Jan. 3, 2002

Box Score

MINNEAPOLIS, Minn. -- Freshman guard Tiffanie Guthrie was one of three Illini who nearly reached a double double. She led the Illini with a career-high 19 points grabbed nine rebounds to lead the Illini in their second road contest of the Big Ten season. Cindy Dallas and Dawn Vana each came within an eyelash of double doubles as well as Dallas scored 15 points and grabbed nine boards while Vana recorded 10 points and dished out nine assists. Despite the tremendous efforts, the Illini fell short, falling to Minnesota 89-75. It was the Illini's first loss in conference play as they fall to 9-4 overall, 2-1 in the Big Ten.

Guthrie and Dallas combined for 18 rebounds as the Illini out-rebounded the Gophers 37-32. While the Illini held the advantage on the glass, they could not overcome the 42-36 halftime deficit or the great shooting performance by the Gophers. Minnesota hit 28-49 shots (.571) while the stingy Gopher defense held the Illini to 29-69 (.420).

Guthrie shot 6-18 from the floor including hitting two three-pointers. Coming off the bench, she also went 5-6 from the charity stripe en route to recording the career-best performance and pacing the Illinois offense in her 25 minutes on the court. Along with Guthrie, Dallas and Vana, Iveta Marcauscaite also reached double figures with 13 points in the contest while blocking three shots. Shavonna Hunter contributed to the Illinois cause by swiping a team-high five steals.

Minnesota center Janel McCarville paced the Gophers with 23 points and 11 boards. Lindsay Whalen added 20 points and 12 assists while Corrin Van Wald also neared the 20-point plateau with 19 points. Lindsey Leiser also reached double figures scoring 14.

The Illini take the weekend off before enjoying a two-game homestand hosting Penn State on Monday, Jan. 7 at 7 p.m. at Assembly Hall and welcoming Michigan State to Assembly Hall on Sunday, Jan. 13 at 2 p.m.