Head Coach John Groce
Career Record: 155-106/.594 (8th year)
At Illinois: 70-50/.583 (4th year)
Big Ten: 24-33/.421
Series Notes vs. Purdue
Series Record: Purdue leads 98-86
Series Streak: Purdue W-1
Record at Champaign: Illinois leads 56-35
Series Streak at Champaign: Illinois W-1
Last Year's Meetings: ILL 66, PUR 57 Recap | Box // PUR 63, ILL 58 Recap | Box
Groce vs. Purdue: 2-3
Opening Tip
Illinois returns home following back-to-back road games, hosting No. 20 Purdue on Sunday. The Illini have dropped three straight against Top-25 opponents, all away from home. Illinois' last match-up at State Farm Center against a ranked foe was a 64-57 victory over No. 11 Maryland last season (Jan. 7, 2015).
Lou Henson Bobblehead Night
The first 6,000 fans through the turnstiles for the Purdue game will receive a scratch-off card, with 1,500 lucky fans winning a bobblehead of former Fighting Illini head coach Lou Henson. Sunday is Henson's 84th birthday, and bobbleheads will be given out to commemorate his court naming at State Farm Center and enshrinement into the National Collegiate Basketball Hall of Fame.
Henson was hired at Illinois on April 5, 1975. What followed was a legendary 21-year career in charge of the Orange and Blue. He amassed a 423-224 record, highlighted by 12 NCAA Tournament appearances, a total of 15 postseason bids, and eleven 20-win seasons. Illinois was one of the nation's most dominant programs during Henson's tenure, earning a top-5 seed in the NCAA Tournament seven straight years from 1984 through 1990.
Henson's Illini won the 1984 Big Ten Championship and advanced to the Elite Eight. His most successful season came with the Flyin' Illini, who won a then-school record 31 games and advanced to the 1989 NCAA Final Four. Henson ranks fifth all-time among Big Ten coaches in both total wins (423) and conference wins (214).
In all, Henson won 779 games; ranking 16th on the all-time NCAA wins list, and 11th all-time among coaches with at least 10 years spent in Division I. He is one of only four coaches in NCAA history to record 200-plus wins at two DI schools, totaling 423 at Illinois and 289 at New Mexico State. He also stands as one of just 14 coaches to lead two different teams to the Final Four.
3-Point Improvement
The Illini have increased their production from behind the arc in recent weeks. Illinois made an average of 9.9 threes per game over a nine-game stretch from Nov. 28-Jan. 3 (89), a vast improvement over the average of 6.5 made treys through the first six games. The Illini hit at least nine treys in seven of the previous nine games, including five straight, prior to finally cooling off with 2-of-15 shooting from three against Michigan State on Thursday.
Elite Company
Junior guard Malcolm Hill leads the Fighting Illini in total points, rebounds, assists, steals and blocked shots on the season. He is one of just two players nationally to lead his team in all of those categories, joined by LSU's Ben Simmons.
Newcomers Playing Prominent Role
Illinois has seven newcomers who have all factored into the rotation this season in graduate transfers Khalid Lewis and Mike Thorne Jr., junior transfer Alex Austin, redshirt freshman Michael Finke and true freshmen Jalen Coleman-Lands, Aaron Jordan and D.J. Williams. Together they have accounted for nearly 55 percent of the team's minutes played, the highest number in the conference. Illinois is the only Big Ten with more than half of its minutes coming from newcomers, and one of five teams with more one-third of its minutes coming from new additions. The Illini rank fourth in the league, meanwhile, in minutes played by freshmen at 33 percent.
