University of Illinois
Virginia Tech
Illini WBB Hosts Virginia Tech for B1G/ACC Challenge
November 29, 2017 | Women's Basketball
| Game 9 : Illinois (5-3) vs. Virginia Tech (5-2) | |
|---|---|
| When |
Thursday, Nov. 30 | 7:00 PM |
| Where |
State Farm Center // Champaign, Ill. |
| Live Links | Watch | Listen | Follow | FloHoops |
| Buy Tickets | |
| 2017-18 Information | Illinois Record Book | Illinois Game Notes | Virginia Tech Notes |
| Game Promotions |
B1G/ACC Challenge Canned Food Drive |
QUICK HITS
THE COACHES
ILLINOIS: Nancy Fahey // 5-3 at Illinois (1st year) // 742-136 overall (32nd year)
VIRGINIA TECH: Kenny Brooks // 25-16 at Virginia Tech (2nd year) // 362-138 overall (16th year)
SERIES NOTES vs. VIRGINIA TECH
Series Record: Illinois leads, 1-0
Last Meeting: Nov. 30, 1991 // Illinois 68, Virginia Tech 66 // Boulder, Colo.
Series Streak: W-1
Series in Champaign: 0-0
Series in Blacksburg: 0-0
Fahey vs. Virginia Tech: 0-0
Illinois is...
...giving away free foam fingers for fans in attendance on Thursday
...collecting canned food donations for the Eastern Illinois Food Bank
...hosting Virginia Tech for the first time in program history
...4-6 all-time in the B1G/ACC Challenge
...shooting 76-percent from the free throw line
...led in scoring by Alex Wittinger & Brandi Beasley
• THURSDAY'S GAME: The Orange and Blue return to Champaign for the B1G/ACC Challenge on Nov. 30. The matchup is set for 7 p.m., and will mark the first Three-Point Thursday, with free foam fingers for fans. It will also mark the first day of Illinois' canned food drive benefiting the Eastern Illinois Food Bank.
•COMING UP: The Illini hit the road once again for a matchup in Brandi Beasley's hometown of Memphis on Sunday. The Orange and Blue face the Memphis Tigers at 2 p.m.
• LAST TIME OUT: Illinois went 2-1 at the UNM Thanksgiving Tournament, earning victories over UC Irvine (65-69) and Wichita State (68-67). Illinois is coming off of a 97-68 loss to New Mexico, and was led in scoring at the tournament by Brandi Beasley who averaged 15.3 points per game in Albuquerque. Sophomore Ali Andrews knocked down a career-best six three-pointers for a career-high 26 points in Illinois' victory over Wichita State.
• SCOUTING VIRGINIA TECH: The Virginia Tech Hokies are 5-2 on the season, coming off of a 1-2 performance at the Paradise Jam. The Hokies earned a 79-67 victories over Drexel, but were defeated by Butler (79-77) and No. 11 West Virginia (79-61). Four players are averaging double-figure scoring numbers for Virginia Tech, led by Taylor Emery (17.1 ppg) and Alexis Jean (13.3 ppg). Regan Magarity leads the team in rebounding, grabbing 9.1 boards per game. The Hokies are outscoring opponents by 16.1 points per game this season, shooting 43.7-percent from the floor.
THE B1G/ACC CHALLENGE
This is the 11th annual Big Ten/ACC Women's Basketball Challenge, with the agreement between the conferences extended through the 2020 season. The Challenge has ended in a tie during three of the past six seasons (7-7 in 2014 and 2015, as well as 6-6 in 2011). The ACC has won the other seven previous Challenges (including 9-5 last year).
ILLINI IN THE B1G/ACC CHALLENGE
Nov. 30, 2016 Wake Forest 79, Illinois 70
Dec. 2, 2015 Miami 73, Illinois 64
Dec. 3, 2014 Illinois 86, Virginia 63
Dec. 4, 2013 Georgia Tech 93, Illinois 69
Nov. 29, 2012 Illinois 95, Wake Forest 82
Dec. 1, 2011 Illinois 61, Clemson 50
Dec. 1, 2010 NC State 73, Illinois 57
Dec. 2, 2009 Illinois 65, Wake Forest 50
Dec. 4, 2008 #20 Virginia 63, Illinois 39
Nov. 29, 2007 NC State 61, Illinois 47
ILLINI IN THE LEAGUE
Illini sophomore Brandi Beasley was tops among players in the country for her minutes played last season, and she is continuing that trend this year. Beasley ranks seventh in the league for her 34.0 minutes played per game this year, and also for her 82.6-percent free throw shooting. Her 4.1 assists per game check in at No. 9 in the league. Beasley's 272 total minutes played this season rank fourth in the country.
