Indiana
Indiana women’s basketball leaning on experience and perspective in navigating NCAA Tournament
Upon first glance, Indiana women’s basketball received a tough NCAA Tournament draw.
The Hoosiers (24-5) earned their No. 4 seed, giving them home-court advantage in the first two rounds. But they’re up against a No. 13 seed in Fairfield (31-1) that hasn’t lost since mid-November and may feel it deserved a higher seed.
If IU defeats the Stags, it may face No. 5 seed Oklahoma (22-9) — the Big 12 regular season outright champions, which swept No. 1 seed Texas and played a more challenging non-conference schedule than the Hoosiers.
Should Indiana get through to the Sweet 16, it would set up — in all likelihood — a matchup with No. 1 overall seed South Carolina (33-0).
One of the bigger storylines of IU’s year was letdown performances in several big games. That wasn’t the case in every big game on the schedule, but it happened enough to be one of the themes from this regular season. And IU head coach Teri Moren never shied away from that. But the Hoosiers showed resilience coming out of those rough outings, and that veteran mentality gives her confidence that they can navigate a seemingly difficult bracket.
“This is a team that’s competitive, it’s a team that’s connected, it’s a team that’s mature, experienced,” Moren said during a Zoom media availability Sunday night. “Anytime you get into this tournament, it’s going to be hard. There’s going to be challenges, no matter who you play, whether first round, second round, and so forth. And so I think we’re prepared.”
Indiana enters this March Madness in a different fashion than its last several NCAA Tournament teams did.
The 2021 season and tournament were heavily impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, so IU’s No. 4 seed didn’t result in hosting the first two rounds like it normally would’ve. But it was still the program’s highest-ever seed at the time, and it reached its first-ever Elite Eight.
Indiana wanted to back up that run in 2022 and host for the first time in program history. The team’s No. 3 seed saw the latter vision come to fruition. IU had higher ambitions than its Sweet 16 ending, but it won a memorable second-round game in Bloomington and still represented itself well as a program.
Last season, in 2023, the Hoosiers earned their first-ever No. 1 seed, and carried legitimate Final Four and national championship aspirations into the postseason. Miami (Fla.) promptly ended that magical ride in the second round.
This is Moren’s sixth NCAA Tournament team at Indiana, and her fifth straight year in the bracket. And it’s the first of those six groups whose postseason experience isn’t novel.
There’s no “first-ever” for these Hoosiers. They’ve been here before. They’ve felt the pressure of high expectations. They’ve witnessed March Madness environments at Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall. They’ve been a No. 4 seed, and made a deep run from that position. And they’ve felt the painful sting of being on the wrong end of an upset.
Those experiences have given these players more perspective than they’ve ever had going into an NCAA Tournament. Indiana knows what it takes to go far, and knows how quickly those dreams can come crashing down.
And between those memories from previous years and going through some of this season’s lower points, Moren has tried to make sure her team learns from it all.
“It’s one thing to come up short, to fail, and some of those (letdown games this season) have been super disappointing,” Moren said. But there’s always a lesson inside of all those. You learn lessons throughout.”
Hoosiers recharging, Holmes feeling better
The Hoosiers got a needed boost from the last nine days after their loss to Michigan in the Big Ten Tournament.
During IU’s regular-season finale against Maryland, Mackenzie Holmes re-injured her left knee that’s given her problems the last three seasons. She sat on the bench for most of the loss to the Wolverines in Minneapolis, and Moren didn’t want to use the fifth-year if she could avoid it. But Holmes still played during the fourth quarter out of desperation to save the game.
But the time off allowed her to rest her knee, and she said Sunday that she’s feeling a lot better.
“I think this past week I’ve been able to get some much needed rest for my knee and I’ve been able to get back out on the floor, I’ve been practicing,” Holmes said. “So each day I think I’m feeling more and more confident on it, feeling better on it, so this week has been great for that, the aspect of the recovery of my knee.”
The All-American added she’s doing “pretty much everything” in practices, and is feeling much better entering this year’s NCAA Tournament than she did last year. Holmes sat out of Indiana’s first-round win over Tennessee Tech last season after injuring her knee during the Big Ten Tournament, and she said Sunday that she didn’t practice much after that point.
