Illini To Lock Up With Temple
December 12, 2002 | Men's Basketball
Dec. 12, 2002
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Fighting Illini Basketball
#15/14 Illinois (6-0) vs. Temple (1-5)
11 a.m. * Dec. 14, 2002 * Chicago, Ill. * United Center (21,711) ESPN Television
The United Center: Home Away From Home
While games played at the United Center count as neutral site in the
record book, for the Illini the UC is a home away from home.
Saturday's game against Temple will mark the 23rd game the Illini
have played in the UC, dating back to the 1994-95 season. Illinois
owns an all-time record of 16-6 at the United Center.
Last Time Out
Illinois 80, Eastern Illinois 68
Dee Brown scored a career-high 25 points, 20 of which came in the
second half, and Brian Cook added 21 as the Illini defeated Eastern
Illinois 80-68 Tuesday night at the Assembly Hall. Illinois led by
just four points, 45-41, with 16 minutes remaining before the going
on a 15-4 run to take a 15-point lead. Brown had seven of Illinois'
points during the spree. Illinois led by as many as 24 points (78-54)
before a late run by Eastern made the final margin 12 points. Roger
Powell also chipped in with 16 points for the Illini, who shot nearly
52 percent for the game.
Brian Cook named Co-Big Ten Player of the Week
Brian Cook is the reigning Big Ten Co-Player of the Week after
leading the Illini to victories over North Carolina and Arkansas. He
shares the award with Indiana's Tom Coverdale.
Cook scored a game and season-high 22 points in Illinois' 92-65 victory over No. 12 North Carolina. He connected on 8-of-12 shots from the field, grabbed a game-high eight rebounds and tied his career high with five assists. Cook was also the leading scorer in Illinois' 62-58 win over Arkansas, scoring 18 points in 39 minutes of action, the most playing time logged by an Illini player this season. Cook made 7-of-14 field goals and added four rebounds and four assists vs. the Razorbacks. On the week, Cook averaged 20 points, six rebounds, and 4.5 assists per game on combined 58 percent shooting.
Bench Play
The Illinois bench has begun the season very productive, averaging
29.2 points and 12.0 rebounds, while limiting the opponents' bench to
15.2 points and 7.8 rebounds. Illinois' bench is outscoring the
opponents' by 14 points per game and is outrebounding the opponents
by over four boards per game.
Un-Self-ish Play
The Fighting Illini have begun the 2002-03 season with unselfish
play. Illinois leads the Big Ten in assists (20.2 per game),
highlighted by a season-high 24 assists vs. Arkansas-Pine Bluff and
23 against both Western Illinois and North Carolina. Illinois has
tallied 22 or more assists in four of six games and has recorded
assists on 62 percent of its baskets (121 assists on 196 FG) on the
season. Guards Dee Brown and Deron Williams rank third and fifth,
respectively, in the Big Ten in assists with Brown averaging 5.2 and
Williams averaging 4.3.
Cook Keeps on Cookin'
After sitting out the first two games of the season (along with
teammate Jerrance Howard) as an NCAA penalty for playing in an
unsanctioned summer basketball tournament, senior Brian Cook has
returned and immediately established himself in the Illini lineup. In
his first game back vs. Western Illinois, Cook scored a game-high 17
points and grabbed six rebounds. He was Illinois' top scorer and
rebounder in the win over North Carolina, scoring a season-high 22
points and pulling down eight boards. He scored a game-high 18 points
with four boards vs. Arkansas, then racked up 21 points and had six
rebounds in his last outing vs. Eastern Illinois. Cook leads the Big
Ten in scoring, averaging 19.5 points on combined 58.8 percent
shooting. He is tied with James Augustine for the team lead in
rebounding, averaging 6.0 boards. Cook enters the Temple game ranked 20th on the Illinois
career scoring list.
Dee - Lightful
Who is the best freshman point guard in college basketball? While
it's far too early in the season to begin that debate, it's hard to
find a rookie guard that has made more of an impact than Illinois'
Dee Brown. Brown has started every game and leads the Illini in
minutes played. He has scored in double figures in four of six games
and is tied for second on the team in scoring, averaging 13.3 points.
Brown exploded for a career-high 25 points against Eastern Illinois
on Tuesday, hitting 10-of-14 shots, including a career-high five
3-pointers. He ranks third in the Big Ten in assists with 5.2 per
game. Brown has turned the ball over just 10 times all season (an
average of one turnover for every 19.7 minutes played) and leads the
league with an assist/turnover ratio of 3.10. One of the quickest
guards in America, Brown's 2.2 steals per game ranks third in the Big
Ten.
That's a Three
Senior Sean Harrington has been hot from behind the arc this season.
He has made 15-of-27 treys, ranking fifth in the Big Ten in 3-point
field goal percentage at 55.6 percent. Harrington nailed a
career-high six 3-pointers in Illinois' win over North Carolina on
Dec. 3 en route to a career-high 20 points.
