of the best in college athletics."

But for the Hoosiers, it's just another game on their schedule.

Indiana is currently riding a two-game winning streak and is 5-1 in the conference.

The Hoosiers will be without senior guard Jaelynn Penn for the third-straight game, but Moren has found a formula for success without one of Indiana's most important pieces.

That formula starts with a more aggressive Ali Patberg. In the last two games, Patberg has scored over 20 points and Indiana has won by double-digits. Nicole Cardaño-Hillary has been inserted into the starting lineup for Penn and has done a nice job allowing Patberg to play off the ball more.

Then there's the bench mob of Kiandra Browne, Keyanna Warthen, Grace Waggoner and Danielle Patterson who are tasked to come in and defend hard.

The Hoosiers seemed to have found a good rhythm over the last week or so in Big Ten play.

As for Purdue, the Boilermakers come in 5-4 and 2-3 in the conference. They are looking to shake off back-to-back Big Ten losses to Michigan State and Maryland coming in to Thursday's game.

They are led by sophomore guard Kayana Traylor, who is averaging 16.4 points and 4.2 assists per game. Junior guard Brooke Moore is averaging 11.1 points per game. The Boilermakers are averaging 69.6 points per game while shooting 41.6 percent from the floor.

"I think Traylor has improved dramatically," Moren said. "She's really good at going to the basket with her left hand."

Where Purdue really has the advantage, though, is in the paint. Center Fatou Diagne stands 6-foot-4, and Purdue has made it a concerted effort this season to constantly feed the ball to the post.

In Indiana's last game against Wisconsin, both Mackenzie Holmes and Aleksa Gulbe got into foul trouble. That's something the Hoosiers' two frontcourt starters can't afford on Thursday.

"Mackenzie Holmes and Aleksa Gulbe are two kids that would much rather be on the floor than out on the bench with fouls," Moren said. "They know the importance of staying out of those."

It will be a physical game between the Hoosiers and Boilermakers as the two battle for not only the W but for bragging rights in the state.

Moren said she has respect for Purdue head coach Sharon Versyp, and she knows Indiana could have its hands full in West Lafayette.

The game tips-off at 4 p.m. ET on the Big Ten Network.

"At the end of the day, it's still a team in the Big Ten that's on our schedule, and we have to go to their place and play really well in order to beat them," Moren said.