| Illinois Probable Starters (from last game) |
| Pos. |
No. |
Name |
Ht. |
Wt. |
Yr. |
PPG |
RPG |
APG |
Note |
| G |
1 |
Trent Frazier |
6-1 |
170 |
So. |
14.7 |
2.6 |
3.1 |
1.8 spg (2nd in B1G) |
| G |
11 |
Ayo Dosunmu |
6-5 |
185 |
Fr. |
13.6 |
4.7 |
2.8 |
20.5 ppg in last 4 |
| G |
23 |
Aaron Jordan |
6-5 |
210 |
Sr. |
9.1 |
4.7 |
1.6 |
.425 3FG (31-73) |
| F |
2 |
Kipper Nichols |
6-6 |
220 |
r-Jr. |
8.6 |
3.6 |
1.4 |
16 pts vs. MINN 2/4/17 |
| F |
15 |
Giorgi Bezhanishvili |
6-9 |
235 |
Fr. |
10.4 |
4.8 |
1.1 |
15 pts vs. MICH 1/10/19 |
| Off the Bench |
| Pos. |
No. |
Name |
Ht. |
Wt. |
Yr. |
PPG |
RPG |
APG |
Note |
| G |
0 |
Alan Griffin |
6-5 |
180 |
Fr. |
2.8 |
2.0 |
0.4 |
Son of NBA vet Adrian Griffin |
| G |
3 |
Drew Cayce |
6-1 |
175 |
r-Jr. |
0.0 |
0.5 |
0.3 |
Walkon in third year |
| F |
4 |
Zach Griffith |
6-6 |
210 |
So. |
0.0 |
0.5 |
0.5 |
Walkon former manager |
| G |
5 |
Tevian Jones |
6-7 |
205 |
Fr. |
2.4 |
1.4 |
0.3 |
8 pts, 4 rebs vs UE |
| G |
10 |
Andres Feliz |
6-2 |
185 |
Jr. |
6.5 |
1.9 |
2.4 |
19 pts, 7-11 FG vs. UNLV |
| C |
12 |
Adonis De La Rosa |
7-0 |
260 |
Gr. |
3.2 |
2.3 |
0.3 |
12 pts, 4-6 FG at NW |
| G |
20 |
Da'Monte Williams |
6-3 |
200 |
So. |
4.5 |
3.3 |
1.3 |
10 pts, 8-10 FT at NW |
| F |
22 |
Anthony Higgs |
6-8 |
235 |
Fr. |
- |
- |
- |
Won 2 HS state titles in MD |
| G |
32 |
Tyler Underwood |
6-2 |
180 |
r-Jr. |
0.3 |
0.7 |
0.3 |
Son of Coach Underwood |
| C |
34 |
Samba Kane |
7-0 |
220 |
Fr. |
2.1 |
0.9 |
0.1 |
8 pts, 4-5 FG vs. UNLV |
| G |
35 |
Samson Oladimeji |
6-4 |
200 |
Jr. |
0.5 |
0.3 |
0.0 |
Walkon in third year |
Career Record: 127-57/.690 (6th year)
At Illinois: 18-30/.375 (2nd year)
Series Notes vs. Minnesota
Record: Illinois leads 122-67
Streak: Minnesota W-2
Record in Champaign: Illinois leads 71-19
Streak in Champaign: Minnesota W-1
Last Year's Meeting: MINN 77, ILL 67 (13/2018 @MINN)
Underwood vs. Minnesota: 0-1
Opening Tips
• Following a weekend bye, Illinois returns to action Wednesday night, hosting Minnesota at State Farm Center (8 p.m. CT, BTN).
• Freshman Ayo Dosunmu has been the Illini's leading scorer in each of the last four games, averaging 20.5 points and 5.8 rebounds with three 20-point performances.
• Dosunmu's 82 points over the last four games is the highest total by an Illini freshman in 20 years, since Cory Bradford also scored 82 over a four-game stretch as a redshirt freshman from Jan. 30-Feb. 11, 1999.
• Freshman Giorgi Bezhanishvili is averaging 11.7 points on 52.4 percent shooting over the last seven games, reaching double figures four times.
• This is the first time in school history that Illinois has two freshmen (Ayo Dosunmu-2 and Giorgi Bezhanishvili-3) among its top three season-leading scorers.
• Illinois has three underclassmen (So. Trent Frazier-1, Fr. Ayo Dosunmu-2, Fr. Giorgi Bezhanishvili-3) ranking as its top three leading scorers for the first time since the 2008-09 season (So. Demetri McCamey-1, So. Mike Davis-2, So. Mike Tisdale-3).
• Illinois is the only Big Ten team whose top three leading scorers on the season are all underclassmen.
• Illinois has either led (eight times), been tied (once), or trailed by two with the ball (once) during the second half in 10 of its 12 losses.
• Illinois currently ranks 78th in defensive adjusted efficiency (kenpom), an improvement of 51 spots over last season's final defensive rating.
• Illinois has played the No. 5-ranked schedule in the nation (kenpom).
• Illinois is 352nd in luck (kenpom), ranked second-to-last among all Div. I teams ahead of Mercer.
Flyin' Illini Bobblehead Series Continues with Marcus Liberty
To recognize the 30th anniversary of the 1988-89 Flyin' Illini squad that advanced to the Final Four, Fighting Illini Athletics has created a series of five former Flyin' Illini bobbleheads that will be featured at select home games this season: Kendall Gill (Jan. 10), Marcus Liberty (Jan. 16), Lowell Hamilton (Jan. 23), Kenny Battle (Feb. 2) and Nick Anderson (Feb. 5).
Wednesday's game vs. Minnesota is Marcus Liberty bobblehead night. Liberty started 24 games during the 1989 season as a sophomore, ranking fifth on the team in both scoring (8.4 ppg) and rebounding (3.9 rpg). He scored in double figures in 14 games, led by a season-high 21 points vs. Purdue (Feb. 20, 1989). Liberty's best performance during the NCAA Tournament run was a 14-point, 8-rebound, 3-steals effort in the Sweet 16 victory over No. 12 Louisville (March 24, 1989).
After averaging 17.8 points and 7.1 rebounds during his junior season, Liberty was a second-round pick in the 1990 NBA Draft by the Denver Nuggets. He played four seasons in the NBA with the Nuggets and Detroit Pistons, scoring nearly 2,000 points.
The entire five-player set is available for $39. Those who purchase the set will receive vouchers for each bobblehead, delivered via email approximately 48 hours prior to each game. The bobbleheads will be available for pick-up at State Farm Center at each respective player's game. For example, ticket holders who purchased a bobblehead for the Michigan game will show their voucher at State Farm Center on Jan. 10 to redeem their bobblehead. If you purchased multiple bobbleheads, the ticket holder will need to come to each game to redeem their vouchers.
Individual bobbleheads can be purchased in advance for $10 each, or on-site inside State Farm Center on game days for $15 each. In addition, each bobblehead will go on sale at GameDay Spirit for $25 the day after each bobble head game.
Bobbleheads must be claimed at the Marketing Table inside the State Farm Center West Lobby gate, or on the upper concourse on the North and South ends of State Farm Center on the designated pickup dates. A game ticket is required for entry to State Farm Center on game days and a voucher is required to get the bobblehead for that day. Bobbleheads will not be shipped.
» Complete Illinois-Minnesota Notes
