Feb. 22, 2005
Illinois Men's Basketball Notes vs. Northwestern in PDF Format
Download Free Acrobat Reader
FIGHTING ILLINI BASKETBALL
Game #28: #1 Illinois (27-0, 13-0) vs. Northwestern (13-12, 5-7)
Feb. 23, 2005 •7 p.m. CT •ESPN+ Local
Champaign, Ill. •Assembly Hall (16,618)
Probable Starters
#1 ILLINOIS (27-0, 13-0)
F - 43 Roger Powell, Jr. (Sr., 6-6, 235, 12.2 ppg, 4.9 rpg)
F - 40 James Augustine (Jr., 6-10, 230, 10.3 ppg, 7.1 rpg, 1.4 bpg)
G - 4 Luther Head (Sr., 6-3, 185, 16.5 ppg, 3.7 rpg, 3.7 apg)
G - 5 Deron Williams (Jr., 6-3, 210, 12.5 ppg, 3.6 rpg, 6.8 apg)
G - 11 Dee Brown (Jr., 6-0, 185, 13.6 ppg, 2.7 rpg, 4.8 apg)
Off The Bench ...
G - 15 Calvin Brock (Fr., 6-4, 185, plans to redshirt)
G - 33 Rich McBride (So., 6-3, 215, 3.4 ppg, 1.6 rpg)
F - 34 Fred Nkemdi (Sr., 6-5, 235, 0.6 ppg, 0.3 rpg)
F - 41 Warren Carter (So., 6-9, 210, 2.8 ppg, 1.6 rpg)
C - 45 Nick Smith (Sr.-r, 7-2, 250, 3.8 ppg, 2.4 rpg)
C/F - 50 Jack Ingram (Sr.-r, 6-10, 245, 3.7 ppg, 2.9 rpg)
F - 55 Shaun Pruitt (Fr., 6-8, 245, 1.5 ppg, 0.9 rpg)
Injured
F - 42 Brian Randle (So., 6-7, 210, 1.8 ppg, 1.7 rpg in 2003-04)
Illinois Head Coach: Bruce Weber
Overall Record: 156-61/.719 (7th year)
At Illinois: 53-7/.883 (2nd year)
Big Ten: 26-3/.897
Vs. Northwestern: 2-1
Assistant Coaches: Wayne McClain (4th year), Jay Price (2nd year), Tracy Webster (1st year)
Assistant to the head coach: Gary Nottingham (2nd year)
Trainer: Al Martindale (22nd year at Illinois)
Northwestern Head Coach: Bill Carmody
Overall Record: 158-101 (9th year)
At Northwestern: 66-76 (5th year)
Vs. Illinois: 1-7
Assistant Coaches: Paul Lee, Craig Robinsin and Mitch Henderson
On the Air
Television
ESPN - Local: Wayne Larrivee, play-by-play; Shon Morris, expert analyst
Radio
Illini Sports Network - 47 stations: Brian Barnhart, play-by-play; Stephen Bardo, expert analyst; and, Loren Tate pregame/halftime/ postgame interviews.
Series Notes: Northwestern
Illinois owns a 118-34 lead in the all-time series, including 58-13 in games played at Champaign. The Illini have won 37 of the last 41 meetings, including 10 of the last 11. Illinois has beaten Northwestern three straight times at the Assembly Hall, with the last Wildcat victory in Champaign coming Jan. 9, 1999. Illinois defeated the Wildcats, 78-66, at Evanston on Jan. 15.
Undefeated Illini
Illinois is the only remaining NCAA Div. I team in the country to boast a perfect record, and with 27 victories has the most wins in the nation.
Illini Aim for Back-to-Big Ten Titles
With an Illinois win or a Michigan State loss, Illinois would clinch at least a share of the Big Ten championship, which would mark the 17th conference championship in school history for the Illini and the fourth time that the Illini have won back-to-back league championships (along with 1942-1943, 1951-1952 and 2001-2002). Bruce Weber would then become just the fourth coach in the 100-year history of the Big Ten Conference to win consecutive league titles in each of his first two years. Following is a list of coaches to accomplish that feat:
Coach School Years
Walter Meanwell Wisconsin 1912-1913
Bill Self Illinois 2001-2002
Bo Ryan Wisconsin 2002-2003
Magic Number "2" for Second Straight Outright Big Ten Title
With two Illinois wins, two Michigan State losses, or a combination of an Illinois win along with a Michigan State loss, and the Illini would clinch the outright Big Ten Championship, which would mark the third time in school history that the Illini have won back-to-back outright league titles (along with 1942-1943 and 1951-1952). Bruce Weber would then become the first coach in Big Ten history to win consecutive outright league titles in each of his first two years.
