Champaign, Ill. - A strong defensive effort gave Fighting Illini women's basketball its first conference win on Sunday afternoon (Jan. 17) as the Illini overcame the Wisconsin Badgers, 71-65. Illinois improves to 8-9 on the season and 1-5 in Big Ten play while Wisconsin falls to 6-10 overall and 2-4 in league play. The Orange and Blue got off to 10-0 run to start the game and never looked back, holding the Badgers to just 36.8-percent shooting from the floor, the lowest percentage UI has held a Big Ten opponent to this year.
"I'm just really pleased for our team," head coach Matt Bollant said after the Illini victory. "Obviously it hasn't been an easy stretch. I thought the start of the game was huge today. We hadn't started our last few games very well, so starting off 10-0 was really great. Alex {Wittinger} got us going a little bit in that half, and then I thought Sarah's {Hartwell} drive and Kennedy's {Cattenhead} rebound in traffic were really important also. Brooke also gave us a really great first half by making three threes. I'm proud of these ladies for sticking together."
Six Illini scored nine or more points each in the game, with four in double-figures, led by sophomore Chatrice White and Alex Wittinger who each put up 16 points on the day. White tallied her 11th double-double of the season as she added 11 rebounds and two rejections. Wittinger shot 80-percent from the field for the day. Illinois also knocked down eight three-pointers as a team, the most since making 12 against South Dakota (Dec. 22).
"It brings us back to the beginning of the year when we were all scoring threats," White said of the team's balanced scoring. "We're really good at sharing the ball, I think we had a bunch of assists. That's great team basketball and it's fun to play."
The Illini dished 14 assists as a team, assisting on almost 54-percent of their field goals. Redshirt senior Kyley Simmons finished the day with six dimes, while Sarah Hartwell added four of her own.
Illinois got off to a fast start on Sunday afternoon, taking a 16-9 lead in the first quarter. The Illini held the Badgers scoreless for the first five minutes of play to take a 10-0 lead. The 10-point lead marks Illinois' largest lead in a game since leading by 10 on Dec. 22 against South Dakota. Freshman Alex Wittinger played strongly in the first quarter, putting up half of Illinois' points and contributing two rebounds. Illinois scored seven points off of seven Wisconsin turnovers in the first period, while holding the Badgers to just 25-percent shooting from the field.
"I thought we started off really good offensively, but we also played well on defense," redshirt senior Sarah Hartwell said. "We did a really good job of guarding our man one-on-one. We were talking really well and helping each other out on defense."
"We definitely learned in the past that's what we need to do," Wittinger said of Illinois' defensive efforts. "When we don't do that, it starts off the game badly. Now that we've gotten a good start, I think it's going to take off from here."
The Illini held on to their lead throughout the second quarter, pulling ahead by 12 points, at one point, thanks to three-straight triples from sophomore Brooke Kissinger. At the halftime break, Kissinger led all scorers with nine points, and the Orange and Blue took a 10-point lead into the locker room. UI committed just three first-half turnovers in the game, forcing nine from the Badgers. Illinois tallied six three-pointers in the first half, making five in the second quarter and shooting almost 43-percent from distance before halftime.
Illinois came out with the same energy in the third quarter, looking to close the rebounding gap and maintain its lead. Wisconsin outrebounded the Illini in the first half, but UI closed that gap through the third quarter. The Orange and Blue grabbed 12 rebounds to Wisconsin's four in the third quarter to take the lead on the boards. The Illini had racked up 13 second chance points through the third quarter of play, grabbing nine offensive boards. Both White and Wittinger had put up double-figure scoring numbers to head into the final period, and Illinois held Wisconsin's leading scorer, Nicole Bauman (15.6 ppg) to just six points through the first three periods of play.
The Badgers worked hard to close the gap in the fourth quarter, using a 13-3 run to cut the Illini lead to five. Hartwell didn't let that fly, however, knocking down a jumper to end the Wisconsin run. The Badgers added two more from the charity stripe, but Kennedy Cattenhead and Simmons added layups of their own to keep Illinois ahead. The Illini battled to the finish, earning their first conference victory.
Next up, Illinois will head to Indiana for a 6 p.m. game on Wednesday, Jan. 20. The Illini are back at home on Saturday, Jan. 23, hosting Penn State in the annual Pack the House game. Admission to the 2 p.m. tipoff is free for all fans, and Illinois will give away 200 free t-shirts.
Notes
- Illinois snapped an eight game losing streak on Sunday, dominating Wisconsin, 71-65. The win marks Illinois' first win in conference play.
- Illinois held Wisconsin without a basket for the first five minutes of the game, taking advantage and pulling ahead to a 10-0 lead over the Badgers. The lead was the largest Illini lead since holding a 10 point lead in the second quarter against South Dakota (12/22/15). The Illini pulled ahead to a 15-point lead in the fourth quarter as well, the largest since leading by 17 over Central Michigan.
- Illinois' six first-half three-pointers mark the most since dropping six in the first half against Central Michigan (12/12/15). The Illini knocked down eight three-pointers in the first half against Memphis, marking the most treys in any half this season.
- Freshman Alex Wittinger tallied 16 points in the game, the most since she scored 20 against UT Martin (11/21/15). She was 8-for-10 from the field, good for 80-percent shooting, her best performance this season.
- Illinois held Wisconsin to just 36.8-percent shooting from the floor, the lowest percentage for a Big Ten opponent this season.
- The Illini outrebounded the Badgers, 37-35. marking the first time Illinois has outrebounded an opponent since grabbing 44 rebounds against Southern Illinois.
- With 16 points and 11 rebounds on the day, Chatrice White earned her 11th double-double. That number puts her in a tie for 10th all-time on Illinois' single-season double-doubles list.
- Redshirt Senior Kyley Simmons dished six assists, the most she has recorded in Big Ten play this season.
