March 21, 2003

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• Illinois won its sixth-consecutive NCAA first- round game with Thursday's 65-60 victory over Western Kentucky. Those six-consecutive opening-round wins came in 1997, 1998, 2000, 2001, 2002 and 2003. Illinois' last loss in the opening round was in 1995 when Tulsa ousted the Illini 68-62 in Albany, N.Y.

• Illinois' improves its all-time NCAA Tournament record to 30-23 (.566) in 23 tourney appearances. The Illini are now 5-4 as a No. 4 seed and 4-4 in the West Region.

• Illinois improves to 6-3 all-time when playing in Domed Stadiums. The Illini are 3-0 all-time at the RCA Dome (defeated McNeese State 77-71 and Ball State 72-60 in the 1st and 2nd Rounds of the 1989 NCAA Tourney, in addition to the victory over Western Kentucky).

• Illinois head coach Bill Self also continues to have great success in the NCAA Tournament. For his career, Self is 10-4 (.714) in the Big Dance and has led his teams into the Sweet 16 each of the last three seasons. A win on Saturday for Illinois would be Self's fourth-consecutive trip to the Sweet 16.

• Self also boasts a 5-0 record in opening-round games as a head coach at Tulsa (2-0) and Illinois (3-0).

• The Illini have won five straight and nine of their last 10 heading into Saturday's NCAA Tournament Second Round game.

• Illinois dished out 15 assists on 24 buckets compared to Western Kentucky's 10 assists on 22 hoops. Illinois has now out-assisted their opponents in an amazing 29-of-31 games. Memphis out-assisted the Illini 18-16 on Dec. 28, while the Illini and Michigan State tied with 15 assists on Feb. 2. Illinois ranks second in the nation behind Maryland in assists per game (18.2 apg).

• Illinois point guard Dee Brown continues to move up Illinois' single-season assist list. Brown finished the game with eight assists and now has 156 this season. Brown is currently tied for eighth on the single-season assist list with Derek Harper (1981). He is just one behind Larry Smith for seventh, who had 157 assists in 1989.

• Deron Williams was a perfect 3-of-3 from beyond the arc while scoring 11 points. The 11 points is the seventh time the freshman has scored in double figures and the second time he has hit more than two 3-pointers. Williams' career high is four treys vs. Ohio State on Feb. 9.

• Freshman James Augustine scored in double figures for the second straight game and the ninth time this season. After not scoring in double figures from Feb. 2 vs. Michigan State to the March 15 matchup with Indiana in the Semifinals of the Big Ten Tournament, Augustine has now done so in back-to-back contests. The freshman also narrowly missed out on his fourth double-double of the season, finishing with nine rebounds.

• Illinois again got great play from its underclassmen. While senior Brian Cook scored a team-high 17 points, Illinois' remaining 48 points came from freshmen and sophomores. Illinois' three starting freshmen, Augustine, Brown and Williams, combined for 37 points as each scored in double figures.

• Freshman Dee Brown came dangerously close to his first career triple-double. Brown finished the game with 16 points, eight assists and a career-high seven rebounds. Brown also had a pair of steals and hit all four of his free throws including the final two with 22 seconds left to seal the win.

• The Illini senior class of 2003 is now the winningest class in school history, tallying 100 wins over four years. The class owns a four-year record of 100-33 (.752). Individually, senior Sean Harrington has now tied Doug Altenberger (1983-87) as the all-time Illinois leader in wins played in, both playing in 99 career victories. Senior Brian Cook is now tied for third in that category with Steve Bardo (1987-90), playing in 98 career victories.

• Seniors Brian Cook and Sean Harrington played in their 10th career NCAA Tournament game during the first round, tying Lowell Hamilton for the most games played by an Illini in the Big Dance. Each will move into a tie for the most career tournament games on Saturday.

• Cook's 17 points give him 101 career NCAA Tournament points. Cook now ranks ninth in career NCAA Tourney scoring at Illinois and is just the 10th Illini to score 100 points or more in the Tournament.

• Cook also moved up the Illinois NCAA Tournament charts in field goals, where he stands fifth with 43 and rebounds, where he's tied for first with 58.

• Cook's 17 points and 10 rebounds marks his first double-double in NCAA Tournament play, his seventh this season and the 15th of his career. He is the 15th Illini player to record a double-double in the Tournament.

• Cook now has 799 career rebounds, moving him into sixth place all time at Illinois. Fifth on the list is Nick Weatherspoon (1971-73) with 806.

• Cook is still in fourth place on the Illini career scoring chart, but with his 17 points vs. Western Kentucky, he is now just six points behind Cory Bradford (1999-2002) for third.

• Illinois' field-goal defense was again outstanding. The Illini held Western Kentucky to 37.9 percent shooting (22-of-58) for the game and has only allowed four opponents to shoot better than 45 percent from the floor this season.