Feb. 6, 2002
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No. 8/7 Purdue (18-3, 9-2) at Illinois (13-7, 6-4)
Feb. 7, 2002, 7:00 p.m., Assembly Hall, Champaign, Ill.
Radio: Illini Sports Network (Dave Loane)
ILLINOIS VIES TO PROTECT HOME COURT VS. PURDUE
Illinois still has legitimate hopes about winning the Big Ten title. With
just six games remaining, the Illini find themselves in fourth place in the
conference at 6-4, just 2 1/2 games in back of Purdue. An Illinois win over
the Boilermakers on Thursday would move the Illini within a game of first
place in the Big Ten and give the Illini a shot at the title.
ILLINOIS CELEBRATES NATIONAL GIRLS AND WOMEN IN SPORT DAY BY HONORING
DISTINCTIVE WOMEN
In conjunction with National Girls and Women in Sport Day, Illinois will
honor six women who have contributed to sports in Champaign-Urbana at
halftime of the Illinois-Purdue game. The Green Meadows Girl Scout Council
and the Illinois Division of Intercollegiate Athletics have partnered to
present the "Women of Distinction" award program The six women honored will
be Illinois State Treasurer Judy Baar Topinka, longtime UI friend and
supporter Lila Jeanne "Shorty" Eichelberger and the world-record setting
Illini 4x100 meter shuttle hurdle relay team of Camee Williams, Jenny
Kallur, Susanna Kallur and Perdita Felicien. Presenting the awards will be
Green Meadows Executive Director Ellen Greaves and UI Associate Athletic
Director Kelly Landry.
GRENTZ TO RECEIVE FIRST BOX OF GIRL SCOUT COOKIES
Over 800 Girl Scouts have purchased tickets for Thursday's game with Purdue.
A special delegation will present Illini Head Coach Theresa Grentz with one
of the first boxes of Girl Scout cookies delivered this year. Girl Scouts
from the local Green Meadows chapter will present the colors.
MARCAUSKAITE LEADS BIG TEN, FOURTH NATIONALLY IN FIELD-GOAL SHOOTING
Iveta Marcauskaite leads the Big Ten and ranks fourth in the nation in
field-goal shooting. Marcauskaite is shooting .640 for the year (144-225).
She set Illinois' all-time single-season field-goal shooting record by
making 59.1 percent of her field goal attempts (152 of 257) in 2000-2001.
That makes her career percentage at .614 (296 of 482). Nicole Vasey holds
the Illinois career record at .573.
In seven Big Ten games, Marcauskaite is shooting .669 (83-124). The Big
Ten record is held by Katrina Hannaford of Northwestern (.652) in 1995-96.
Cindy Dallas ranks 34th nationally at .554
ILLINOIS HAS HOT HAND,
ESPECIALLY DURING BIG TEN SEASON
The Illini are shooting .481 for the season, which ranks second behind
Minnesota (.514). The Illini, however, lead the conference in shooting when
considering Big Ten games only (.503), just ahead of Minnesota (.495).
Illinois has had some fantastic shooting performances of late. The Illini
were 27 off 44 from the field (.614) against Michigan State, then shot .540
last Sunday at Northwestern and 58.3 percent against Michigan. Illinois has
had eight games of better than 50 percent shooting from the field. The
Illini are currently at .481 for the year from the field, the best under
Theresa Grentz. The all-time record is .490 set in 1986-87. That figure
increases dramatically when you take out three-point shooting. Illinois is
528 of 994 (.537) on two-point field goals.
JJ Jumper To Make Appearance Thursday
As part of the NCAA WISHOO Program, the NCAA's official basketball mascot,
JJ Jumper, will be on hand on the northwest concourse greeting fans, handing
out promotional materials and providing the fans with interactive games.
ELITE BIG TEN COMPANY
Illinois is one of two teams to post winning Big Ten seasons each of the
last six seasons. Illinois went 12-8 in 1997, 12-4 in '98, 10-6 in '99, 11-5
in 2000 and 9-7 last season. Purdue is the only other team with that
distinction.
ILLINOIS ADDS
THREE-POINTERS TO MIX
Illinois has built its team around strong post play. Iveta Marcauskaite and
Cindy Dallas are among the Big Ten leaders in scoring and rebounding. The
Illini added a dose of outside shooting to the mix, however against
Michigan. If that continues, it will make the Illini tough to stop. Sunday,
Shavonna Hunter had a career high five three-pointers in just six attempts.
She has been given the task of helping the freshmen perimeter players learn
the ropes. Leading by example, Hunter hit her shots and saw Angelina
Williams, Tiffanie Guthrie and sophomore Aminata Yanni also hit treys. Even
Dawn Vana knocked down her second career three-pointer.
Sharing The Opportunities
In the past two contests, the unselfish Illini have dished out 48 assists.
