CHAMPAIGN, Ill. – The Fighting Illini women's basketball team fell to Valparaiso, 62-59, on Wednesday night at the State Farm Center despite a pair of double-double efforts from sophomores Jeanae Terry and Kennedi Myles.
Terry recorded the first double-double of her career after leading the Illini (1-1) with 16 points and a career-high 13 rebounds. Her classmate, Kennedi Myles also recorded a double-double, the ninth of her career, notching 14 points and 11 boards.
The Crusaders (1-1) were led by the guard duo of senior Grace White (17 points and 9 rebounds) and redshirt-junior Carie Weinman (16 points, 4 rebounds).
The Illini came out strong, building a 13-6 edge after the first quarter before the Crusaders three-point shooting pulled them back into the contest. After leading by as many as nine point in the second quarter, Illinois allowed five Valpo treys in the stanza. The Crusaders' performance from beyond the arc helped them erase the Illini lead and stake to a 31-29 halftime advantage.
Illinois stormed back into the lead to begin the second half, and thanks to a 21-14 scoring edge in the third quarter, the Orange and Blue regained a 50-45 lead heading into the fourth. But Valparaiso answered again in the final quarter, and despite only leading the game for 4:53, the Crusaders scored the final six points of the game to edge out the Illini.
Illinois scored 40 points in the paint, but struggled at both the free-throw and three-point lines, going 10-for-22 (.455) and 1-for-16 (.063%), respectively. Illinois outrebounded Valparaiso 47-33, including an 18-6 edge on the offensive glass.
STAT OF THE GAME
- Jeanae Terry and Kennedi Myles became the first Illini teammates to record double-doubles in the same game since Nov. 24, 2018 when Alex Wittinger (32 points, 10 rebounds) and Brandi Beasley (10 points, 12 assists) accomplished the feat against Sacramento State.
TEAM NOTES
- The Illini held Valparaiso to just .133 shooting (2-for-15) in the first quarter, including 0-for-5 from beyond the arc. The Crusaders shot 19-for-40 (.475) overall the rest of the game while connecting on 10-of-21 three-pointers (.476) in the final three quarters.
- Illinois recorded advantages in points off turnovers (19-12), points in the paint (40-22), second-chance points (16-2), and fast-break points (7-2).
- The Illini's 1-for-16 three-point shooting marked the first time shooting 10 percent or worse from three-point range since hitting 2-for-20 (.010) vs. Northwestern on Dec. 28, 2019.
INDIVIDUAL NOTES
- Sophomore guard Jeanae Terry recorded her first-career double-double with a team-high 16 points and a career-high 13 rebounds. It marks the ninth time Terry has reached double-figures scoring in her Illini career, and the sixth time in her last 12 games dating back to last season.
- Sophomore forward Kennedi Myles' double-double marks the ninth of her career after setting an Illini freshman record with eighth last season. With 14 points, she has now scored in double-figures 15 times in Orange and Blue. Myles has also recorded 11 games as an Illini with 10 or more rebounds.
- Sophomore guard Jada Peebles' 10 points mark the sixth double-digit scoring game of her career and her second in three games dating back to the Illini's final game last season vs. Wisconsin at the Big Ten Tournament.
- Junior Geovana Lopes earned her first career start in place of injured center Eva Rubin.
NEXT UP
Illinois (1-1) hosts Omaha (1-1) at State Farm Center on Sunday, Dec. 6. Tipoff between the Fighting Illini and the Mavericks is set for 2 p.m. CT. The game will stream live on Big Ten Network+. Mike Koon will call the action on WDWS 1400-AM.