Big Two
Juniors Kendrick Nunn and Malcolm Hill are leading the charge for the Illini offensive attack, ranking as the highest-scoring duo in the Big Ten, and fifth-highest among the six major conferences so far this season:
1. 41.2 points – Buddy Hield (26.3 ppg) & Jordan Woodard (14.9 ppg), Oklahoma, Big 12
2. 37.2 points – Grayson Allen (20.8 ppg) & Brandon Ingram (16.4 ppg), Duke, ACC
3. 37.1 points – Ben Bentil (19.4 ppg) & Kris Dunn (17.7 ppg), Providence, Big East
4. 36.1 points – Kevin Punter (23.1 ppg) & Armani Moore (13.0 ppg), Tennessee, SEC
5. 35.9 points – Kendrick Nunn (18.5 ppg) & Malcolm Hill (17.4 ppg), Illinois, Big Ten
Nunn and Hill, meanwhile, are one of only three duos who are both averaging at least 17 points. Here is the ranking of the highest-scoring duos among the six major conferences where both players are averaging at least 17 ppg:
1. 37.1 points – Ben Bentil (19.4 ppg) & Kris Dunn (17.7 ppg), Providence, Big East
2. 35.9 points – Kendrick Nunn (18.5 ppg) & Malcolm Hill (17.4 ppg), Illinois, Big Ten
3. 34.2 points – Dwayne Bacon (17.2 ppg) & Malik Beasley (17.0 ppg), Florida State, ACC
Taking Care of the Rock
Illinois has been one of the best teams in the country under Coach John Groce in taking care of the basketball. Last year's team set a school record for fewest turnovers, averaging just 9.9 per game. That broke the previous school mark of 10.4 per game set by Groce's 2014 squad.
This year the Illini are on pace to challenge the school record again this year, currently averaging 9.9 turnovers. Illinois its tied for first in the Big Ten and ranks seventh nationally in fewest turnovers. And Illinois leads the conference with a +3.6 turnover margin (26th in NCAA).
Capitalizing Off Turnovers
Over six consecutive games prior to Michigan State, Illinois averaged just 8.7 turnovers (52) while the opponent averaged 15.2 turnovers (91). The Illini made the most from those extra opportunities, outscoring the opposition in points off turnovers in all six games and by a combined 101-to-46, an advantage of 9.2 points per game.
The Illini were solid with the ball once again in East Lansing, committing just six turnovers at the Breslin Center compared to 12 for Michigan State. But the Illini were outscored in points off turnovers for the first time since the Iowa State game on Nov. 28, as the Spartans turned Illinois' six turnovers into 10 points while the Illini were unable to score off MSU's 12 miscues.
Battling Through Adversity
Six different Illini players have combined to miss a total of 46 games due to injuries and other circumstances so far this season. The only contest where Illinois has had its full roster available (not counting Tracy Abrams) for the entirety of the game was the 72-58 victory over UAB on Nov. 27.
With the list of available players changing from one day to the next, Coach John Groce has used 11 different starting lineups.
On five occasions the Illini have had as few as eight scholarship players available, including each of the first three games to open Big Ten play.
Early in the year the Illini were missing mostly backcourt players. But now the bulk of injuries lie in the frontcourt, with center Mike Thorne Jr. and power forward Leron Black out indefinitely. Since Thorne was injured late in the first half vs. Iowa State on Nov. 28, Illinois has been outrebounded in eight of the last 10 games.
Illini Trends
• Illinois' turnover rate of 14.0 percent stands fifth nationally.
• Illinois ranks 30th nationally in defensive free throw rate (27.3).
• After starting the same lineup the previous four games, Illinois started its 11th different lineup in 16 games on Thursday at Michigan State.
• Malcolm Hill has scored in double figures in every game this season and currently ranks fourth in the Big Ten in scoring with an average of 17.4 points.
• Hill has 11 career games of 20+ points, which included his first stretch of four straight to round out non-conference play with 20 vs. Yale, 22 vs. UIC, 34 vs. South Dakota and 21 vs. Missouri.
• Hill entered Big Ten play on a tear, averaging 24.3 points (97), 6.3 rebounds (25), 4.0 assists (16), 1.8 blocks (7) and 1.3 steals (5).
• Hill ranks 39th in the NCAA in made free throws (77) and 69th nationally in free throw attempts (92), standing second behind Wisconsin's Nigel Hayes among Big Ten players in each category.
• Hill is currently averaging 3.4 assists this season (16th in Big Ten), after entering the year with a career average of 1.0 assists.
• Kendrick Nunn has scored in double figures in all 10 games he has played in, currently averaging 18.5 points.
• Nunn's scoring average would rank second in the Big Ten, but he is not listed among the conference statistical leaders because he has yet to play in 75 percent of Illinois' games. Nunn has played in 62.5 percent of games on the season.
• Nunn, who led the team in 3-pointers last year, has combined for 30 treys over his 10 games. His average of 3.0 made threes per game also would rank second in the Big Ten
• Nunn has shot better than 46 percent from the field in seven of his 10 games.
• Nunn grabbed a career-high 11 rebounds vs. Missouri and is averaging 7.0 boards (35) over his last five games.
