| Illinois Probable Starters (from last game) |
| Pos. |
No. |
Name |
Ht. |
Wt. |
Yr. |
PPG |
RPG |
APG |
Note |
| G |
1 |
Trent Frazier |
6-1 |
170 |
So. |
18.0 |
1.3 |
3.5 |
29 pts, 6 3FG vs. Gonzaga |
| G |
11 |
Ayo Dosunmu |
6-5 |
185 |
Fr. |
16.2 |
3.4 |
2.6 |
.579 3FG (11-19) |
| G |
23 |
Aaron Jordan |
6-5 |
210 |
Sr. |
11.0 |
5.2 |
1.8 |
.452 3FG (14-31) |
| G |
0 |
Alan Griffin |
6-5 |
180 |
Fr. |
5.5 |
1.5 |
0.8 |
CH 11 pts vs. Iowa State |
| F |
15 |
Giorgi Bezhanishvili |
6-9 |
235 |
Fr. |
8.4 |
4.8 |
1.8 |
17 pts, 6 rebs vs. Gonzaga |
| Off the Bench |
| Pos. |
No. |
Name |
Ht. |
Wt. |
Yr. |
PPG |
RPG |
APG |
Note |
| F |
2 |
Kipper Nichols |
6-6 |
220 |
r-Jr. |
7.0 |
1.8 |
1.2 |
13 pts in each of 1st 2 gms |
| G |
3 |
Drew Cayce |
6-1 |
175 |
r-Jr. |
0.0 |
0.5 |
0.5 |
Walkon in third year |
| F |
4 |
Zach Griffith |
6-6 |
210 |
So. |
0.0 |
0.0 |
1.0 |
Walkon is former manager |
| G |
5 |
Tevian Jones |
6-7 |
205 |
Fr. |
3.2 |
1.6 |
0.2 |
8 pts, 4 reb vs UE |
| G |
10 |
Andres Feliz |
6-2 |
185 |
Jr. |
7.8 |
2.8 |
2.4 |
16 pts, 6-10 FG vs UE |
| C |
12 |
Adonis De La Rosa |
7-0 |
260 |
Gr. |
3.8 |
3.5 |
0.3 |
Grad transfer from Kent St. |
| G |
20 |
Da'Monte Williams |
6-3 |
200 |
So. |
4.4 |
3.2 |
1.6 |
7 steals on season |
| F |
22 |
Anthony Higgs |
6-8 |
235 |
Fr. |
- |
- |
- |
Won 2 HS state titles in MD |
| G |
32 |
Tyler Underwood |
6-2 |
180 |
r-Jr. |
0.0 |
0.3 |
0.3 |
Son of Coach Underwood |
| C |
34 |
Samba Kane |
7-0 |
220 |
Fr. |
- |
- |
- |
Native of Dakar, Senegal |
| G |
35 |
Samson Oladimeji |
6-4 |
200 |
Jr. |
0.0 |
0.0 |
0.0 |
Third-year walkon |
Career Record: 124-49/.717 (6th year)
At Illinois: 15-22 (2nd year)
Series Notes vs. Mississippi Valley State
Record: Illinois leads 1-0
Streak: Illinois W-1
Record at Illinois: Illinois leads 1-0
Streak at Illinois: Illinois W-1
Last Meeting: Illinois 111, MVSU 73 // Dec. 5, 1987 at Champaign
Underwood vs. MVSU: First meeting
Opening Tips
• After playing three games in three days at the Maui Jim Maui Invitational and making the 4,200-mile trip back on Thanksgiving Day, Illinois looks to snap its four-game losing skid on Sunday afternoon, hosting Mississippi Valley State (1 p.m.).
• Sunday's game is Epilepsy Awareness Day. Fans entering State Farm Center will receive purple wrist bands and an informational card about epilepsy. Purple pompoms will be distributed throughout the 100-level of the arena. The day will also include in-game announcements to help educate fans about epilepsy, and a donation by the Orange Krush, the Illini basketball student support group, who earlier this month held a dodge ball tournament to raise money for Athletes vs. Epilepsy. Illini Assistant Coach Jamall Walker and his family have teamed up with the Epilepsy Foundation to help spread the message after their son, Braylon, was diagnosed.
• Sophomore Trent Frazier leads the Illini and ranks sixth in the Big Ten in scoring at 18.0 ppg.
• Frazier averaged 20.7 points at the Maui Invite, led by a season-high 29 points vs. No. 3 Gonzaga.
• Frazier leads the Big Ten in steals (2.8 spg) and ranks third in the league with an average of 3.5 made threes 14).
• Freshman Ayo Dosunmu is second on the Illini in scoring at 16.2 points per game while shooting an impressive 53.6 percent from the field and 57.9 percent from 3-point range.
• Dosunmu has scored at least 13 points in four of five games.
• Senior Aaron Jordan averaged 11.7 points and shot 45 percent from 3-point range (9-20) at the Maui Invite.
• Jordan currently leads the Illini in rebounding at 5.2 rpg after entering the season with a career average of 1.8 rpg.
• Illinois has made double-digit 3-pointers in four of five games and ranks third in the Big Ten, averaging 10.2 treys per game.
• The Illini defense ranks seventh in the nation in turnover rate, forcing turnovers on 26.3 percent of opponent possessions. The Illini steal rate of 11.9 percent, meanwhile, ranks 34th nationally.
• Illinois is averaging 21.2 points off opponent turnovers.
Broadcast Information
Sunday's home game vs. Mississippi Valley State will be streamed live via BTN Plus. BTN Plus programming consists of non-televised games produced by students at Big Ten universities and is available through either a monthly or annual subscription. Fans can purchase a BTN Plus subscription by visiting BTN2GO.com.
» Complete Illinois-Mississippi Valley State Notes
