INDIANA WOMEN’S BASKETBALL OFFSEASON ROSTER RENOVATION UPDATE #2

WRITTEN + EDITED BY JORDYN BONTRAGER

The bad news is that none of (2026 WNBA 1st-round pick) Yarden Garzon (Maryland), Lilly Meister (Kansas), Lexus Bargesser (Colorado State), Julianna LaMendola (LOPES UP), Sharnecce Currie-Jelks (Murray State) and Henna Sandvik (TBD) will play basketball for Indiana University in the 2025-2026 NCAA season. Losing each of those ladies (not to mention the graduation of the OG’s) will assuredly sting for awhile. Thankfully, the pain of those losses slightly soothes when you recall the prior commitments from inbound froshies Maya Makalusky x Nevaeh Caffey, and drastically subsided with the arrivals of SEC transfers Chloe Spreen (Alabama) x Phoenix Stotijn (Arkansas). Still, this updated squad was still void of additional replacements for the aforementioned outbound platoon.

Flash forward two weeks from those previous moves, and it was scary Teri back at it again with further acts of marvelous maneuvering.

She must have read our recent sentiments regarding Faith Wiseman’s need for another season of grooming before making the starting lineup leap, because her next pickup was 2024 McDonald’s All-American Zania Socka-Nguemen from UCLA. Completely overshadowed by All-American First Teamer Lauren Betts, ZSN was never provided a real shot to spread her own wings within Betts’s individual spectacle. After averaging a meager 5.1 MPG in a measly 16 appearances as a freshman, the 6’3” Maryland product instantly became the frontrunner for starting center duties the moment her pen hit the commitment paper. Her combination of athleticism x physicality should bode well for Socka-Nguemen’s chances of blossoming into the Hoosiers’ defensive anchor next season.

To her chagrin, her clear-cut starting center status became much less absolute only a few days following ZSN’s onboarding. In a move to further solidify the frontcourt spots on the depth chart, the next Assembly Hall acquisition came in the form of Swedish stretch big Edessa Noyan. After a pair of solid-not-spectacular seasons at Virginia, the 6’3” European brings a rugged, sturdy presence on the defensive end who has flashed the ability to hit outside shots on relatively low volume. She does not make many (if any) highlight reel things happen, but you definitely catch Karoline Striplin vibes when you take some time to dissect Noyan’s film. It certainly will not be an easy feat, but it is reasonable to project this compiling crew of big bodies supplying similar/better output in comparison with the likes of Meister, Striplin and Currie-Jelks during the past campaign.

Bringing the twin towers Socka-Nguemen x Noyan aboard greatly accelerated the progress of Moren’s ongoing roster replenishment. However, if you paid attention to our previous notes from a few weeks back than surely you know that there was/is still work to be done. As far as outstanding areas of need, the next priority we outlined after scoring some size was obtaining another offensive catalyst. With Garzgone, there was a colossal amount of pressure on potential star tandem Shay Ciezki x Maya Makalusky to orchestrate an efficient onslaught which was clearly lacking serious support around the offensive edges. Spreen and Stotijn will undoubtedly inject some perimeter playmaking spunk in their own respective manners, but neither showcased much (if any) elite-level skills on the ticket-selling side as freshman. Spreen struggled just getting on the court (6.7 MPG in 20 appearances), while Stotijn endured a massive battle with the inefficiency bug all year long (icy shooting splits of 31.7% FG/26.0% 3FG/52.4% FT). Both combo guards (along with fellow combo guard Caffey) have the potential to make a gigantic difference in their first season sporting the candy stripes, but you already know Teri Moren had something up her sleeve when it came to finding a certified perimeter threat to alleviate the other aforementioned threats of some responsibility in the area of making things happen.

Enter Duquesne transfer guard Jerni Kiaku, who is fresh off of dropping 13.2 PPG on 47.1% FG as a junior. Suddenly, there are no major glaring positions of weakness for Teri Moren’s impending Indiana team. Sure, Kiaku’s outside shot is a bit suspect (career 26.3% shooter from distance) and she has a ton of room for improvement in terms of ball control (career 1.6 APG vs 2.0 TOPG). Still, her quickness makes her a nightmare matchup to stay in front of and she has enough tricks in her bag to keep defenders guessing as she prepares to penetrate. Oh, and what she lacks in height (5’7”) on the defensive end she offsets via her suffocating style of resistance right at the point of attack. A Ciezki-Kiaku starting backcourt will have it’s defensive issues as time goes along, but given said time the combo could adapt on the less glamorous end while exploding collectively as the primary focal points within the team’s offensive playbook.

With the latest influx of incoming Hoosiers bringing their talents to Bloomington, there are now a dozen roster spots occupied for the season to come. Assuming there are two more cream and crimson commitments coming soon, who are some ideal fits for Teri Moren to consider in filling out this projected roster below?

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STARTERS

PG = Shay Ciezki | 5’7” | SENIOR

SG = Jerni Kiaku | 5’7” | SENIOR

SF = Lenee Beaumont | 6’1” | RS SOPHOMORE

PF = Maya Makalusky | 6’4” | FRESHMAN

C = Zania Socka-Nguemen | 6’3” | SOPHOMORE

BENCH

PG = Nevaeh Caffey | 5’10” | FRESHMAN

SG = Phoenix Stotijn | 5’9” | SOPHOMORE

SF = Chloe Spreen | 5’10” | SOPHOMORE

PF = Edessa Noyan | 6’3” | JUNIOR

C = Faith Wiseman | 6’4” | SOPHOMORE

RESERVES

G = Valentyna Kadlecova | 6’0” | SOPHOMORE

PF = Sydney Fenn | 6’3” | RS FRESHMAN

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