Brown Named Big Ten Player of the Week for Second Time this Season
Dee Brown was named Big Ten Player of the Week on Monday after leading Illinois to two road victories at Penn State and at Iowa last week. Brown averaged 18.5 points on combined 64 percent shooting, while adding 7.0 assists, 3.0 rebounds and 2.0 steals per game.
He posted the second double-double of his career in the win over Penn State, scoring 19 points, including a season-high five 3-pointers, while dishing out a game-high 11 assists. Brown also had four rebounds and two steals, while committing only one turnover against the Nittany Lions. He followed with another clutch performance at Iowa, shooting 7-of-11 from the floor (.636) for the second consecutive game to finish with 18 points, while adding three assists and two steals.
This is the second time this season that Brown has been named Player of the Week by the conference office, as he was first honored on November 22. It is the fourth Big Ten weekly honor of his career.
Illini Own Pair of Nation's Longest Winning Streaks
Illinois sits atop the NCAA Div. I charts with two winning streaks. The Illini's 27-game winning streak is the longest winning streak in the nation, and Illinois' 14-game road winning streak is the longest road winning streak in the nation. Illinois won its last six road games last year and has won its first eight road games this season. The Illini have one more road game remaining on this year's schedule, at Ohio State on March 6.
Illini Tie Second-Winningest Season in School History
With its 27 victories, Illinois has tied its second-winningest season in school history in terms of total wins. Illinois also won 27 games during the 2000-01 season, finishing with a record of 27-8. The Illini school record for wins in a season is 31, set by the 1988-89 squad, which finished 31-5. Following are the winningest seasons in school history, in terms of total wins:
Rank Season Wins Record
1. 1988-89 31 31-5 (.861)
T2. 2004-05 27 27-0 (1.000)
T2. 2000-01 27 27-8 (.771)
T4. 2003-04 26 26-7 (.788)
T4. 2001-02 26 26-9 (.743)
T4. 1984-85 26 26-9 (.743)
T4. 1983-84 26 26-5 (.838)
8. 2002-03 25 25-7 (.781)
T9. 1997-98 23 23-10 (.697)
T9. 1987-88 23 23-10 (.697)
T9. 1986-87 23 23-8 (.742)
Illini in Midst of Record-Setting Season
Illinois' current record of 27-0 has set a school record for the best start to a season in the 100-year history of Fighting Illini basketball. The 27 straight wins also ranks as the longest winning streak in school history, breaking the previous mark of 25 consecutive wins that spanned parts of three seasons from Feb. 21, 1914, through Feb. 9, 1916
Illinois' 27-0 mark also tied the third best start ever by a Big Ten team, and is the best start by a Big Ten team in 29 years, since Indiana went a perfect 32-0 during the 1975-76 season. The following is a list of the all-time best starts by Big Ten teams.
Rank School Start Season
1. Indiana 32-0 * 1975-76
2. Indiana 31-0 1974-75
T3. Illinois 27-0 2004-05
T3. Ohio State 27-0 1960-61
5. Ohio State 22-0 1961-62
6. Iowa 18-0 1986-87
T7. Ohio State 17-0 1990-91
T7. Illinois 17-0 1988-89
* Indiana went undefeated during the 1975-76 season.
Big Ten Streakin'
Illinois has won a school-record 23 straight Big Ten games - its final 10 conference games last season and the first 13 this season. Illinois' 23-game Big Ten winning streak broke the school's previous best mark of 17-straight Big Ten wins from Feb. 21, 1914 through Feb. 9, 1916. The following are the Illini's all-time best Big Ten winning streaks:
•23 - Feb. 3, 2004 - CURRENT
•17 - Feb. 21, 1914 through Feb. 9, 1916
•15 - Jan. 20, 1951 through Feb. 2, 1952
•14 - March 7, 1942 through Jan. 3, 1944
•13 - Feb. 26, 1955 through Feb. 20, 1956
•13 - Feb. 23, 1924 through Feb. 21, 1925
Illinois' 23-game conference winning streak ranks third in Big Ten history and is the longest since Indiana won a league-record 37 straight Big Ten games from Dec. 27, 1975 through Jan. 7, 1978. Ranking second on the list is Ohio State's 27-game Big Ten winning streak from March 5, 1960 through Feb. 26, 1962.
