Nov. 18, 2010

Complete Illinois-Bradley Game Notes

GAME 3 - Illinois (0-2) at Bradley (1-1)

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THE SERIES
ILL leads 9-2
Last meeting: Illinois 67, Bradley 45 on Nov. 22, 2009 at Assembly Hall in Champaign

THE COACHES
Illinois: Jolette Law, 49-53 overall and at Illinois (fourth season)
Bradley: Paula Buscher, 178-195 overall (14th season) and 135-157 at Bradley (11th season)

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QUICK HITS
• Tip-off: Illinois (0-2) is still in search of its first victory of the 2010-11 season this Friday when they head up I-74 to face Bradley University (1-1) in its new arena. The Fighting Illini are coming off a 61-48 road defeat to South Carolina on Monday, while the Braves dropped their last game at Iowa, 91-53, on Tuesday.

• Penn Stepping Up: Sophomore Karisma Penn has stepped up as Illinois' go-to player this year in the absence of Jenna Smith and Lacey Simpson, last year's Illini senior stars. Penn is averaging 16.5 points, 7.0 rebounds and 4.0 blocks so far despite battling foul trouble in both games, a significant increase in production from last year when she averaged 10.9 points, 5.5 boards and 1.7 blocks to earn Big Ten All-Freshman accolades.

• Where are the Seniors? Illinois is one of only seven Division I teams in the nation without a senior on its roster heading into the 2010-11 season, joining Maryland, Miami (Fla.), Murray State, Oral Roberts, Purdue and Rutgers. With the absence of senior leadership, Illini head coach Jolette Law has singled out redshirt junior Lydia McCully and sophomores Karisma Penn and Kersten Magrum as players who have stepped up as leaders this season.

SCOUTING THE BRAVES
Bradley is 1-1 so far this season after a season-opening 77-63 win at home over Butler last week and a 91-53 loss at #22 Iowa on Tuesday.

Senior guard Raisa Taylor leads the way for the Braves, averaging 15.5 points and 5.5 rebounds per game, but has also had 17 turnovers in the first two games. Sophomore guard Katie Yohn is also averaging double-figures at 13.0 ppg, while junior center Latasha Hollingshed is contributing 9.0 points and 6.5 boards per game. Junior forward MacKenzie Westcott has been a force on the boards so far, pulling down a team-high 10.0 rebounds per game.

Bradley recently christened a new building, the Renaissance Coliseum, which replaced historic Robertson Memorial Fieldhouse. Friday's game will be the second women's basketball game in the 4,200-seat arena.

• The Illinois-Bradley Series: Illinois and Bradley have met 11 times previously, with the Illini holding a 9-2 advantage overall. Illinois won the most recent meeting, 67-45, last season at Assembly Hall and has won all four meetings in Peoria. The last time the two teams met in Peoria was in 2006, when the Orange and Blue came away with a 57-41 win.

LAST TIME OUT: ILLINI FALL AT SOUTH CAROLINA
Illinois took an early 11 point lead, but South Carolina came roaring back for a 61-48 win Monday night at Colonial Life Arena in Colombia, S.C. Karisma Penn led the way with 15 points, but was limited to just 24 minutes and fouled out with 5:21 to play.

Illinois used a 9-0 run to take an early 11-2 lead and later extended the lead to 15-4 with 11:07 left in the first half. However, the Gamecocks (1-1) outscored the Illini 23-10 the rest of the half to take a 27-25 lead at the break. Illinois shot 44 percent in the first half and Penn had 11 points in 18 minutes, but the Gamecocks collected 10 offensive boards to key their comeback.

The Illini closed the gap to one, 30-29, early in the second half, but the 'Cocks countered with a 12-0 run to take control of the game. With Penn hampered by foul trouble, Illinois was unable to mount a comeback.

Junior guard Eboni Mitchell, a Decatur, Ga., native, had a career game, posting personal-bests of 11 points, six rebounds, five assists and 37 minutes.

Illinois shot 42 percent for the game and held the Gamecocks to 37 percent shooting. The difference was rebounding, as USC held a 39-28 edge on the glass and collected 18 offensive rebounds.

• Homecoming for Law, Gilmore: Monday's game at South Carolina had plenty of Illini orange in the crowd. Over 100 fans came in support of Illinois head coach Jolette Law (Florence) and assistant coach Usha Gilmore (Moncks Corner), who are both South Carolina natives with plenty of friends and family in the state. Law was a three-time All-American at Wilson High School and is a member of both the Florence city, and Wilson High School, Halls of Fame. Gilmore was named the state's Ms. Basketball in 1996.

