Dec. 5, 2002
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#25/20 Illinois (4-0) vs. Arkansas (1-3)
11:30 a.m. * Dec. 7, 2002 * North Little Rock, Ark. * Alltel Arena (17,600) * espn2
Last Time Out
No. 25 Illinois recorded its first victory in four tries in the ACC/Big Ten Challenge, as the Illini defeated No. 12 North Carolina 92-65 at the Assembly Hall on Tuesday. A tight seven-point game (64-57) turned lop-sided when the Illini finished on a 28-8 run over the final 7:41, giving North Carolina
to its first loss of the season. Brian Cook scored a game-high 22 points, grabbed eight rebounds and had five assists, while Sean Harrington came off the bench to
score a career-high 20 points, making 6-of-8 three-pointers. Dee Brown scored 12 points and had six assists, four steals and no turnovers in 35 minutes of action. The 27-point margin of victory was Illinois' largest over a team ranked in the Top 15 since the Illini defeated No. 15 Notre Dame by 34
points, 91-57, on Jan. 25, 1969.
Bench Play
The Illinois bench has begun the season very productive, averaging 35.8 points and 12.5
rebounds, while limiting the opponents' bench to 11.0 points and 5.5 rebounds.
Illinois' bench is outscoring the opponents' by nearly 25 points per game and is outre-bounding
the opponents by seven boards per game.
The Fighting Illini have begun the 2002-03 season with unselfish play. Illinois has com-bined
for a Big Ten-leading 85 assists over four games (21.3 avg.), including a season-high
24 vs. Arkansas-Pine Bluff and 23 against both Western Illinois and North Carolina. On the season, Illinois has recorded assists on over 61 percent of its baskets (85 assists on 139 FG). Guards Dee Brown and Deron Williams rank second and fourth, respectively, in the Big Ten in assists with Brown averaging 5.5 and Williams averaging 4.3. In three of the four games, all nine Illini players who have played in the first half have scored.
That's a Three
Senior Sean Harrington has been hot from behind the arc this season. He has made 14-of-22 treys, ranking second in the Big Ten in 3-point field goal percentage at 63.6 percent. Harrington nailed a career-high six 3-pointers in Illinois' win over North Carolina on Tuesday en route to a career-high 20 points.
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 unsactioned summer basketball tournament, senior Brian Cook has returned and immediately established himself in the Illini lineup. In his first game back vs. Western Illinois on Sunday, Cook scored a game-high 17 points and grabbed six rebounds. He was Illinois' top scorer and rebounder in the win over North Carolina on Tuesday, scoring a season-high 22 points on 8-of-12 shooting and pulling down eight boards. Cook is averaging 19.5 points and 7.0 rebounds while shooting 60 percent from the field (15-25 FGs).
Dee Does it All
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 reached double figures in three of four games and is third on the team in scoring, averaging 11.8 points. He ranks second in the Big Ten in assists with 22, an average of 5.5 per game. Brown has turned the ball over just seven times, ranking second in the league with an assist/turnover ratio of 3.14. One of the
quickest guards in America, Brown's 2.5 steals per game ranks second in the Big Ten.
