@IlliniWBB's Halftime Lead Doesn't Hold Against Wildcats

Champaign, Ill. - The Fighting Illini women's basketball team used a 25-point second quarter to build a five-point halftime advantage before falling 69-59 to Northwestern Thursday night at the State Farm Center. Three Illini scored in double figures, including Chatrice White who added 10 rebounds for her 14th double-double of the year. 

White scored 16 points to lead Illinois (8-14, 1-10 Big Ten) in scoring, followed by Kennedy Cattenhead with 14 and Kyley Simmons who had 11 points. 

"I thought we showed some perseverance in the second quarter," head coach Matt Bollant said of the game. "We got off to bad start offensively and kind of hung our heads in the first quarter. In the second quarter we did some good things. I thought the difference was the third quarter; we were up five to start and Northwestern didn't score on their first five or six possessions, then we just struggled to score. We didn't have the life and the energy that it takes to make shots."

After scoring the Illini's first seven points, Cattenhead stayed hot, hitting a three-pointer to start the breakout second quarter. The Illini started to pick up momentum, using a 16-2 run to close Northwestern's early lead. UI's defense held the Wildcats to just nine points on 22-percent shooting in the frame. 

"I thought we really showed perseverance in the second period," Bollant said.  "We did not play well in the first quarter, but we stuck with it. All of a sudden we made a couple of shots and got our momentum going. The second quarter was by far our best quarter and obviously that showed in the score."

Cattenhead led the team with 10 points at the half and senior Sarah Hartwell matched her season-high with eight rebounds before the end of the first 20 minutes. Six Illini scored in the second period, as the Orange and Blue were shooting 34-percent going into halftime.

Northwestern (14-9, 3-8 Big Ten) scored 42 points in the second half to shut down the Illini's momentum. A 16-3 run by the Wildcats in the third quarter ultimately doomed the Illini.

Two White free throws kept UI within one in the final minute of the third period, but the Wildcats hit a three-pointer to close the period and hold a 46-42 lead. Northwestern shot 50-percent in the third quarter for 19 points, while allowing 10 for the Illini.

Illinois chipped away at that lead until the end of the game, but the Orange and Blue could not recover from the deficit despite forcing 17 turnovers in the game.

Next up, the Illini travel to Ann Arbor, Mich., to face the Wolverines in a  1 p.m. CT contest on February 7. 

"We're going to find a way to play with joy, and bring life and energy," Bollant said of the upcoming contest. 

Stay tuned to FIGHTINGILLINI.com for all the latest on Illinois women's basketball. 

Notes

-Sophomore Brooke Kissinger earned her second start of the season on Thursday, also the second start of her career. 

-Redshirt sophomore Kennedy Cattenhead scored Illinois first 10 points of the game, and she was the only Illini to score in the first period. 

-Redshirt senior Sarah Hartwell grabbed eight rebounds in the first half to match her season high, she finished with a career-best nine rebounds and also tallied two steals and nine points. 

-Senior Alexis Viliunas earned her first appearance for the Illini in a basketball uniform tonight.