Indiana Women's Basketball Reloads at Forward Position

Indiana women's basketball has just one more season with leading scorer Mackenzie Holmes. The Hoosiers added another reinforcement for this season in UT Martin transfer Sharnecce Currie-Jelks and already have two 2024 forwards committed to reload the program.

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. — Remember when Indiana women's basketball was 'quiet' in the offseason, and rising graduate student and leading scorer Mackenzie Holmes and rising sophomore Lilly Meister were the only forwards on the roster? Now, the two players have more company as the program continues to reload for this season and next year too.

Hoosier fans could breathe a big exhale when they learned Holmes was returning to Bloomington for her fifth and final season. The Gorham, Maine native led the No. 2 Hoosiers with 22.3 points and 7.3 rebounds per contest. Iowa guard Caitlin Clark was the only other Big Ten player to best Holmes' scoring slate.

Indiana's Mackenzie Holmes (54) is fouled by Nebraska's Sam Haiby (4) during the second half of the Indiana versus Nebraska women's basketball game at Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall on Sunday, Jan. 1, 2023 :: © Rich Janzaruk/Herald-Times / USA TODAY NETWORK

Rochester, Minn. native Meister also returns to the Hoosiers. She played in 31 games off the bench and even started in place for Holmes, who sat out just for precaution during the first round of the NCAA Tournament versus Tennessee Tech. 

Meister shot 63 percent from the field last season averaging 2.4 points and 2.1 rebounds per game. For a couple months and some change, it looked like Holmes and Meister were going to be the only forwards on the roster. Redshirt senior center Arielle Wisne could have played the position too if needed.

Indiana's Lilly Meister (52) shoots over Morehead State's Jayden Rhodes (11) during the Indiana versus Morehead State women's basketball game at Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall on Sunday, Dec. 18, 2022 :: © Rich Janzaruk/Herald-Times / USA TODAY NETWORK

Then, the cream and crimson welcomed UT Martin transfer forward Sharnecce Currie-Jelks, who was the Ohio Valley Conference Freshman of the Year. The 6-foot-2 Jackson, Tenn. native averaged 15.2 points per game and led the Skyhawks with 6.9 boards per contest. 

Head coach Teri Moren and staff of course never foreshadow who's going to start, but last season, four guards and one forward in Holmes were the top five, which remained consistent every game. Whether Currie-Jelks earns some starts this season or is a role player off the bench to relieve Holmes, she will be valuable for the Hoosiers' reload.

Tennessee Martin's Sharnecce Currie-Jelks (23) is guarded by Morehead State's Sophie Benharouga (14) during their first round game of the Ohio Valley Conference Women's Basketball Championship at Ford Center in Evansville, Ind., Wednesday afternoon, March 1, 2023 :: © DENNY SIMMONS / COURIER & PRESS / USA TODAY NETWORK

The Hoosiers didn't stop at this season though. It's less than a year away when Holmes' collegiate clock will officially expire, a day Bloomington isn't looking forward to. Moren already had Indian Creek High School forward Faith Wiseman out of Trafalgar, Ind. committed for the 2024 season, but added reinforcement couldn't hurt. 

On June 6, Buffalo, N.Y. native forward Sydney Fenn announced her 2024 commitment to the Hoosiers. Wiseman and Fenn will never get to play with Holmes at least on the college stage, but the good news is they will play alongside Meister and Currie-Jelks, who will get the honor of learning from the Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year.

The lesson is to be patient in the offseason. Just when the forward position was looking a little scarce, Indiana reloaded and looks better than ever.

Related stories on Indiana women's basketball

• 2023-24 INDIANA WOMEN'S BASKETBALL ROSTER The Indiana women's basketball program published its official 2023-24 roster including two freshmen, five sophomores, zero juniors and five seniors and graduate students. CLICK HERE
• AMBER SMITH NAMED ASSISTANT COACH The Indiana women's basketball program announced the hiring of former Kentucky women's basketball guard and assistant coach Amber Smith as the Hoosiers' new assistant coach. CLICK HERE
• SYDNEY FENN COMMITS TO INDIANA Forward Sydney Penn from Buffalo, N.Y. announced her commitment to Indiana women's basketball for the 2024 season via her Twitter account. CLICK HERE