| B1G Tournament Quarterfinal: #12 Illinois (15-18, 5-13) vs. #4 Purdue (24-7, 12-6) |
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| When | Friday, March 11, 2016 | 1:25 p.m. CT (2:25 ET) |
| Where | Indianapolis, Ind. | Bankers Life Fieldhouse (18,345) |
| Big Ten Tournament | Tournament Central | Bracket | Ticket Info |
| Television | BTN (Mike Tirico, Dan Dakich, Quint Kessenich) |
| Live Stream | WatchESPN.com |
| Radio | Fighting Illini Sports Network | TuneIn | SiriusXM – 84 |
| Live Stats | GameTracker |
| Printable Notes | Illinois | Purdue |
| 2015-16 Stats | Illinois (HTML) | Illinois (PDF) | Purdue | Big Ten |
| Round 1 Wrap-Up | ILL 85, MIN 52 | Recap | Box Score | Photos | Quotes |
| Round 2 Wrap-Up | ILL 68, IOWA 66 | Recap | Box Score | Quotes |
| Shop | Online Store | Auctions | Publications |
| Social Media | @IlliniMBB  | #Illini | @IlliniMBB  | Facebook  | YouTube  |
Head Coach John Groce
Career Record: 162-116/.583 (8th year)
At Illinois: 77-60/.562 (4th year)
Big Ten: 29-43/.403
Big Ten Tournament: 4-3/.571
Series Notes vs. Purdue
All-Time Series Record: Purdue leads 98-87
Series Record in Big Ten Tournament: Tied, 2-2
This Season's Meeting: ILL 84, #20 PUR 70 (Jan. 10 at Champaign)
Groce vs. Purdue: 3-3
Notes from Thursday's Big Ten Tournament (BTT) Second-Round Victory Over Iowa
1. Illinois advances to the BTT quarterfinal vs. fourth-seeded Purdue. The Illini and Boilermakers met just once during the regular season, an 80-64 Illini victory over the then-No. 20 Boilermakers on Jan. 10 in Champaign. Juniors Malcolm Hill and Kendrick Nunn combined for 52 points on 17-of-27 shooting in that game, with Hill scoring a game-high 30 and Nunn tallying 22.
2. Illinois is 12-4 all-time in BTT quarterfinal games. The 12 victories are tied with Michigan State for most of any school, while the UI's .750 winning percentage is the best of any school.
3. No. 13 Purdue marks the ninth ranked opponent on the Illini schedule. Illinois is 2-6 against Top 25 teams this season following Thursday's BTT win over No. 20 Iowa and the previously mentioned Jan. 10 victory over the No. 20 Boilermakers.
4. Illinois is attempting to defeat ranked opponents in back-to-back games for the first time since Coach John Groce's first season when the Illini beat No. 1 Indiana, 74-72, on a game-winning layup by Tyler Griffey at the buzzer (Feb. 7, 2013), followed by a 57-53 road win at No. 18 Minnesota (Feb. 10, 2013).
5. Illinois' victory over No. 20 Iowa was its first over a ranked team in the BTT since defeating No. 13 Wisconsin, 58-54, in the 2010 quarterfinal (March 12, 2010).
6. Illinois improves to 8-2 all-time in the BTT as a double-digit seed.
7. Iowa shot just 40.3 percent from the field, the 12th time in the last 14 games that Illinois has held the opponent below 46 percent.
8. One day after erupting for a BTT record 14 three-pointers in the win over Minnesota, the Illini drained 10 treys against Iowa. The Illini have now accounted for 24 triples through two games, two shy of the program record of 26 set during the 1999 BTT. Illinois also is just four away from the BTT record of 28 treys set by five teams, most recently Wisconsin in 2015.
9. The Illini had 20 assists against Iowa one day after registering 19 vs. Minnesota. Those are Illinois' second- and third-highest assist totals, respectively, in a game this season.
10. Illinois once again won the turnover battle, committing 14 while Iowa had 18. The turnover department continues to be a critical area for the Illini, as Illinois has scored more points off turnovers than the opposition in all but one of its 15 victories, and has won just one game this season when recording more turnovers than the opponent.
11. While Malcolm Hill was held to single digits for just the third time on the season, his only points of the second half also served as the game-winning basket. He drained an 18-foot jumper with 1:16 remaining to break the 66-all tie.
12. Hill now has 598 points on the year, entering the Purdue game just two away from becoming the first Illini player in school history to record 600 points, 200 rebounds and 100 assists in a single season.
13. Hill had three steals for the second straight game. He remains one ahead for the team lead in steals, leading the Illini in total points, rebounds, assists, blocked shots and steals on the season. Hill is one of just three players nationally to lead his team in all five categories (Ben Simmons, LSU and Malcolm Brogdon, Florida A&M).
14. Hill is now averaging 2.6 steals over the last five games (13).
15. Kendrick Nunn had another efficient day with 16 points on 7-of-13 shooting. Through two BTT games, Nunn leads the Illini with an average of 15.5 points (31) and is shooting 61.9 percent from the field (13-21).
16. Nunn scored his 1,000th career point on a 3-pointer with 18:26 remaining, becoming the 48th player in Fighting Illini history to reach that milestone.
17. Jalen Coleman-Lands finished with a team-high 17 points, marking the fifth time he has been the Illini's leading scorer in a game this season. Through two BTT games, Coleman-Lands is averaging 15.0 points and is shooting 57.1 percent from 3-point range (8-14).
18. Coleman-Lands knocked down five 3-pointers on the day. His fourth of the game, with 12:37 remaining, broke the Illini freshman season record of 85 threes set by Cory Bradford in 1999. Coleman-Lands now has 87 triples on the year, which ranks fourth on the all-time Illini single-season list.
19. Coleman-Lands has now has now made at least three 3-pointers in nine of the last 11 games. Over that stretch he is averaging 3.6 threes and is shooting 47.6 percent from behind the arc (40-84).
20. Maverick Morgan had 14 points on 5-of-7 from the field, his 11th game this season scoring in double figures. Through two BTT games, Morgan is averaging 11.5 points on 64.3 percent shooting (9-14).
21. Michael Finke added two more 3-pointers against the Hawkeyes, giving him seven for the BTT on 63.6 shooting (7-11). That exceeds his production from behind the arc over the final 13 games of the regular season (6-30).
Illini Big Ten Tournament Notes
• Illinois has the second-most all-time Big Ten Tournament (BTT) wins with 27.
• The Illini own the third-best all-time BTT winning percentage at .628 (27-16).
• Illinois has won two BTT championships (2003 and 2005), one of five conference schools to win multiple titles.
• Illinois is tied for the second-most BTT championship game appearances, having advanced to the title game six times.
• Illinois has advanced to the BTT semifinals 12 times, tied for the most semifinal appearances of any school.
• Illinois is a double-digit seed in the BTT for the third time. The Illini advanced to the title game in both previous appearances, as the 11 seed in 1999 and the 10 seed in 2008.
• Illinois is 10-10 in BTT games when seeded lower.
• Illinois is 11-9 in the BTT in Indianapolis.
• Friday marks the fifth Illinois-Purdue match-up in the BTT, with the teams splitting the previous four meetings. The most recent game was the 2009 semifinal, with the third-seeded Boilermakers defeating the second-seeded Illini, 66-56.