Junior Alex Wittinger ranks third in the Big Ten and 26th in the country for her 4.4 offensive boards per game and fourth in the league for her 2.0 blocked shots per game. Her 16 blocks this season check in at No. 19 in the nation as well. Wittinger leads the Illini, averaging 9.3 total rebounds per game, which checks in at ninth in the Big Ten. Her 74 boards this year rank 11th in the nation. The Delano, Minnesota, native, has netted 47 field goals this season, putting herself at No. 8 in the Big Ten and No. 23 in the country.
Sophomore Ali Andrews has netted 13-of-27 from distance this season, and her 48.1-percent three-point shooting checks in at No. 4 in the Big Ten.
WITTINGER IN THE RECORD BOOKS
In her junior season, Alex Wittinger has already had quite the career for the Illini. In her two years on the court, the Delano, Minnesota, native racked up 124 blocks and climbed to the No. 6 spot on Illinois' all-time career blocks list. She carded 74 rejections last season to rank second all-time at Illinois and she led the Big Ten with her 2.6 blocked shots per game. Wittinger became just the eighth player in Illinois history to record 100 career blocks on Thursday, Jan. 26, and also set a new single-game record with her eight rejections against Wright State. She has 16 rejections through eight games this season.
Illinois Career Blocked Shots List
1. 271 Karisma Penn 2009-13
2. 231 Jenna Smith 2006-10
3. 163 Lacey Simpson 2005-10
4. 156 Kendra Gantt 1981-85
5. 140 Alex Wittinger 2016-
FREE THROW FEST
The Orange and Blue rank third in the Big Ten for their 76-percent free throw shooting this season. The Illini have knocked down 79-of-104 foul shots, led by Brandi Beasley who has netted 19-of-23 from the stripe. Five Illini are shooting 70-percent or better from the free throw line, including freshmen Addaya Moore (2-2) and sophomores Courtney Joens (3-3) and Ali Andrews (8-8) who are perfect from the line. Illinois' accuracy improves as the game goes on, the Illini are shooting better than 78-percent from the line in the second half of games.
HOME COURT ADVANTAGE
Illinois is 3-1 at home this season, with wins over Fort Wayne, Chicago State and Bradley. The Illini are outscoring opponents by 6.5 points per game inside the State Farm Center, with two players averaging double-digit scoring numbers. Alex Wittinger leads the Illini, averaging 13.5 points per game in Champaign, while Brandi Beasley is averaging 12.5 points per home contest. Wittinger is averaging a double-double at home, also grabbing 10.5 boards per game. The Orange and Blue are shooting 79-percent from the free throw line on Lou Henson Court, highlighted by 92-percent shooting against Western Illinois, and averaging 10 steals per game. Illinois also forces 16 opponent turnovers at home, averaging more than 18 points per game off of those turnovers.
ANDREWS AT A DISTANCE
Illini sophomore Ali Andrews was on fire against Wichita State, knocking down 6-of-8 shots from distance, and going 9-for-11 from the field. She used a career-high 26 points to help lift the Illini over the Shockers. Andrews was also 2-for-2 from the free throw line, and grabbed four rebounds.
Andrews has netted a career-best six three-pointers in two career games (Nebraska, 3/1/2017), and the performance is tied for the sixth-best for an Illini in school history.
PETRA OFF THE PINE
Sophomore Petra Holešínská leads the Illini off the bench this season, averaging 6.0 points and 4.0 boards per game. She's racked up three steals and knocked down five three-pointers. Sophomore Courtney Joens is also an important contributor off the bench for Illinois as she is averaging 4.4 points per game on 39-percent shooting. The Illini bench accounts for 18 points per game and averages 14 rebounds per contest.
A NEW ERA
Illinois opened the Nancy Fahey era of women's basketball on November 10 with a victory over the Fort Wayne Mastodons. A four-time hall of fame inductee, Fahey boasts 742 career victories and led Washington University to five Division III National Championship titles. Fahey was hired as the ninth head women's basketball coach in Illinois history on March 22, 2017.
FOUNTAIN OF YOUTH
With five newcomers and 11 underclassmen on the roster this season, the Orange and Blue boast one of the youngest rosters in the Big Ten. The Illini are composed of 73-percent underclassmen on the court, meaning redshirt sophomore or younger, and only Purdue has a larger percentage of young players. The Boilermakers have 10 underclassmen on their 13-person roster (76-percent). The next-youngest squad in the league is Northwestern, who is 66-percent composed of underclassmen.
