After being limited over the past two games with an ankle injury, Shay Ciezki returned to Assembly Hall for her senior day and put on a show. The senior guard scored 20 points on Sunday, making her the 35th member of Indiana’s 1,000-point club.
For Ciezki, the day started with a celebration of her two years in Bloomington. As she walked to center court with her family, Ciezki’s numerous accomplishments were listed out to a cheering crowd. These included two academic all-Big Ten honors, an all-Big Ten honorable mention, and her current averages of 54% from the field, 47% from three, and 91% from the free throw line, which would be the highest averages of any player in women’s basketball’s prestigious 50/40/90 club.
The biggest cheer came when it was announced that Ciezki was only 7 points away from joining the Indiana 1,000-point scorers club, an impressive feat considering that she has played only two seasons with the Hoosiers after transferring from Penn State.
As the game against the Ducks (part of the Big Ten Venmo Rivalry Series) got underway, it was clear Ciezki had some rust to shake off in her first game back. The Buffalo, NY, native struggled to get her game going through the first couple of minutes of the first quarter. However, two smooth floaters and a free throw helped her get going, and quickly she was only two points away from joining the 1,000-point club.
The fans could begin to sense it, and when Ciezki made her next basket, Assembly Hall erupted in cheers. As the Hoosiers took a 37-28 lead into the half, the official announcement of Ciezki’s 9 points and entry into the 1,000 point club was made, and once again the crowd went wild.
It was not smooth sailing after half, as the Ducks fought their way back into the game, eventually taking a 43-42 lead with 1:20 left to go in the third quarter. Quickly finding themselves in a dogfight, the Hoosiers decided to put the ball in their best player’s hands and let Ciezki do the rest. From the start of the fourth quarter, Ciezki took over the game. The senior drained a three to give the Hoosiers a 49-48 lead, then immediately found Lenee Beaumont on the next possession to extend the lead to 51-48. Ciezki would hit two more big-time threes as the Hoosiers got a much-needed 72-65 win over the Ducks.
For Ciezki, she showed once again just what makes her so special, ending the day with a team-high 20 points, 6 rebounds, and 6 assists. What was most impressive was that she did not commit a single foul in a very physical game that was tightly called.
Ciezki and the Hoosiers will look to build upon this win as they travel to Rutgers to take on the Scarlet Knights on Wednesday.