CHAMPAIGN, Ill. – The Fighting Illini women's basketball team took No. 20 Indiana to the brink Thursday night behind a game-high 19 points from senior forward Ali Andrews and a career-best 15 points from freshman guard Jeanae Terry, but it was not enough as the Hoosiers escaped State Farm Center with a 59-54 victory.
The Illini (11-13, 2-11) were a motivated group, entering the contest looking for their second straight victory after a 70-66 road win in their last outing at Penn State. The team fed off that energy to force Indiana into 11 first-half turnovers and led by as many as nine midway through the second quarter before Indiana (20-6, 10-4) closed the half on a 7-0 run to pull within two points, 27-25, at the intermission.
The second half was a back-and-forth affair as the teams combined for six of eight lead changes and and four of six ties in the final two quarters.
Illinois claimed its final lead of the game, 49-47 at the 4:05 mark of the fourth quarter, when freshman forward Kennedi Myles cleaned up the Terry miss in the paint with a tough offensive rebound and layup. The rebound was one of six on the night for Myles who tied senior guard Courtney Joens for team-high honors.
Moments later, Indiana tied the game at 49 on a pair of free throws from junior guard Ali Patberg, who led the Hoosiers with 17 points. Illini junior guard Petra Holešínská was then called for an intentional foul with 3:31 to play, resulting in a pair of Indiana points from the stripe by junior guard Jaelynn Penn, and another bucket on a layin by sophomore forward Aleksa Gulbe, two of her 15 points, with 3:13 remaining.
Illinois battled to the end, however, as a Terry trey with 25 seconds on the clock cut the Indiana lead back to a single possession, 57-54. But Indiana closed out the contest from the free-throw line as Penn sunk all four of her attempts in the final 28.1 seconds to seal the win.
Illinois now turns its attention to Sunday's home matchup against Purdue. Tipoff on Senior Day is set for 2 p.m. CT at State Farm Center.
Team Notes
- Illinois moves to 11-13 on the season and 2-11 in Big Ten play.
- Indiana was held to 13% from three-point range, the lowest allowed by the Illini this season.
- Illinois forced 11 Hoosier turnovers in the 1st half and 17 overall.
Individual Notes
- Ali Andrews (19 points) and Jeanae Terry (15) led the way both scoring double digits.
- Andrews' 19-point outburst included a 3-for-4 showing from beyond the arc.
- Terry's 15 points and 5 steals both marked career highs.
