Illini Set For National Television Audience Against Indiana
January 16, 2003 | Men's Basketball
Jan. 16, 2003
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FIGHTING ILLINI BASKETBALL
#8ap/8 Illinois (12-2, 2-1 Big Ten) at #18 Indiana (12-3, 2-1 Big Ten)
Television - CBS * 4:05 p.m. ET/3:05 p.m. CT
Jan. 18, 2003
Bloomington, Ind. * Assembly Hall (17,456)
On the Air
Television
CBS-National - Verne Lundquist, play-by-play
Billy Packer, expert analyst.
Radio
Illini Sports Radio Network -- 43 stations
Brian Barnhart, play-by-play; Loren Tate, expert
analyst & pregame/halftime reports.
Quick Shots
A win over Indiana would improve Illinois to 13-2 on the season, its
best record in 13 years, since starting 13-2 in 1989-90 ... Brian
Cook has scored at least 17 points in all 12 of his games this
season, including at least 20 nine times. He has scored 20 or more
the past six games, the longest such streak by an Illini player since
Kendall Gill tallied 20+ points in the final 10 games of the 1989-90
season ... Sean Harrington has averaged 13.8 points in his five
starts for the Illini this season. He is shooting 57 percent (20-35)
from 3-point range over the last four games, and 60 percent (28-47)
in eight games at the Assembly Hall this season ? Illini players are
currently leading three Big Ten statistical categories. Brian Cook
leads the Big Ten in scoring (21.6 ppg), James Augustine leads the
league in field goal percentage (.667) and Sean Harrington leads the
conference in 3-point field goal percentage (.520).
Last Time Out --
Iowa 68, Illinois 61
Illinois' streaks of nine-straight Big Ten victories and
five-consecutive Big Ten road wins dating back to last season came to
an end Wednesday night with a 68-61 loss to the Iowa Hawkeyes in Iowa
City. Brian Cook posted the 12th double-double of his career,
recording game highs of 20 points and 12 rebounds to lead the Illini.
Luther Head added a spark off the bench, scoring a season-high 13
points to join Cook in double figures.
Cook Books More Weekly Honors
Senior forward Brian Cook earned several Player of the Week awards
after a pair of stellar performances, averaging 28 points and 10
rebounds on 56 percent shooting to earn Big Ten, ESPN.com, The
Sporting News, FoxSports.com, College Basketball News and Dick Vitale
Player of the Week honors and lead the Illini to a pair of Big Ten
wins.
The senior foward guided the Illini to a road victory at Minnesota to open the Big Ten season, as he equaled his then-career high with 25 points by hitting six-of-13 from the field and 13-of-17 from the free throw line. Cook added 11 rebounds for his 11th career double-double and third this season, which is tied for third among all League players.
The preseason Big Ten Player of the Year put on an even more impessive show against Wisconsin, setting a new career high with 31 points on 12-of-19 shooting, including a pair of treys, in just 26 minutes on the court. Cook added nine rebounds in the win to nearly record another double-double. The 6-10 forward produced 24 of his 31 points in the second half, including a streak of 15 consecutive UI points, as he scored 22 of the Illini's final 26 points in the game. His 12 field goals are the most by any Big Ten player this season.
He earns his second Big Ten Player of the Week accolade this season, as he was also honored on Dec. 9, and the third of his career.
Self Defense
After 13 games this season, Illinois opponents are shooting just 37.1
percent from the field, including just 28.7 percent from 3-point
range.
Against Coppin State on Dec. 30, Illinois held the Eagles to just 12 field goals, the fewest made shots in the 40-year history of the Assembly Hall, and to just 29 percent shooting from the field, the second Illini opponent this season to shoot under 30 percent. In the Big Ten opener, Illinois held Minnesota to 30.5 percent shooting on its home floor, as the Gophers made just 19.2 percent (5-26) from three-point range.
Illinois has now held six of its last eight opponents to under 40 percent shooting from the field, and has a total of eight such defensive efforts this season. Coppin State's 37 points were the fewest allowed by the Illini since defeating Northwestern 63-30 on Feb. 19, 2000.
