CHAMPAIGN, ILL. – Illinois women's basketball opened Big Ten play with a 70-65 victory over the Iowa Hawkeyes on Wednesday. Freshmen Petra Holešínská and Brandi Beasley combined for 30 of Illinois' points, and sophomore Alex Wittinger led the way with 18 of her own. Illinois swiped a season-best 15 steals, led by Wittinger (6) and Beasley (4) who each recorded career-highs. With the win, Illinois improves to 6-8 on the season and 1-0 in Big Ten play.
"I am really happy for our team," head coach Matt Bollant said. "It is the first time since 2010 that we started with a win in the Big Ten, and to get it against an Iowa team that we have a lot of respect for is a great way to start. I thought we battled; I thought our starters really began the game with a lot of energy and forced a lot of turnovers in the first half. I am proud of our team, once again this is a great way to start Big Ten play, and now we will go from here, 1-0."
The Illini forced Iowa to a season-high 23 turnovers, capitalizing with 24 points off of those miscues. Four Illini contributed to Illinois' season-high 15 steals, as Holešínska and Kirkpatrick also added multiple takeaways. Illinois saw balanced production from the squad on Wednesday as six players scored seven or more points, three of them finishing in double-figures.
The holiday break proved to be beneficial for the Orange and Blue as Illinois took an early lead over Iowa to start the contest. The two teams traded baskets through the first quarter, but a 9-2 run in the middle of the period helped the Illini to pull away. Illinois shot 53-percent to start the game, assisting on five of its eight field goals. Wittinger and Holešínská combined for 15 points in the period to lead Illinois, and Wittinger did not miss a shot to start the game. Holešínská tallied two steals in the opening quarter, and the Orange and Blue forced seven turnovers in the opening frame.
Iowa worked to catch the Illini in the second quarter, but the Orange and Blue maintained their lead to the halftime break. Beasley knocked down 3-of-5 from the floor for six points to lead the Illini in the quarter, while Cattenhead added four of her own. The Orange and Blue held Iowa to just 27-percent shooting in the second quarter and 17-percent from distance. UI continued to force Iowa miscues, as the Hawkeyes committed four more turnovers in the second quarter, forcing just one from Illinois. Four Illini contributed at least one steal in the first half of play as well, as Illinois swiped seven total before the break.
Illinois used a 6-0 run to pull ahead to its largest lead in the game early in the third quarter, but the Hawkeyes responded with a 6-0 run of their own. Defense dominated the third quarter as neither team scored for more than three minutes in the period. Freshman Ali Andrews knocked down a pair of free throws and hit a big three-pointer for Illinois to end the quarter, but two Hawkeye buckets tied the contest at 50 heading into the final period.
"I thought our starters set the tone early and then Ali's [Andrews] three was big," Bollant said. "Ali has been doing it in practice, consistently, and in the last game against Ohio she stepped up and made a couple. So we knew she was capable of making some plays."
The Hawkeyes and the Illini traded the lead to start the quarter, but a 10-1 Illinois run put the Illini on top for good. Holešínská knocked down nine points in the fourth quarter, making 3-of-3 from downtown. She was 4-for-5 from beyond the arc overall on Wednesday afternoon.
I thought Petra's [Holešínská] threes were huge, especially after they had taken the lead in the fourth quarter," Bollant said. "Different players stepped up and played with courage today; and one of the things we talked about was to compete. I think we had done that off and on, but today, we believed and that carried into the game.
Illinois will hit the road, heading to Michigan State for a New Year's Day matchup. The Illini and the Spartans face off at 2 p.m. CT on Jan. 1. Stay tuned to FightingIllini.com for the latest on Illinois women's basketball.
Team Notes
- The Fighting Illini opened Big Ten play on Wednesday afternoon with a 70-65 win over the Iowa Hawkeyes. Iowa still leads the all-time series, 53-19.
- Illinois improved to 6-8 in the 2016-17 season.
- Illinois is now 13-22 all-time in Big Ten openers.
- The last time the Orange and Blue won a Big Ten opener was on Dec. 30, 2010 against Minnesota, 64-50.
- The Illini had a season-high 15 steals against the Hawkeyes to help force Iowa to a season-high with 23 turnovers. The 15 Illinois steals are the most for the Orange and Blue since November 13, 2015 when the team recorded 19 steals against Chicago State.
- Illinois had three players in double-figures on Wednesday. The Illini have had two or more players in double-digits in all but two games this season.
- Illinois shot 43-percent from the floor against the Hawkeyes, good for the seventh time this season the Orange and Blue have shot better than 40-percent from the field. The Illini are now 5-2 when shooting 40-percent or higher.
- The Illini tied a season-high with 24 points off of turnovers.
Individual Notes
- Sophomore Alex Wittinger scored in double-digits for the sixth-straight game with 18 points against Iowa. The double-digit scoring total was her 12th of the season and 25th of her career.
- Wittinger had a career-high six steals.
- Freshman Petra Holešínská tied her career-high with two assists.
- Holešínská scored in double-digits for the sixth time this season with 16 points.
- Freshman Brandi Beasley had a career-high four steals.
- Beasley recorded her sixth game of the season with multiple assists and multiple steals.
- With 14 points on Wednesday, Beasley scored in double-figures for the eighth time this season.