BEASLEY'S BREAKOUT YEAR
Sophomore Brandi Beasley returns for the Illini this year, looking to build on a breakout freshman campaign. A 2017 Big Ten All-Freshman Team honoree, Beasley was among team leaders for the 13.6 points per game last season and also checked in at second among all Big Ten freshmen. She dished 120 assists on the season, becoming one of just four freshmen in Illinois history to record 100 dimes in their rookie season. Beasley was among league and national leaders for her 36.2 minutes played per game. She played a full 40 minutes in six contests.
HOLEŠÍNSKÁ'S HOT SHOOTING
Sophomore Petra Holešínská returns this season after a hot-shooting freshman campaign. The Vracov, Czech Republic, native was among the top three-point shooters in the Big Ten during her freshman season, leading all the league's freshmen with her 45.6-percent three-point shooting in conference play. Holešínská netted 54 treys during 2016-17, a number that ranks third all-time among Illinois freshmen. She shot 35.5-percent from distance on the season, which ranks fifth all-time on Illinois' freshman records list.
SENIOR STORIES
The Illini are looking to redshirt senior Kennedy Cattenhead for direction this season as the Bolingbrook, Illinois, native, has appeared in 87 games for the Orange and Blue. Cattenhead has been a staple in the starting lineup for two seasons, and earned the start in all of Illinois' games this season. She will look to continue her leadership both on and off the court.
Senior Alli Ball also brings experience to Illinois' lineup as she transferred from Akron after spending three years playing for the Zips. She appeared in 90 games for Akron, earning 13 starts throughout her career. Ball had quite the debut for Illinois, leading the team with 13 points, seven rebounds and two blocks.
KIRKPATRICK IN CANADA
Junior Jaelyne Kirkpatrick spent her summer traveling the world as she represented her home country on the Canada Development Women's National Team. Kirkpatrick traveled to both Japan and Australia this August for the U24 Women Basketball League Four Nations 2017 Tournament and the Taipei 2017 29th Summer Universiade. Kirkpatrick played in nine games through the two tournaments, averaging 20 minutes per game. She dished 22 assists overall, and averaged four points per game.
FAHEY SIGNS THREE FOR 2018-19
Head Coach Nancy Fahey announced her first recruiting class on Nov. 8, welcoming two top-100 recruits in Mackenzie Blazek and Arieal Scott, and a national team player in J-Naya Ephraim.
MACKENZIE BLAZEK | 6-3 | Forward | Franklin, Indiana | Whiteland Community High School
2017 IBCA Underclass All-State honoree,,,2016 IBCA Underclass Large School All-State honoree...Ranked No. 90 overall by ESPN Hoopgurlz...Daily Journal 2016-17 Player of the Year...Averaged 18 points and 13.4 rebounds per game for Whiteland last season
J-NAYA EPHRAIM | 5-9 | Guard | St. Croix, U.S. Virgin Islands | Southern Durham High School
Averaged 16.5 points and 10.8 rebounds per game for Southern Durham last season and tallied 16 double-doubles...Represented the Virgin Islands on both the U16 and U17 National Teams at the FIBA World University Games (2013-15)...NCBCA 2017 First Team All-District...2017 Big Eight Conference Player of the Year...Chose Illinois over Temple and James Madison
ARIEAL SCOTT | 5-9 | Guard | Urbana, Illinois | Urbana High School
2016 IBCA First Team 1A/2A All-State...No. 39-ranked recruit in the country according to Prospects Nation...Ranked among the top 100 players in the country by ESPN Hoopgurlz...Two-time News Gazette All-Area First Team honoree...Chose Illinois over Missouri, USC and Washington, among others
ILLINI ON THE NETWORK
Five of Illinois' contests this season will air live on the Big Ten Network, and the remaining conference games will be streamed on BTN Plus. Illinois will have four home games televised live on the network, beginning January 7 against Iowa. Illinois will also host Michigan State on BTN at 8 p.m. on January 16. The Illini will also appear on the Big Ten Network January 28 against Wisconsin and February 4 against Purdue at the State Farm Center. Illinois will also play one road game on BTN, at Michigan on January 20.
All BTN on-air games can be streamed via the web, smartphones, tablets and connected devices on BTN2Go, BTN's digital extension. More than 100 additional games also will be streamed on BTN Plus on BTN2Go, and many of those will air on delay on BTN as part of the Student U initiative.
ILLINI WBB TICKETS
Illinois women's basketball season and single game tickets are on sale now and can be purchased online at FightingIllini.com, in person at the Illinois ticket office at State Farm Center or by phone at 1-866-ILLINI-1. General admission season tickets start at $30 each, while reserved season tickets are available for $75. Single game tickets can be purchased for $5.