Illinois leads the Big Ten in scoring defense, allowing opponents an average of just 59.9 points, and field-goal percentage defense at .371. The Illini also rank third in the league 3-point percentage defense (.287) and rebounding margin (+4.9).
In the latest national statistics compiled by the NCAA, Illinois ranks ninth in field-goal percentage defense and third in scoring margin (+18.1), while ranking 11th in scoring defense.
Howard Says 2003 Final Season
Guard Jerrance Howard has said that the 2003 season will be his final
campaign as a player at Illinois. Howard, who would have one season
of eligibility remaining in 2003-04 after redshirting as a freshman
in 1999-2000, will graduate in May and plans to possibly enter the
coaching field. He will be listed as a senior for the remainder of
his Illinois career.
Un-Self-ish Play
The Fighting Illini have begun the 2002-03 season with unselfish
play. Illinois leads the Big Ten and ranks fourth in the nation in
assists per game (19.14 avg.), highlighted by a season-high 25
assists vs. Oakland, 24 vs. Arkansas-Pine Bluff and 23 against both
Western Illinois and North Carolina. In the win over Coppin State,
the Illini were credited with 21 assists on 22 made baskets, an
amazing 96 percent of shots made. Illinois has tallied 20 or more
assists in seven games and has recorded assists on over 67 percent of
its baskets (268 assists on 397 FG) on the season. Guards Dee Brown
and Deron Williams rank third and seventh, respectively, in the Big
Ten in assists with averages of 4.8 and 4.4 per game.
High-Scoring Illini
Illinois has opened the 2002-03 season by averaging nearly 78 points
per game, outscoring its opponents by an averge of over 18 points
per. Illinois is shooting nearly 50 percent from the field, ranking
11th in the nation in field goal percentage, and has shot better than
50 percent in eight of 14 games this season.
Illinois leads the Big Ten in scoring average (77.9), scoring margin (+18.1), field goal percentage (.497) and 3-point field goal percentage (.389). Illinois' top six scorers are all shooting 48 percent or better from the field.
The Book on Cook
Senior Brian Cook, a preseason Big Ten Player of the Year selection,
is proving the recognition was deserved. He may deserve more. Cook
leads the Big Ten in scoring at 21.6 points per game, while ranking
third in rebounding at 8.7 boards per contest. He also ranks sixth in
the league in field-goal shooting (.539) and seventh in free throw
percentage (.826). Cook has been Illinois' leading scorer and
rebounder in 10 of his 12 games this season.
Cook's 31 points against Wisconsin Jan. 11 were a career high and the most by an Illinois player since Kevin Turner scored 35 vs. Indiana on Jan. 3, 1998.
Cook's streak of consecutive made free throws came to an end at 32 on Jan. 4 against Oakland, tying Rob Judson for second place in school history for consecutive free throws.
Cook enters the Indiana game with 1,408 career points, 14th on the UI career scoring list and just one point shy of current NBA player Kendall Gill for 13th.
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, Cook returned and immediately established himself in the Illini lineup.
Cook has scored at least 17 points in all 12 games he's played, reaching 20 points or more nine times. He's also had at least eight rebounds nine times and has averaged 10 boards over the last eight games.
Cook's best scoring game came against Wisconsin with a career-high 31 points, with other top games against Minnesota and Temple with 25 points, 22 against North Carolina, 22 vs. Oakland, 21 against Eastern Illinois and Memphis, and 20 vs. Coppin State and Iowa.
In the win over No. 11 Missouri, Cook scored 17, making all 10 of his free-throw attempts, and pulled down a game-high nine rebounds.
In Big Ten play, Cook opened with 25 points and 11 boards at Minnesota, followed with 31 points and nine boards against Wisconsin and most recently recorded the 12th double-double of his career with 20 points and 12 rebounds at Iowa.
Dee - Lightful, Dee-Pendable ... No Dee-Bate, Dee Can Play
Who is the best freshman point guard in college basketball? 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 (33.6 avg.). He has scored in double figures in eight
games games and is second on the team in scoring, averaging 12.4
points. Brown exploded for a career-high 25 points against Eastern
Illinois on Dec. 10, hitting 10-of-14 shots, including a career-high
five 3-pointers.
