ALBANY — Indiana women’s basketball guard Sydney Parrish tries not to spend too much time thinking about what ifs.

The Fishers native has thrived in Bloomington since signing with the program as a highly sought after transfer out of Oregon in 2022.

Parrish helped IU get back to the Sweet Sixteen with 17 points, eight rebounds and five assists in a 75-68 comeback win over Oklahoma. It was the most points she’s scored since returning from an ankle injury she suffered at midseason.

“I'm obsessed with being a Hoosier,” Parrish said, with a smile on Thursday afternoon.

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She won’t be able to avoid her past this weekend in an Albany regional featuring three of her former teammates — South Carolina guard Te-Hina Paopao, Notre Dame forward Kylee Watson and UCLA forward Angela Dugalic — who signed with Oregon in 2020 as five-star recruits and like Parrish have all since transferred. The only signee from the class not playing in the regional is Maddie Scherr, who now plays for Kentucky.

They made up the No.1 recruiting class in the country back in 2020.

"I knew right away if we would have stayed together we would have been the No. 1 team in the country,” Paopao told The Herald-Times. “I'm sad we weren't able to compete with each other. I just knew they were hoopers.”

Parrish and Paopao will go head-to-head for the first time when No. 4 Indiana faces No. 1 South Carolina on Friday night. It’s a much different kind of reunion than they had over the summer when they met up in Tallahassee to all catch up.

“We experienced what we did at Oregon and it was best for us to go our separate ways,” Parrish said. "As you can see, we're all thriving in different areas of the country, different universities, different positions on the court. It's really special to see all of us be happy and play in a happy place.”

Parrish first met Paopao when the two were high school freshmen trying out for USA Basketball. They shared a dorm room, but didn’t spend much time getting to know each other.

“We didn't say one word to each other all week, not a single word all week,” Parrish said.

They built a bigger bond in the years that followed. Oregon coach Kelly Graves credited Parrish for being the linchpin of that 2020 recruiting class. She also knew Scherr and Watson and helped bring everyone aboard as the initial verbal commitment that cycle.

“I think she was the instigator and influencer,” Graves said, at the time.

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Parrish spent two years in Eugene and was part of a 2020-21 team that reached the Sweet 16 during her freshman year. She transitioned to a full-time starting role as a sophomore and averaged 8.5 points while shooting 35.4% from 3-point range.

While Dugalic transferred out after her freshman year, the rest of the class spent two years as teammates. Paopao didn’t enter the transfer portal until after the 2022-23 season.

"We are so close,” Paopao said. “It is very bittersweet knowing that we could have been in this together as well. At the end of the day, I miss them and miss playing with them. I'm just happy their journeys have taken them where they are right now. I'm really proud of them for keeping who they are.”

Paopao was a key addition for a South Carolina team that lost five players to the WNBA after last season. She averaged 11.2 points while leading the Gamecocks with 2.4 3-pointers per game and is one of only two players who has started all 33 games they played this season.

“She’s such a poised player, her greatness has carried on to another great university,” Parrish said. “I couldn’t be prouder.”

They still maintain a group chat that was abuzz with possibilities when the brackets came out on Selection Sunday.

It’s been a bit quieter in recent days.

Parrish plans on giving Paopao after Friday night’s game, but until then it’s all business this week ahead of the high stakes matchup.

“We have to trust that we can go into this game and win, we can’t think we are underdogs,” Parrish said. “Something I always live by is act as if, you have to act as if you are the best, act as if you can beat South Carolina. I think that’s gonna be the biggest thing for us tomorrow as the No. 1 team in the country is going to be on the other side of the court.”

Michael Niziolek is the Indiana beat reporter for The Bloomington Herald-Times. You can follow him on X @michaelniziolek and read all his coverage by clicking here.

This article originally appeared on The Herald-Times: Indiana women's Sydney Parrish faces former teammate in March Madness