ILLINI CRACK CENTURY MARK IN EXHIBITION WIN
Illinois looked impressive in its 2010-11 Assembly Hall debut, dominating Kentucky Wesleyan right from the tip en route to a 100-37 exhibition victory on Nov. 9. Karisma Penn led seven Illini in double figures with a double-double of 18 points and 11 boards, while Lana Rukavina also recorded a double-double with 17 points and 10 boards. As a team, the Orange and Blue shot a sizzling 66 percent from the field while holding the guests to just 24 percent shooting.

The young Illini pushed the tempo early and often, while Penn and Rukavina made the most of their size over the Panthers with a 50-14 points in the paint advantage. Illinois jumped out to a 10-0 lead in the first 2:13 of the game behind eight quick points from Penn and never looked back. After 10 minutes of play, the Illini led 33-11 and had hit 14-of-15 from the field. By halftime, Illinois led 55-19 and was shooting at a 77 percent clip.

The Illini also excelled behind the arc, nailing 9-of-17 from downtown. Amber Moore led the way from the perimeter, hitting 4-of-7 threes and finishing with 16 points. Junior point guard Lydia McCully hit all three of her three-point attempts on her way to 11 points and eight assists in only 22 minutes.

FRESH FACES
Four newcomers show up on the Fighting Illini roster this season, two players and two coaches. Jolette Law and staff welcome two freshman players to the squad in Centrese McGee (Calumet City, Ill.) and Alexis Burke (Bainbridge, Ga.), while redshirt freshman Amber Moore (Detroit, Mich.) is back in the mix after missing all but one game last season with a torn ACL. All three players have made a big impact early in the season as the three freshmen are combining to average 17.0 points and 9.5 rebounds per game thus far. New on the sidelines are assistant coaches Michael Peck and Usha Gilmore.

MAGRUM OUT SIX WEEKS
Sophomore forward Kersten Magrum will miss approximately six weeks with a stress injury in her foot. She had surgery on Nov. 10 to fix the problem and hopes to return in late December prior to Big Ten play. Magrum emerged as a key player for the Illini during the second half of last season, starting the last 15 games and averaging 6.9 points per game during that span.

GODBOLD SUSPENDED
Sophomore guard Adrienne GodBold is serving a six-game suspension for violating team rules. She sat out the team's lone exhibition game and will miss the first five regular season games as well. She should be eligible to return to action for the second game of the Hawai'i tournament over Thanksgiving weekend. GodBold averaged 5.6 points and 2.5 rebounds per game last year as the Illini's first sub off the bench.

LAW LOCKS UP FIVE FOR 2011
Coach Jolette Law announced the signing of five talented student-athletes to national letters of intent on Wednesday, Nov. 10, the first day of the early signing period. Ivory Crawford, a 5-9 combo guard from Chicago, Ill., Kierra Morris, a 6-3 post from Chicago, Ill., Nia Oden, a 5-10 wing from Brooklyn, N.Y., Alexis Smith, a 5-9 point guard from West Islip, N.Y., and Taylor Tuck, a 6-0 wing from Bolingbrook, Ill., all will join the Fighting Illini for the 2011-12 season. Read more about the five Illini signees HERE.

LOCAL SCHOOLS LINING UP FOR NOV. 22 YOUTH DAY
Illinois will be hosting Youth Day on Monday, November 22, when Cal Poly comes to Assembly Hall for an 11 a.m. top. The game is free for the general public, as well as the students, teachers and administrators from area elementary and middle schools. Families of the students are encouraged to meet their children at the game for lunch and entertainment at Assembly Hall. Read more about Youth Day HERE.

With the game running during lunch hour, students can bring their own sack lunches to the game. There will also be an educational aspect to Youth Day, as Coach Law and some of the players will give a post-game speech to the students on sportsmanship, teamwork, quality education, anti-bullying, fitness and more, all components of Illinois' statewide public service announcement campaign called Tough Enough, Smart Enough.

For more information on Youth Day or to get your school involved, contact Shanna Diller at 217-244-0062 or sdiller2@illinois.edu.

ILLINI SEE UNPRECEDENTED TV, INTERNET COVERAGE
The Illini will appear on national television at least eight times this season, with seven games slated for broadcast on the Big Ten Network and one set to air on ESPN2 (at Penn State, Jan. 16). In addition, 13 more games will be streamed live online (11 on BigTenNetwork.com and two on FightingIllini.com All-Access).

For the season, all 16 Big Ten Conference games and all Illinois home games will be either national televised or streamed online. In addition, all 10 Big Ten Tournament games will be televised, with the Big Ten Network airing the first three rounds and