PREVIEW
Opening Tip
Fighting Illini women's basketball returns to the court Sunday afternoon in a matchup against the Eastern Kentucky Colonels at State Farm Center.
» Tipoff between the Fighting Illini (3-4) and the Colonels (2-3) is set for 2 p.m. CT.
» The game will be streamed live on B1G+ with Scott Beatty (play-by-play), Enji Erdenekhuyag (analyst), and Lucas Gottshall (sideline).
» Mike Koon will call the action for the Illini on the Busey Bank Illini Sports Network (1400 AM / 93.9 FM).
» Streaming audio and live stat is also available at FightingIllini.com.
About The Illini
Illinois enters Sunday's matchup vs. Eastern Kentucky with a 3-4 record, and are looking to snap a three-game losing streak that includes setbacks to Dayton and Middle Tennessee at the Daytona Beach Invitational over the Thanksgiving weekend, and Thursday's loss to No. 25-ranked Florida State in the Big Ten/ACC Challenge.
» The Illini are 3-2 at home this season with wins over NC Central (W, 76-53), Miami (OH) (W, 72-65), and UC Riverside (W, 86-82). The team's other loss, prior to Thursday vs. FSU, came in a 71-62 decision vs. SIUE.
» Offensively, the new-look Illini have opened the season with a much-improved scoring average from last season. Through seven games, the Illini are averaging 66.3 points per game, an improvement of 6.7 points per game over last year's season average of 59.6 ppg.
» Leading scorer, sophomore G Aaliyah Nye, is averaging 12.9 ppg, an improvement of nearly 5 points per game from her freshman campaign (8.1 ppg).
» Behind Nye, the Illini's offensive attack has been balanced with seven other players tallying at least one double-digit scoring game so far this season, and six others - Jayla Oden (9.3), Jada Peebles (9.1), De'Myla Brown (8.3), Adalia McKenzie (6.9), Sara Anastasieska (6.9), and Kendall Bostic (6.4) - entering action vs. EKU averaging better than 6.0 ppg.
» Sophomore F Kendall Bostic ranks as the team's top rebounder, pulling down 10.0 boards per contest. Bostic enters the weekend ranked third in the Big Ten and 28th nationally in the category.
About Eastern Kentucky
Eastern Kentucky comes into Sunday's game with a 2-3 overall record. The Colonels have been idle since a 73-60 loss to Xavier on Nov. 27.
» EKU is 2-1 at home with a pair of big wins over Transylvania (74-51) and Union (KY) (120-53) prior to the loss to Xavier in their most recent outing.
» Between the two home victories, the Colonels dropped a pair of road contests at Northern Kentucky (76-61) on Nov. 14, and at Evansville (67-57) on Nov. 17.
» Senior F Jayla Johnson, one of three returning seniors for EKU, leads the team in scoring (14.8 ppg), and is coming off a 17-point, 7-rebound game vs. Xavier.
» Redshirt-sophomore G/F Ariel Kirkwood, the team's second-leading scorer at 10.6 ppg., leads the EKU roster in rebounding at 8.0 boards per contest.
» Redshirt-freshman G Alice Recanati, from Bergamo, Italy, averages a team-most 4.4 assists per game, and also leads the team with 17 steals in just five games.
Series vs. Eastern Kentucky
Sunday's matchup vs. Eastern Kentucky marks the first in the series between the Illini and the Colonels.
Current Illini vs. the Colonels
No members of the current Fighting Illini roster have ever faced the Florida State Seminoles. No members of the current Fighting Illini roster have ever faced Eastern Kentucky.
Up Next
The Fighting Illini open Big Ten action on Thursday, travelling to East Lansing, Mich., for a matchup vs. the Michigan State Spartans.
» Tipoff between the Illini and the Spartans is set for 6 p.m. CT with a live stream available on Big Ten+.
» MSU is off to a 6-3 start, and is schedule to visit No. 9/12 Iowa on Sunday afternoon.
Follow The Illini
For more Fighting Illini women's basketball news, stay tuned to FightingIllini.com and follow @IlliniWBB on social media: Twitter | Instagram | Facebook.
FULL GAME NOTES (PDF)