Moren and her staff were conscious of how much time the players spent on the court later in the season and ramped it down a bit to keep everyone healthy and energized. She acknowledged the difficulty of balancing that against necessary practice time to improve and maintain a competitive edge throughout the team, but doesn’t think it’s impossible to achieve both goals.
Holmes wasn’t the only one who benefitted from rest over the last week. Lilly Meister also got hurt against Maryland, though she played through it in a larger capacity than Holmes did against Michigan. Sydney Parrish played in only five games — four in her usual role and workload — after returning from a seven-game absence with a foot injury. IU had other players dealing with nagging injuries as well. Moren said the entire team was able to recharge last week.
“This was a great week for us to rest a lot, although we did practice. But we really shortened it. But it’s been a good week,” Moren said. “Yesterday was the first day we had everybody on the floor, so it was quite nice to see. But now, it’s go time for us. So we’re going to take tomorrow off, get acclimated with Fairfield, and when the guys get back here on Tuesday, we’ll be ready to go.”
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CLOVERDALE, Ind. (WKRC) – Authorities in Indiana found a semi trailer loaded up with hundreds of pounds of suspected cocaine.
According to a statement issued by the Indiana State Police (ISP), 27-year-old Harmandeep Singh of Bakersfield, California was taken into custody after nearly 400 pounds of suspected cocaine were reportedly found in the trailer of a commercial truck.
Per the statement, an ISP trooper seized the suspected cocaine during a traffic stop on Interstate 70 in Putnam County, authorities said.
The stop occurred Tuesday morning near the 37-mile marker, just east of Cloverdale, after a commercial motor vehicle was observed exceeding the posted speed limit.
Police said Singh displayed several indicators of possible criminal activity during the encounter. After obtaining consent to search the vehicle, troopers discovered multiple duffel bags and cardboard boxes in the trailer containing approximately 392 pounds (178 kilograms) of suspected cocaine.
Authorities estimated the street value of the drugs at about $9 million.
Singh was taken into custody and taken to the Putnam County Jail, where he is being held on a $30,000 cash bond.
He faces the following preliminary charges, per the post:
- Possession of a narcotic drug
Formal charges will be determined by the Putnam County prosecutor.
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Indiana State Police said drug interdiction remains a priority, with troopers focusing on major highways to disrupt the flow of illegal narcotics into the state.
For many Hoosiers living in rural Indiana, accessing health care can mean driving 30 minutes or even an hour to see a doctor or reach the nearest hospital. As workforce shortages and financial pressures challenge rural hospitals across the country, ensuring access to care close to home has become one of the most important health-care issues facing our state.
About one in four Indiana residents live in a rural community, yet access to health-care services in many of these communities continues to shrink. Across the nation, rural hospitals and clinics report extremely thin operating margins and often say workforce shortages and rising costs make it difficult to sustain services such as primary care, maternity care and behavioral health.
When rural communities struggle to maintain health-care access, the impact doesn’t stay confined to small towns. It ripples across the entire health-care system, contributing to increases in chronic conditions, reduced preventative care for children, and worsening outcomes for the sickest patients.
Communities such as Greater Lafayette serve as a regional hub for care, with hospitals like IU Health Arnett caring for patients from surrounding counties across north-central and west-central Indiana. That role is something we are proud to fulfill. But when rural residents must travel long distances for care that should be available closer to home, it places increasing pressure on emergency departments, specialty clinics and inpatient services at larger regional hospitals.
In many cases, what might have been a routine appointment, preventive screening or early diagnosis in a local clinic becomes far more serious by the time a patient reaches a larger hospital. A missed screening can escalate into a medical emergency.
That reality makes strengthening rural health care more important than ever — not just for rural communities, but for the health of the entire state.
One of the most important steps we can take is investing in the next generation of health-care professionals who will care for these communities.
At IU Health, we are working directly with local schools and community partners to help build that workforce pipeline. Across the region, IU Health has partnered with the Greater Lafayette Career Academy and area school districts to introduce students to health-care careers earlier and provide hands-on learning opportunities that bring those careers to life.
Through these programs, students explore health-care pathways and earn certifications such as certified nursing assistant, medical assistant or emergency medical technician while still in high school. Many participate in job shadowing opportunities, clinical experiences and mentorship programs, giving them valuable exposure to the field before they graduate. In fact, since the first cohort in 2023, IU Health has extended job offers to more than 70 students.