• Michael Finke has scored in double figures in four of the last six, and six of the last nine games.
• Finke leads the Illini in rebounding during Big Ten play, averaging 6.7 boards (20).
• Jalen Coleman-Lands has scored in double figures in four of the last six games, and is Illinois' third-leading scorer in Big Ten play with an average of 11.0 points (33).
• Coleman-Lands has made three or more treys in eight games, including four of the last six. His average of 2.3 made threes is seventh in the Big Ten.
• Jaylon Tate has combined for 11 assists compared to three turnovers in Big Ten play.
• Khalid Lewis has combined for 20 assists (5.0 apg) with just three turnovers over his last four games.
Looking Back at Last Year's Illinois-Purdue Games
• Illinois 66, Purdue 57 (Jan. 21, 2015 at Champaign)
Freshman Leron Black excelled in his first career start, and senior Nnanna Egwu broke the school career blocked shots record as Illinois rallied to defeat Purdue at State Farm Center.
Purdue controlled much of the first half and led by as many as nine with 5:34 left. But the Illini scored eight unanswered over the final 1:16 to take a 32-30 lead into intermission. The lead exchanged hands seven times over the first 13 minutes of the second half when the Illini went on a privotal 8-0 run, taking a 56-49 lead with under four minutes remaining en route to the win.
Illinois held a 43-to-35 edge on the backboards, as Purdue was outrebounded for the first time in conference play. The Illini also outscored the Boilermakers by 17 points at the free throw line, with the Illini making 21-of-24 compared to just 4-of-9 for the visitors.
Black became the first Illini player since Lowell Hamilton in 1986 to record a double-double in his first start, scoring 15 points on 6-of-9 shooting and grabbing a game- and career-high 13 rebounds, including six on the offensive end. Egwu tied his career high with five blocked shots. He became Illinois' all-time leader with his fourth block of the game, surpassing the former record set by Deon Thomas. Egwu had a great all-around game, adding 11 points, seven rebounds and three steals to his five blocks. Malcolm Hill scored a game-high 18 points and had six rebounds and four assists.
• Purdue 63, Illinois 58 (March 7, 2015 at West Lafayette)
Illinois started hot but then went cold, falling at Purdue in the final game of the regular season. The Illini jumped all over the Boilermakers, scoring 15 unanswered to grab a 13-point lead less than nine minutes in. The Orange and Blue still maintained a 13-point advantage with two minutes remaining before the Boilers reeled off the final eight points of the half to make the margin five at intermission.
With the Illini ahead by four early in the second half, Purdue then went on an 11-0 run to open up a 37-30 lead. The deficit grew to 13 as the Illini missed 16 of their first 18 shots of the second half. Illinois finally began to see the ball go in and made a furious comeback attempt down the stretch, but ultimately ran out of time, falling by five points.
Rayvonte Rice led the Illini in scoring for the fourth straight outing, tallying a game-high 25 points on 9-of-16 shooting. Malcolm Hill also reached double figures with 15 points, while Nnanna Egwu grabbed nine rebounds.
Current Illini vs. Purdue:
Malcolm Hill (3 G): 13.3 ppg (40), 4.7 rpg (14)
Highlights: 15 points last year in West Lafayette … Game-high 18 points with six rebounds and four assists last year in Champaign.
Tracy Abrams (5 G): 12.4 ppg (62), 3.0 rpg (15), 4.4 apg (22)
Highlights: Team-high 13 points and game-high five assists in 2014 in Champaign … 13 points, seven assists and five rebounds in 2013 in Champaign … 12 points and five assists in 2013 in West Lafayette … Season-high 22 points in 2012 in Champaign.
Kendrick Nunn (3 G): 9.0 ppg (27), 5.0 rpg (15)
Highlights: Season-high seven rebounds last year in West Lafayette … 14 points and season-high seven rebounds last year in Champaign.
Leron Black (2 G): 8.0 ppg (16), 7.0 rpg (14)
Highlight: 15 points and career-high 13 rebounds last year in Champaign.
Jaylon Tate (3 G): 3.3 ppg (10), 1.0 rpg (3)
Highlight: Six points and game-high six assists last year in Champaign.
Maverick Morgan (3 G): 0 pts, 4 reb
Mike LaTulip (2 G): 0 pts, 0 reb
