Nov. 15, 2009

Box Score

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. - Illinois rebounded from Friday's season-opening overtime loss at Temple in a big way Sunday afternoon, running all over Siena for an 85-53 victory at Assembly Hall. The Illini shot 62.5 percent from the field and forced 34 turnovers to win their 12th straight home-opener. A pair of freshmen led the scoring attack as Karisma Penn had a game-high 18 points and Adrienne Godbold added 14, while Jenna Smith notched her 34th career double-double with 10 points and 10 rebounds in limited action.

There was a lot of talk heading into the season about Coach Jolette Law's squad having a new look, and that has proven to be true thus far. The Illini have pressed and run their way to 78 and 85 points in the first two games. Last season, the team's season-high was 66. On Sunday, Illinois got 49 points off turnovers and 26 off of fast breaks, numbers that were unheard of a year ago.

The Illini were on fire offensively in the first half, hitting 18 of their first 24 shots (75 percent) overall and finishing the half shooting 68.8 percent en route to a 50-36 lead at the break. The 50 points in the half is the most since Illinois scored 50 in the second half of a 91-58 win over South Carolina on Nov. 23, 2007, and equals the highest point total in a half in the Jolette Law era at Illinois. Penn led the way at halftime with 11 points, while Smith had eight points and eight boards.

In the second half, the Fighting Illini came out with a mission: to shut down Siena defensively. They did just that, holding the Saints to just three points over the first 12 minutes to extend the lead to 72-39 with a 22-3 run. The stifling Illinois defense held Siena to just 3-of-23 from the field (13 percent) and forced 19 turnovers in the second half alone. The Illini, meanwhile, cooled off a bit in the second half, shooting 54.2 percent (13-of-24) to finish at 62.5 for the game (35-of-56).

Illinois' freshmen were sensational as Penn hit 8-of-13 from the field and had four steals and two blocks to go along with her 18 points. Godbold hit 5-of-6 from the field and 2-of-2 from three-point range for her 14 points. Brianna Jones had six points in 13 minutes of action and Kersten Magrum had three points and five rebounds in her 17 minutes. In all, the four freshmen that suited up Sunday combined for 41 points and 16-of-25 shooting (64.0 percent). The Orange and Blue played without freshman guard Amber Moore, who injured her knee during Friday's game at Temple and is awaiting the results of an MRI, and freshman forward Destiny Williams, who was not with the team today due to a coaches decision.

Sunday's victory wasn't all about the freshmen, however. Senior leader Lacey Simpson was well on her way to a triple-double with seven points, six assists and six steals but played only 14 minutes because of first-half foul trouble and the large second half lead. Smith hit 5-of-7 from the field and scored in double-figures for the 41st consecutive game. She sat the final 13:22 of the game after securing her second straight double-double to open the season.

Illinois nearly broke the school record of 63.8 percent shooting for a game set in 1986, but two misses in the final 30 seconds left the Illini at 62.5 percent, equaling the fourth-best single game shooting performance in school history. It marked the first time Illinois shot over 60 percent from the field since shooting 60.8 percent against UCLA on Dec. 19, 2004. The Illini's 34 forced turnovers marks the most since forcing 36 against Loyola on Nov. 18, 2005.

Maja Gerlyng led Siena with 13 points, while Champaign native Allie Lindemann had seven points on 3-of-6 shooting.

Today's game was the first of three in a row at Assembly Hall for the Orange and Blue, who host Central Michigan on Wednesday, Nov. 18 at 7 p.m. and Bradley on Sunday, Nov. 22 at 1 p.m. Both games will be streamed live at http://video.bigtennetwork.com.

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