Nov. 25, 2005
Box Score
BOULDER, Colo. - After a disappointing loss to Northern Colorado on Wednesday night, the Illinois women responded nicely on Friday with a convincing 62-43 victory over Utah State in the opening round of the Coors Classic in Boulder, Colo. Freshman Lori Bjork led the way for the Illini, who advance to the Championship game Saturday night against the winner of the Colorado-Northern Iowa game.
"We needed to come out focused and intense to win this game and I thought we did that," said Grentz. "This is what we needed to get back on track. I also thought our bench responded well after we lost our center and point guard in the first half to foul trouble. That was very encouraging."
The title game will tip-off 30 minutes after the conclusion of the 6 p.m. CT consolation game, which should be around 8 p.m. CT.
On Friday, Illinois put USU away early with 18-0 first half run that gave the Illini a 28-6 lead at the 7:48 mark. Junior forward Erin Wigley had eight points in the run, during which the Orange and Blue held the Aggies scoreless for 6:45. Illinois took a 35-17 lead into halftime behind 10 points from Wigley and a defense that forced 15 first half turnovers. UI starters Audrey Tabon and Maggie Acuna each picked up two quick first half fouls, but freshmen Erin McCarthy (12 mins., 2 pts., 2 assts.), Danielle Gratton (10 mins., 4 pts., 3 stls.) and Bjork (16 mins., 8 pts., 4 rebs.) picked up the slack nicely.
Illini stayed in control during the second half, maintaining a 12-20 point lead throughout. The closest the Aggies got was 41-30 at the 13:46 mark, but Illinois quickly pushed the lead back to 17 and put thoughts of a USU comeback to rest.
Bjork, who was 0-10 in Wednesday's loss, missed her first three shots tonight before catching fire midway through the first half. The Johnston, Iowa native hit a pair of first half three's to break out of the slump and stayed hot the rest of the way finishing with a game-high 17 points on 6-11 shooting, 3-6 from downtown and 2-2 from the line. The southpaw also added six rebounds and two steals to the Illinois cause.
"Lori has that shooter's mentality," said Grentz of the freshman point guard. "Shooter's shoot, and I told her after the other night that if she stops shooting then I need to put in someone else. She's one of the best shooters on the team and we need her on the court. She's very bright and she shot the ball well tonight."
As a team, Illinois shot 24-54 (.444) from the field and 6-13 (.462) from behind the arc, while holding USU to just 15-48 shooting (.313). Illinois forced 24 Aggie turnovers and held a slim 35-34 rebounding edge led by Maggie Acuna's team-high eight boards. Wigley finished with 13 points on 5-7 shooting, while Janelle Hughes and Gratton each chipped in six for the Orange and Blue.
Up Next: Illinois will face Colorado-Northern Iowa winner on Saturday, Nov. 26 at 8 p.m. (CT) for the Coors Classic Title. Live audio of Saturday's game can be heard on line at fightingillini.com. It can also be heard on the Illini Radio Network tape-delayed after Fighting Illini men's basketball.
Illinois' home opener will be on Tuesday, Nov. 29 at 6 p.m. vs. Northern Illinois. The Nov. 29 game will precede a "Gamewatch" of the 14th-ranked Illinois men at North Carolina in the ACC/Big Ten Challenge on the Assembly Hall video board at 8 p.m.
