During its run of unprecedented-in-program-history success over the last half-decade, Indiana women’s basketball has relied on an overlapping group of Hoosier legends to propel it forward.

Mackenzie Holmes. Grace Berger. Ali Patberg. Sydney Parrish. Sara Scalia. Chloe Moore-McNeil. All are in the pantheon in the history of Hoosiers hoops. Together, they helped coach Teri Moren’s program reach the NCAA Tournament five years in a row, earn a top-four seed four times, go to the Sweet 16 on three occasions and the Elite Eight once and win the Big Ten title in 2023.

All of those players have now moved on, leaving Moren’s team in an uncertain position heading into 2025-26. After earning a No. 9 seed and falling in the second round of the NCAA Tournament this past season, the 12th-year head coach had to delve deeper than ever into the transfer portal this offseason to rebuild a roster that lost an array of key players.

The work Moren and her staff did this offseason will go a long way toward determining whether the program’s streak of 10 consecutive 20-win seasons continues.

Here’s a look at the Hoosiers’ roster for the upcoming season.

Additions

Guards: Jerni Kiaku (transfer, Duquesne), Phoenix Stotijn (transfer, Arkansas), Chloe Spreen (transfer, Alabama), Nevaeh Caffey (freshman)

Forwards: Zania Socka-Ngueman (transfer, UCLA), Edessa Noyan (transfer, Virginia), Maya Makalusky (freshman)

Departures

Guards: Yarden Garzon (transfer, Maryland), Sydney Parrish (out of eligibility), Chloe Moore-McNeil (out of eligibility), Lexus Bargesser (transfer, Colorado State), Julianna LaMendola (transfer, Grand Canyon), Henna Sandvik (transfer, Wyoming)

Forwards: Karoline Striplin (out of eligibility), Lilly Meister (transfer, Kansas), Sharnecce Currie-Jelks (transfer, Murray State)

Roster overview

Losing a pair of three-year starters to graduation in Parrish and Moore-McNeil would have been difficult enough. Both players had been program cornerstones and key contributors for some of the best Hoosier teams ever and they were extremely influential voices in the locker room.

But those departures were expected and planned for. What was not expected was the transfer of Garzon, IU’s leading scorer (14.4 points per game) and second-leading rebounder (5.4 per contest) who had already set the program record for made 3-pointers.

Garzon, a three-year starter and IU fixture in her own right, was supposed to be handed the keys to the program in 2025-26. Instead, she transferred, to a conference rival, no less.

“It stings,” Moren told the IndyStar in June. “It hurts, but you realize with revenue share and life-changing money that’s out there, that’s where we are.”

With Garzon gone, four of the five players who averaged at least 9.9 points for the Hoosiers last season are out the door.

In the wake of those losses, Moren did a solid job on paper of replenishing the roster, mixing veteran experience with young talent. Four of the five transfer additions – all but Kiaku, who averaged 13.2 points last season – have multiple years of eligibility left and Stotijn, Socka-Nguemen and Spreen have three years to go. The 6-3 Socka-Nguemen is the most pedigreed of the group, a top-30 recruit in the 2024 class, while Stotijn and Noyan bring the most experience, having started a combined 35 games at the high-major level last season.

Don’t forget the freshmen, either. Makalusky (No. 35) and Caffey (No. 42) were top-50 recruits in the country according to ESPN and could push for early playing time. In Makalusky (Hamilton Southeastern) and Spreen (Bedford North Lawrence), IU has the last two Indiana Miss Basketball recipients on its roster.

Top transfer: Stotijn

The 5-8 native of Amsterdam burst into the Razorbacks’ lineup at the end of last season as a freshman, starting the team’s final 12 games. She had a breakout game with 23 points on 7-for-13 shooting in a late-season win over Texas A&M and perhaps more importantly collected at least four assists in three of her last five games with her former team.

IU needs a playmaker and scorer in the backcourt next to leading returning scorer Shay Ciezki (11.8 points per game, 39.2% 3-point shooting last season) and Stotijn could fill that role. The fact that she has a chance to develop as a Hoosier over multiple years gives her addition to the roster added significance.

Potential breakout returnee: Lenée Beaumont

Beaumont was the Illinois Miss Basketball in 2023 and had the look of a future standout guard as a freshman, when she averaged 3.0 points in 9.6 minutes while shooting 60.4% from inside the arc, excellent efficiency for a 6-1 player.

Her 2024-25 campaign was derailed by a knee injury that caused her to miss the entire season, but she was able to redshirt and return with three seasons of eligibility left. A crafty guard with solid athleticism, a smooth midrange game and creativity around the basket, Beaumont could be thrown into the rotation or even the starting lineup this season and begin to cash in on the promise she showed as a four-star recruit.

A key for her development will be extending her range out to the 3-point line, where she shot just 4 of 16 as a freshman.

Overall outlook

Moren has proved herself one of the best program-builders in the country over the last decade, but rarely if ever has she had to deal with the level of turnover IU faced this offseason.

In response, the Hoosiers opted not to go for a bandage with a series of one-year transfer rentals but rather focused more on laying a foundation for the future with players who can grow in the program. That might lead to something of a rebuilding season in the coming campaign, even if it’s better for the program’s health in the long term.

The shadow of Garzon’s departure could be long. IU women’s basketball will be back, but maybe not this season. A seventh consecutive March Madness appearance would be an enormous success.