IUWBB Freshman Focus: Can Faith Wiseman be a Game Changer Next Season?

The Indiana women's basketball team has it's work cut out in filling the gigantic void left by the departure of the beloved Mackenzie Holmes. Luckily the future of trooper Teri's frontcourt has arrived in the form of incoming freshman Faith Wiseman.

Wiseman is fresh off of a monster senior season at Indiana Creek in which she put up major numbers of 18.2 PPG, 11.9 RPG, 4.8 APG, 3.9 BPG and 1.8 SPG. Her elite performance did not go unnoticed, with her finishing as the #61 nationally ranked recruit in the class of 2024 per ESPN's annual HoopGurlz rankings. Even more impressive, she earned a spot on the Indiana All-Star squad for the annual showdown with the Kentucky All-Stars.

Needless to say, Wiseman arrives at Assembly Hall ripe with accolades and honors for her past performance. Now, the question is whether or not the true freshman will blossom into a genuine needle mover for an Indiana team in desperate need of frontcourt support.

Standing 6'4" with a slender frame and lanky wingspan, the small town Indiana product has the physical tools to make a big difference right out of the gates. Like all other freshman basketball players before her, it will assuredly take some time for the newbie to adapt to the heightened levels of speed and physicality that come with the transition from high school to college hoops. Branching off of this, common sense tells us it will take Teri Moren some time to establish a full sense of trust in her newest development project.

With that being said, Wiseman showcased a strong feel for the game throughout her high school playing career. Her size and length will go a long way in boosting her chances for increased minutes, but it is her overall basketball IQ and fearless demeanor which could inevitably force Moren's hand when it comes to finding Faith sufficient court time in her inaugural NCAA season.

Wiseman is much more than a traditional, low-post big. She gets up and down the floor SWIFTLY, and utilizes her agility effectively when getting to her spots on the floor. You probably will not see many sets drawn up for her in the low post given her slight build, but she is more than capable of getting a bucket if you throw her the rock on the block. Her outside shot is also going to require a lot of work, but we just bore witness to arguably the greatest career in the history of Indiana women's hoops unfold via the form of a player who hit a mere 10 of her 42 (23.8%) 3-pointers across 147 career college games.

While we await the expansion of her offensive skillset, we can also take great joy in watching her drop dimes via her strong feel for the game. Wiseman has consistently shown the ability to make plays for her teammates without being the official orchestrator of the offense, and has also given glimpses of untapped potential in the art of creating off the dribble. The evidence of these claims lies directly within her highlights from high school.

It will undoubtedly be a bit before she fully acclimates herself offensively, but defense is the area of the game where she will have the strongest opportunity to make her mark in 2024-2025. Her size alone should strike intimidation into anybody who tries their hand at venturing into her territory down low in the trenches, and she has a track record of swatting shots like flies. She also owns a vicious spirit on the boards, where she attacks rebounds rather than awaiting them to fall into her lap.

With so many other extremely talented ball players on the team around her, including returning frontcourt pieces Lily Meister and Sharnecce Currie-Jelks plus fellow newcomers Karoline Striplin and Sydney Fenn, it will not be easy for Faith Wiseman to escape being overshadowed during her freshman season. Regardless, she will have every opportunity to earn her keep and spread her wings.

Time will tell if she is up for the task, and we are believers that she is.

Keep going, Faith!