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Indiana upset No. 1 seed North Carolina State during its thrilling run to the Elite Eight this past spring. Now, the Hoosiers get to prove that victory was no fluke.
IU drew a rematch with NC State in this year’s ACC/Big Ten Challenge, landing a home game against the Wolfpack at Assembly Hall on Dec. 2. The Hoosiers took the NCAA Tournament matchup, 73-70, at the Alamodome in March, seeing all five of their starters finish in double figures. The good news for IU is that all five of its starters are set to return for the 2021-22 campaign in a few short months.
In Charlie Creme’s Way-Too-Early Top 25 over at ESPN, the Wolfpack were slotted at No. 8 — one spot behind the Hoosiers. Creme writes:
The model will remain the same in Raleigh: Play solid defense, rebound and run the offense through Elissa Cunane (16.3 PPG, 8.3 RPG). The 6-5 center will be on every preseason All-American list and will be one of the top prospects for the 2022 WNBA draft. She’ll also be surrounded by familiar faces Jakia Brown-Turner (13.5 PPG), Jada Boyd (11.5 PPG) and point guard Raina Perez, who decided to take the extra year granted by the NCAA.
Indiana is 8-5 overall in the Challenge, picking up wins in each of the past two events. There were no games in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
As we mentioned last week, IU’s schedule is shaping up to be one of the most intriguing in program history. The Hoosiers will see defending champion Stanford, as well as rematches against Kentucky and Tennessee. In Big Ten play, the Hoosiers will see Iowa star Caitlin Clarke twice and will also get two chances against conference nemesis Maryland.
A game time and television assignment for the ACC/Big Ten Challenge will be announced at a later date.