In two December performances in front of national television audiences, Brown first had a game-high 21 points with seven assists and five rebounds in Illinois' victory over No. 11 Missouri to earn Big Ten Player of the Week honors on Dec. 21. He then followed with 19 points, including five 3-pointers, and three assists and three boards with no turnovers in 37 minutes against Memphis.
Brown ranks third in the Big Ten in assists with 4.79 per game and ranks fourth in the league with an assist/turnover ratio of 2.23. He also ranks 21st in the Big Ten in scoring at 12.4 points per game. One of the quickest guards in America, Brown's 1.5 steals per game ranks ninth in the Big Ten.
Among the top freshmen in the League, he ranks among the top four in assists (first), points (fourth) and steals (second) per game.
Brown Becomes First Illinois Freshman to Earn Big Ten Player of the Week honors. Dee Brown became the first freshman in Illinois history to earn Big Ten Player of the Week honors, when he was honored on Dec. 23 after pouring in a game-high 21 points in the Illini's victory over No. 11 Missouri.
The first-year point guard connected on a trio of 3-pointers, recorded a game-high seven assists and added five rebounds, including four on the offensive glass, in the win. Brown broke the 20-point barrier for the second time on the season against Missouri, while his seven assists against the Tigers also ranked as the second-best output of his career.
Brown was the second Illini to earn League Player of the Week accolades this season, as teammate Brian Cook was honored on Dec. 9.
Twice as Nice - Williams Joins Brown in All-Freshman Backcourt Deron Williams and Dee Brown make up one of the best freshmen backcourts in the nation. The two rank second and fourth, respectively, in the Big Ten in assist-to-turnover-ratio and have the Illini leading the Big Ten in team assists and assist-to-turnover ratio. Brown leads the team in minutes at 33.6 per game, but Williams is third at 24.1 minutes. Williams is averaging 6.3 points, is second to Brown for the team lead in assists with 61, and is tied for second on the team in steals with 17. Williams is shooting 44 percent from the field. He ranks second in the Big Ten in assist-turnover ratio at 2.35 and is seventh in assists with an average of 4.4.
That's a Three Sean Harrington
Senior Sean Harrington has been hot from behind the arc this season.
He has made 39-of-75 treys, leading the Big Ten and ranking sixth in
the nation in 3-point field goal percentage at 52 percent. Harrington
nailed a career-high six 3-pointers in Illinois' win over North
Carolina on Dec. 3 en route to a 20 points, and tied his mark by
making six-of-eight treys on his way to 18 points against Coppin
State. Harrington tied it again with six-of-nine treys on his way to
a career-high 22 points against Minnesota. Against Oakland,
Harrington had 20 points, connecting on five 3-pointers.
In his five games as a starter this season, Harrington is averaging 13.8 points per game, including an average of 20.0 points in his first three starts. It was the first time in his career at Illinois that he scored in double figures in three straight games.
Harrington is third on the team with 35 assists and has just 12 turnovers for an assist-to-turnover ratio of 2.92. He is also tied for second on the team with 17 steals. In games played at the Assembly Hall, Harrington is 28-47 (.596) from 3-point range.
Harrington ranks fifth on the UI career list with 166 three-point field goals.
Augie Hot
Another member of the heralded Illini freshman class to shine has
been newcomer James Augustine. He has bolstered the UI frontcourt,
averaging 7.1 points and shooting 66.7 percent from the field,
leading the Big Ten in field goal percentage. He has scored in double
figures five times, with a season-high 17 points vs. Wisconsin Jan.
11.
Augustine is also second on the team behind Brian Cook in rebounding, averaging 5.8 boards. He has been Illinois' top-rebounder in three games, highlighted by back-to-back nine rebound performances vs. Lehigh and Ark.-Pine Bluff. Augustine ranks 14th in the Big Ten in rebounding at 5.8 per game and eighth in blocked shots at 1.4 per game.
