Western Kentucky has developed a fearless mindset when it comes to playing up to Power 5 competition. Three games to start the year against Missouri, Iowa and Notre Dame have shown WKU can keep up with any team even if opposing defenses shut down the Lady Toppers’ best players.

WKU (1-2) will have one more tall order to wrap up a challenging opening slate with a game against Indiana (2-0) at 6 p.m. Friday at Assembly Hall in Bloomington. The game will air on Big Ten Network Plus.

“We’ll probably face the same things we faced the past three games,” WKU coach Michell Clark-Heard said after her team’s 78-65 loss to No. 6 Notre Dame on Tuesday. “Hopefully we can find a way to continue to learn from these three games and get better and get ready so we can figure out how we’re going to sneak a win out on the road.”

WKU is already one game up on Indiana going into the last game of a home-and-home series. Tashia Brown scored 28 points last season in WKU’s 85-74 win when the Hoosiers came to Diddle Arena ranked 23rd in the country.

Brown has been the best player for WKU through three games this year, averaging 23.7 points and six rebounds a game. As one Brown has been consistent, players have had to pick up points while the other Brown has battled foul trouble in two games.

Ivy Brown notched a career-high 31 points against Iowa on Saturday, but that game has sandwiched between two foul-riddled contests that have limited her production. She was held to just two points on 1 of 6 shooting against Notre Dame and fouled out late in the game. She did come down with six of her nine rebounds on the offensive glass and was productive defensively with two steals and two blocks.

In the season-opening win over then-No. 16 Missouri, Ivy Brown played with four fouls and had nine points and just a single rebound. She is 11 points away from becoming the 39th member of WKU’s 1,000-point club.

Countering that has been production from Whitney Creech, Dee Givens and Raneem Elgedawy. Creech matched a career-high 17 points against Notre Dame and is averaging 11.7 points on 46 percent shooting.

“We’ve had different people step up these three games and had a lot of people score points for us and do the little things,” Creech said. “We’ve learned this team is pretty good right now. We’ve got a lot of fight in us and no matter who we’re playing, we’ll go out there and give our best efforts.”

Givens burst on the scene with 20 points in 33 minutes against Missouri, then followed it up with 16 points against Iowa.

Her shots never fell against Notre Dame and she finished with four points on a 3-pointer and a free throw. The 6-foot-1 Givens is pretty much a new player for WKU after missing all but eight games last year with an injury. She appeared in all 34 games as a freshman and averaged 5.8 points per game.

“She was huge for us,” Ivy Brown said before the Notre Dame game. “We’ve always known Dee could do that, but for her to know she can do that is a big thing. For her to get her confidence back, she played well her freshman year and she had to sit out last year, but for her to play like that is huge for us and we need that every night.”

Indiana received two votes in the latest Associated Press poll and has wins over Arkansas State and a 64-59 victory over Southern University on Tuesday. Preseason All-Big Ten senior point guard Tyra Buss is averaging 28 points a game. Two players had double-doubles for Indiana in the last win between junior forward Kym Royster (14 points, 15 rebounds) and senior forward Amanda Cahill (13 points, 10 points).

Freshman guard Bendu Yeaney has scored in double digits in her first two collegiate games.

Probable starters

Western Kentucky – Tashia Brown, f, 6-1, sr. (23.7 ppg, 6.0 rpg); Whitney Creech, g, 5-8, so. (11.7 ppg, 4.3 rpg); Ivy Brown, f, 6-1, sr. (13.0 ppg, 6.7 rpg); Dee Givens, f, 6-1, r-so. (13.3 ppg, 3.3 rpg); Raneem Elgedawy, f, 6-4, fr. (7.3 ppg, 5.3 rpg)

Indiana – Bendu Yeaney, g, 5-10, fr. (11.0 ppg, 2.0 rpg); Tyra Buss, g, 5-8, sr. (28.0 ppg, 2.0 rpg); Kym Royster, f, 6-2, jr. (10.0 ppg, 6.0 rpg); Jaelynn Penn, g, 5-10, fr. (9.0 ppg, 4.0 rpg); Amanda Cahill, f, 6-2, sr. (13.0 ppg, 12.0 rpg)

Television – Big Ten Network Plus

Radio ESPN 102.7 FM or 1450 AM

Coaches Michelle Clark-Heard (131-41 sixth year; 155-73 overall), Western Kentucky; Teri Moren (61-39 fourth year; 260-169 overall) Indiana.

Series Record WKU leads the series 5-2 (WKU won the last meeting 85-74 on Nov. 19, 2016 at Diddle Arena.)

Last time out Western Kentucky lost 78-65 to No. 6 Notre Dame at Diddle Arena on Tuesday; Indiana defeated Southern University 64-49 at Assembly Hall on Tuesday.{&end}