Dec. 3, 1999

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. (AP) -- The Fighting Illini finish their brief two-game road swing at Texas on Saturday.

No. 10 Illinois (5-2) is coming off an early test, a 100-79 loss to top-ranked Connecticut on Tuesday. The Illini matched up well with the Huskies in the first half, trailing 41-36 at intermission while holding UConn to just 40 percent shooting.

But Illinois allowed the Huskies to go on a 16-4 run to start the second half and trailed by as many as 24 points. Allison Curtin finished with 23 and Kylie Martin had 21 before fouling out with just over five minutes remaining.

The Illini picked up three wins last week, including wins over ranked teams, then-No. 18 Boston College and then-No. 6 Notre Dame. The victory over the Irish marked Illinois' first win over a top 10 team under coach Theresa Grentz.

Curtin also earned her first Big Ten player of the week award, averaging 22 points and eight rebounds while shooting 57 percent from the field.

But Curtin and the Illini, who were outrebounded 51-29 by UConn, will need to do a better rebounding job against the Longhorns.

Texas (4-2) is coming off an 81-52 victory over Southwest Texas State on Wednesday. The Longhorns beat Virginia in the opening round of the Rainbow Wahine Classic before losing to Hawaii 78-74 in the final.

Forward Edwina Brown earned Big 12 player of the week honors, averaging 25 points and nine rebounds in four games. She was named MVP of the Wahine Classic for her tournament-record 69 points, 26 rebounds and 19 assists.

Brown, a 5-foot-10 senior, moved into eighth on the school's all-time list with 341 career assists.

Brown has been getting help from junior guard JoRuth Woods, who started the season with three double-doubles and has scored in double figures in four of the last six games.