Illinois recorded 25 assists on 35 baskets against Michigan on Jan. 27, led
by Shavonna Hunter with nine assists. Dawn Vana tied her career-high with
nine assists against Minnesota as the Illini recorded 23 assists on 32
baskets. Illinois has recorded 20 or more assists in eight contests this
season.
PU-ILLINOIS SERIES NOTES
Purdue leads the all-time series, 21-14, but the Boilermakers have held a
heavy advantage over the Illini in the last several years. In fact, Illinois
has just two wins in the series since 1987 and haven't won at Purdue since
Jan. 22, 1984.
The most recent Illinois win in the series came in dramatic fashion, a
78-76 victory at Huff Hall on Dec. 28, 1997. Ashley Berggren hit the game
winning shot, which was feature on the CNN "Play of the Day."
The two teams met earlier this season in West Lafayette with the
Boilermakers emerging victorious, 86-77. Iveta Marcauskaite and Cindy Dallas
each scored 19 points to lead the Illini in that contest. Mary Jo Noon led
all scorers in the contest going 11-18 from the floor and 5-5 from the
free-throw line for 27 points. Kelly Komara added 17 for the Boilermakers.
The Illini were in foul trouble throughout the contest. Not only did the
lofty foul totals prohibit key players from playing their usual number of
minutes, but the Boilermakers went to the line 28 times. Illinois was
outscored 22-8 from the free-throw line.
Marcauskaite, Dallas Have Career Nights
Iveta Marcauskaite and Cindy Dallas each recorded career-highs last week
against Minnesota as the two combined to score 48 of the Illini's 76 points.
Marcauskaite, who leads the Big Ten with an overall shooting percentage of
.640, continued on her hot streak. She shot 13-18 from the floor, including
hitting on her only attempt from behind the arc, to lead the Illini with a
career-best 28 points. Dallas eclipsed her career mark with 20 points on
7-10 shooting. She also connected on all six of her foul shots. Along with
leading the Illini offense, the duo tied for the most rebounds, grabbing
nine boards apiece.
Williams Gets Offensive
In the past seven contests, freshman Angelina Williams has made a statement
on the offensive side of the ball. She has been in double figures five
times, averaging 10.0 points per game.Williams scored a career-high 15
points on 6-11 shooting against Michigan.
CHARTING THE RPI
Illinois is ranked 23rd in the latest RPI rankings. Illinois' strength of
schedule ranks 16th in the country. The Illini have just seven losses this
year. Those teams are a combined 96-30 on the season with Wisconsin,
Oklahoma, and Minnesota, and Purdue a combined 69-15.
BLOCK I
Illinois has vaulted to second in the Big Ten in blocked shots (4.80). The
Illini have four players in double figures in that category for the season,
led by Iveta Marcauskaite who has 27 blocks followed by Cindy Dallas who has
22 blocks, Angelina Williams with 13, and Karen Hagberg with 10.
Illinois leads the conference with 5.70 blocks per game during Big Ten
play. Illinois has 45 blocks in the past seven games or 6.4 blocks per
contest.
Post players serve multiple roles
The trio of Iveta Marcauskaite, Cindy Dallas, and Dawn Vana have proven to
be valuable members of the Illini team in numerous and perhaps
non-traditional ways.
When you look in the top ten of the Big Ten in assists you see nine guards
and one forward -- Dawn Vana of the Fighting Illini. Jess Strom of Penn
State leads the the conference at 6.70 assists per game. Vana averages 5.05
assists per contest for all games. In Big Ten games, Vana is second in the
conference in assists at 6.40 behind only Minnesota's Lindsey Whalen at
6.70.
Cindy Dallas provides a similar asset in the steals department. Dallas is
fifth in the conference in steals at 2.55 per game. The four ahead of her
are all guards -- Kelly Komara (PUR), 4.10, Tamara Moore (WIS), 3.09,
Lindsey Whalen (MIN), 2.95, and Shavonna Hunter (IL) , 2.85.
TALKING STATS
Dawn Vana has seven games with at least seven assists and three games with
at least nine assists.
Illinois is 11-1 when leading at half.
The Illini are shooting .495 from the field in Big Ten play, which leads
the Big Ten.
Dawn Vana has 64 assists and 29 turnovers in Big Ten play.
Shavonna Hunter has had at least two steals in 16 of 20 games this season.
Angelina Williams has scored in double digits in five of the last seven
games, scoring 12 vs. Penn State, 11 vs. Michigan State, 12 at Northwestern,
11 at Purdue, and a career-high 15 points vs. Michigan.
If Shavonna Hunter scores in double digits, Illinois is 11-3.
Vana has 101 assists in 20 games. She is on pace for 152 assists in 30
games, which would put her into the top five on the Illini single-season
list.
The Illini have 232 steals as a team. The school record is 319 in 1981-82.
MILESTONES NEARING
Shavonna Hunter needs 8 points for 800, 4 assists for 300, and 41 steals for
250
Dawn Vana needs 24 points for 700 and four rebounds for 400,
Cindy Dallas needs 36 rebounds for 400, and 79 points for 500.