Illinois has also set a school record with its current streak of 13 straight Big Ten road victories - its final six conference away games last season and its first seven this season. This broke the previous school-record streak of eight straight Big Ten road wins, which happened twice. The Illini won eight straight conference road games from Feb. 21, 1914 through Feb. 9, 1916 and again from Feb. 5, 1951 through Feb. 2, 1952.
Hot Big Ten Start
At 13-0 in Big Ten play, Illinois has now recorded its most wins ever to start a conference season. The Illini had twice won its first 12 Big Ten games, with a pair of undefeated conference runs in 1915 and 1943.
This is the best conference start by any Big Ten team in 12 years, since Indiana also began league play at 13-0 in 1993. The following are the Illini's all-time best Big Ten starts:
Rank Start Season
1. 13-0 2004-05
T2. 12-0 * 1914-15
T2. 12-0 * 1942-43
4. 10-0 1955-56
T5. 7-0 1941-42
T5. 7-0 1924-25
T7. 6-0 1962-63
T7. 6-0 1951-52
T9. 5-0 1969-70
T9. 5-0 1919-20
*Illinois went unbeaten in Big Ten play during the 1942-43 and 1914-15 seasons.
Illini Tie Fourth-Winningest Big Ten Season in School History
With its 13 Big Ten victories so far this season, Illinois has tied its fourth-winningest Big Ten season in school history in terms of total wins. This is the 10th time in the history of the program that the Illini have won at least 13 conference games. Illinois has also tied its most Big Ten wins since the league went to a 16-game conference schedule in 1998 due to the Big Ten Tournament. The school record for Big Ten wins in a season was set by the 1984 Illini squad, which won 15 contests en route to a Big Ten co-championship with a 15-3 league record. Following are the winningest Big Ten seasons in school history, in terms of total wins (* marks season in which Illini also won the Big Ten title):
Rank Season Wins Record
1. 1983-84 * 15 15-3 (.833)
T2. 1988-89 14 14-4 (.778)
T2. 1952-53 14 14-4 (.778)
T4. 2004-05 13 13-0 (1.000)
T4. 2003-04 * 13 13-3 (.813)
T4. 2000-01 * 13 13-3 (.813)
T4. 1997-98 * 13 13-3 (.813)
T4. 1986-87 13 13-5 (.722)
T4. 1950-51 * 13 13-1 (.929)
T4. 1941-42 * 13 13-2 (.867)
Illinois' Three Guards Named First-Team All-District by NABC
Illinois had its entire starting backcourt named First-Team All-District for District 11 by the National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC) on Feb. 18. Deron Williams, Luther Head and Dee Brown were all first-team selections, joined by Wisconsin's Mike Wilkinson and Minnesota's Vincent Grier. The three Illini guards are now eligible for the NABC All-America Team, which will be announced at the end of the season.
Illini Reach 25-Win Marker for Fifth Straight Season
Illinois' victory over Wisconsin on Feb. 12 was its 25th of the season, marking the fifth straight season that the Illini have recorded at least 25 wins. Illinois is the only team in the nation to accomplish this feat in each of the last five seasons (beginning in 2000-01). Duke has won at least 25 games each of the past seven seasons and has 19 wins this season.
With a combined record of 131-31 (.809) over the last five years, this marks Illinois' winningest five-year stretch in school history.
Home Cookin'
The Illini have a 19-game winning streak at the Assembly Hall, which is currently (as of Feb. 20) fifth in the nation among active homecourt winning streaks ...Illinois is 64-2 (.970) at the Assembly Hall over the last five years, with the only losses coming to Michigan State on Feb. 3, 2002 and to Purdue on Jan. 10, 2004 ... The Boilermakers broke a 23-game Illini winning streak at the Hall that at the time ranked fourth in the nation ... Illinois is 76-3 (.962) at the Assembly Hall over the past six seasons, the best home mark in the nation over that period ...The Illini have also won 38 in a row at the Assembly Hall against non-conference opponents ... Illinois has won 41 of its last 43 (.953) Big Ten games at the Assembly Hall ... Below is a look at Illinois' home record the past six seasons:
Year Overall Big Ten
2004-05 13-0 6-0
2003-04 12-1 7-1
2002-03 14-0 7-0
2001-02 13-1 7-1
2000-01 12-0 8-0
1999-2000 12-1 7-1
Total 76-3 (.962) 42-3 (.933)
*For complete set of Illinois men's basketball game notes, click on .pdf link at the top of this page.
