Feb. 22, 2005
Box Score
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. - Tiffanie Guthrie scored 22 points in only 19 minutes and Erin Wigley notched her second career double-double as Illinois pounded IPFW 86-37 Tuesday night at Assembly Hall. Illinois improved to 15-10 on the season with the win, and closed out its non-conference schedule with a 9-2 mark. IPFW dropped to 4-20 on the season.
The game was never in doubt as the Illini held the Mastadons scoreless for the first 7:22 of the game and jumped out to a 20-0 lead. During that stretch, the Illini defense forced four turnovers and 10 missed shots before allowing IPFW their first points. Guthrie tallied 16 points and six rebounds in the first half, as the Illini cruised to a 43-17 halftime margin.
In the second half, Illinois pushed the lead over 30 almost immediately as Guthrie scored six consecutive points in the first 1:41 after the break to complete her scoring for the night. The Illini would pull away even more from the there, eventually finishing with their biggest lead of the game - the 49 point final margin.
The Illinois bench got plenty of action and did not disappoint, outscoring the Mastadon reserves 41-16. The bench was led by Janelle Hughes' 16 points and Stephanie Chelleen's career-high 13 points. Chelleen had a perfect night, going 5-5 from the field, 1-1 from three-point land (the first of her career) and 2-2 from the line.
Wigley's double-double (11 points, 10 rebounds) was the second of her career and her second in the last three games. Angelina Williams, Illinois' leading scorer and one of the top scorers in the Big Ten, was content getting her teammates involved. She took just three shots and ended with three points, four assists and six rebounds in 22 minutes of action - snapping her conference leading 18 game double-digit scoring streak in the process.
The Illini dominated the glass, 51-22 (+29), their largest rebounding margin of the season, and held IPFW to just 13-57 shooting (.228), marking a season low for opponent FG percentage and the fourth time in the last six games that the Illini have held their opponent under .300 from the field. Offensively, Illinois shot 30-59 (.508) from the field and hit 22-24 from the charity stripe (.917).
The Illini will head to Iowa City, Iowa this Thursday for a key Big Ten showdown vs. the Hawkeyes at 7 p.m. Illinois will then close out the regular season this Sunday when it hosts Michigan at the Assembly Hall at 2 p.m.