The goal is simple but powerful: help students see that meaningful careers in health care exist in their own communities and create pathways that allow them to stay and serve those communities.
For rural health care, this approach is critical. Students who train and develop personal mentorship connections locally are far more likely to remain in the region after completing their education. By helping young people build skills and connections early, we can create a sustainable workforce that strengthens health-care access in both rural communities and regional centers, including Greater Lafayette.
Since launching the $200 million Community Impact Investment Fund in 2018, IU Health has invested more than $40 million in community grants supporting workforce development, education and school-based programs that build Indiana’s health-care talent pipeline. This includes funding for the Indiana Latino Institute, which placed Latino students in health-care internships, supported career pathways, and provided medical interpreter training and college coaching to communities across the state.
Our goal is to make Indiana one of the healthiest states in the nation, and this is one way we work toward that in partnership with our communities.
But workforce development is only part of the solution.
Strengthening rural health care will also require continued collaboration between health-care providers, educators, community leaders and policymakers. Expanding telehealth access, supporting rural hospitals and investing in primary care and behavioral health services are all critical steps toward ensuring patients can receive care close to home.
Greater Lafayette will always play an important role as a regional health-care center, providing specialized care and advanced services for patients across a broad region. But the long-term health of Indiana’s health-care system depends on maintaining strong local access points for care in rural communities.
When rural clinics and hospitals can provide preventive care, manage chronic conditions and connect patients with the services they need early, the entire system works better.
Patients receive care sooner, communities stay healthier and larger hospitals can focus on the complex cases they are designed to treat.
Healthy rural communities do not just benefit the towns where they are. They strengthen Indiana’s entire health-care system by ensuring that every Hoosier — no matter where they live — has access to the care and resources they need to live healthier lives.
When rural health care succeeds, all of Indiana benefits.
Gary Henriott is a lifelong resident of Lafayette and the retired CEO and Chairman of Henriott Group. He is the chair of the IU Health West Region board of directors and the Wabash Heartland Innovation Network, and president of Lafayette’s Board of Public Works and Safety.
INDIANAPOLIS (WKRC) — An Indianapolis mother is now facing criminal charges after her 2-month-old baby died in an apparent improper co-sleeping environment, according to investigators.
According to a probable cause affidavit obtained by FOX 59/CBS 4, police were called to an area hospital on Sept. 19, 2024, following the death of 27-year-old Brooklyn Davis’ son. The boy had been found unresponsive in his family’s home early that morning, and Davis attempted CPR before he was rushed to the hospital.
The affidavit says the boy had been sleeping on Davis’ bed with his 6-year-old brother. Davis later showed investigators a video showing the baby sleeping chest down on the 6-year-old’s chest.
An autopsy concluded the baby’s cause of death was “sudden explained death of an infant” with an intrinsic factor, which included being “placed to sleep in a queen-sized mattress being shared with a 6-year-old sibling, along with numerous blankets and other miscellaneous items; discovered unresponsive in a prone position with his face turned to the side and partially covered with a blanket.”
A report from the Department of Child Services (DCS) indicated the boy had no known health issues and that Davis ran an FSSA-licensed day care and has “extensive training on child care and safe sleeping environments.”
Davis had been known to DCS prior to the baby’s death. The boy had been born marijuana-positive and, on July 2, 2024, Davis had reportedly signed a “Safe Sleep Safety Plan,” acknowledging she understood that the safest places for her baby to sleep were in a crib, pack-and-play or bassinet and warned that co-sleeping places the baby at risk of suffocation and sleeping areas should be kept free of blankets, pillows and other items. The plan also included a provision that Davis not use marijuana while caring for her children, but she told investigators during an interview that, the morning of her baby’s death, she had gone downstairs to smoke marijuana and left the children alone upstairs.
Davis’ two other children were removed from the home, and interviews with them revealed that co-sleeping with the infant happened often.
Investigators say they attempted to contact Davis several times after talking to her children.
“She called me on February 18, 2025, and said she didn’t do anything wrong, her baby died of SIDS,” the detective wrote in the affidavit. “Brooklyn never came in for an additional interview.”
Court records indicate the case was filed in March 2026. Davis was booked into jail on April 1 on three counts of neglect of a dependent. An initial hearing was held on April 7, and a bail review hearing is planned for Monday.
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