Indiana Women's Basketball to Face No. 6 North Carolina in Top-10 Matchup

Two undefeated top-10 teams in North Carolina and Indiana will battle it out inside the Hall for the ACC/Big Ten Challenge crown. Read more about how to watch, who's commanding each team's offense and how the Hoosiers will carry on without one of their best players Grace Berger.

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. — Here comes another big test for the No. 5-ranked Hoosiers as they welcome No. 6 North Carolina to Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall on Thursday for the Big Ten/ACC Challenge.

"I know a lot of students will show up (Wednesday) for the men's game, so maybe they'll just bring their sleeping bag and park it out here in the parking lot to return here for our game," Indiana women's coach Teri Moren said.

Wednesday night in the Hall, the No. 10-ranked men's basketball team knocked off the Tar Heels 77-65 to improve to a 7-0 record.

The women have the same opportunity one day later to keep a perfect record and send North Carolina back home with a sweep of losses.

"They're very balanced in their scoring," Moren said. "I wish we had Grace Berger, but we don't, and so we will approach this game just like we would if we had Grace Berger."

In the Las Vegas Invitational last week, senior guard Berger went down with a right knee injury and is out indefinitely with no inclination of how serious the injury is.

Stepping up in her starting spot will be junior guard Sydney Parrish who has been the team's sixth woman off the bench this season. Senior guard Chloe Moore-McNeil has also held her own sliding into the driver's seat of the offense, Moren said.

Perhaps the anchor and leader of the team is senior forward Mackenzie Holmes who is the current Big Ten Player of the Week after averaging 26.5 points, eight rebounds and shot 88 percent from the floor in Las Vegas.

"She has extraordinary footwork, extraordinary hands and she's a worker," Moren said."

The Tar Heels are also off to a perfect 6-0 start including a sweep in the Phil Knight Invitational last week where they beat Oregon and Iowa State.

In the all-time series versus Indiana, North Carolina is 2-0, but hasn't met the Hoosiers since 1988 when the Tar Heels won 80-75 in Chapel Hill.

Now, North Carolina is led by junior guard Deja Kelly who tops a group of Tar Heels double-figure scorers with 17.8 points and 5.2 rebounds per game. Junior guard/forward Alyssa Ustby adds 15.5 points and a team-high 8.3 rebounds. 

As a unit, the Tar Heels are averaging 82.2 points per game shooting 44.8 percent from the field while Indiana is averaging 88.7 points per game and shooting 51.9 percent from the field.

"When you get to this level and you play these games, nobody's going to stop playing just because they're down," Moren said. "I mean it just doesn't happen at our level. No lead is ever safe."

Moren said her group is highly aware this will be a full 40-minute game of basketball no matter what the lead is. Despite being down one of its best players, Indiana has gained a toughness component that showed up when adversity struck.

"I love this group," Moren said. "Their chemistry is good, but there's a toughness about them that I appreciate and that I wondered how long it would take us to get to the point where I can look out there and go, 'there's a toughness about us'".

How to Watch North Carolina vs. Indiana

Who: North Carolina Tar Heels (6-0) vs. Indiana Hoosiers (7-0)

When: Thursday, Dec. 1 2022 — 6 p.m. ET

Where: Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall — Bloomington, Ind.

Broadcast: BTN

Radio: WHCC 105.1 FM

Related stories on Indiana women's basketball

• GRACE BERGER OUT INDEFINITELY Indiana women's basketball head coach Teri Moren said senior guard Grace Berger is out indefinitely with a right knee injury. Berger is day-to-day and will not play in the UNC game on Thursday. CLICK HERE
• HOLMES & GARZON EARN BIG TEN WEEKLY HONORS Indiana women's basketball forwards Mackenzie Holmes and Yarden Garzon earn Big Ten Player of the Week honors as the first duo to sweep the award since the 2009-10 season. CLICK HERE
• INDIANA REACHES TOP 5 IN AP POLL The Indiana Hoosiers move up one spot in the Associated Press Top 25 Poll this week. See the full list complete with records inside. CLICK HERE
• MACKENZIE HOLMES PLANS TO USE COVID YEAR Although Indiana forward Mackenzie Holmes gave a short response, she gave a good one revealing the plan for her is to stay with Indiana next season utilizing her extra year of eligibility. CLICK HERE