#6 ILLINOIS (13-5, 9-3) at Nebraska (4-11, 0-8)
Date | Time	Friday, Feb. 12, 2021 | 8 p.m. CT
Location	Lincoln, Neb. | Pinnacle Bank Arena
Television	BTN (Kevin Kugler & Shon Morris)
Live Stream	foxsports.com/live | Fox Sports App
Radio	Busey Bank Illini Sports Network | Listen | TuneIn | Sirius (Ch 83) XM (Ch. 83)
Live Stats	Huskers.com
Printable Notes	Illinois | Nebraska
Stats	Illinois | Nebraska | Big Ten
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Social Media	@IlliniMBB | #Illini | @IlliniMBB | Facebook | YouTube

Head Coach Brad Underwood

Career Record: 169-81 (.676), 8th year
At Illinois: 60-54 (.526), 4th year

Series Notes vs. Nebraska

Record: Illinois leads 16-8
Streak: Illinois W-2
Record at Lincoln: Nebraska leads 5-4
Streak at Lincoln: Nebraska W-2
Last Year's Meeting: ILL 71, NEB 59 (2/24/20 @ILL)
Underwood vs. Nebraska: 3-2

Opening Tips

• Winners of four straight, No. 6 Illinois is next on the road, playing at Nebraska Friday night (8 p.m. CT, BTN).

• Illinois is fourth in the current kenpom team rankings. That is the program's highest rating since the 2005 NCAA Runner-Up squad was second.

• Illinois owns a combined 10 victories in Quads 1 and 2, tied for most in the NCAA. Illinois' six Quad 1 wins, meanwhile, ranks third nationally.

• Leading the Illini is reigning Naismith Trophy and Big Ten Player of the Week Ayo Dosunmu. Owning numbers of 21.2 points, 6.4 rebounds, and 5.1 assists per game, Dosunmu is solidifying his candidacy for First-Team All-America status and has moved into the National Player of the Year conversation as well. He is the only player in the NCAA over the last 11 seasons to average at least 20 points, six rebounds and four assists, all while leading Illinois Basketball back among the nation's elite.

• The Illini have won three consecutive road games during league play for the second year in a row. Illinois heads to Nebraska aiming for its longest streak since setting a school record with 13 straight Big Ten road wins from Feb. 3, 2004 through Feb. 19, 2005.

• Illinois is looking for its first win at Nebraska since 2017. The Illini are 4-5 all-time in Lincoln, but just 1-4 at Pinnacle Bank Arena.

• Illinois' 9-3 league record is its best through 12 games since the 2010 Big Ten season (also 9-3). 

• Dosunmu earned national and league accolades after recording just the third triple-double in school history in last Saturday's win over Wisconsin, registering 21 points, 12 rebounds and 12 assists.

• Dosunmu is on pace to become just the second Big Ten player since 1993 to average 20 points, six rebounds and five assists, joining Ohio State's Evan Turner, the National Player of the Year in 2009-10.

• Kofi Cockburn ranks second in the NCAA with 13 double-doubles this season. He has posted double-doubles in 10 of 12 Big Ten games, averaging 18.8 points and 11.3 rebounds during league play. 

• At 17.2 ppg and 10.4 rpg, Cockburn is one of just three players from the high-major conferences currently averaging a double-double. He is on pace to become the first Illini player since Nick Weatherspoon in 1973 (25.0 ppg, 12.3 rpg) to average a double-double for an entire season.

• Trent Frazier has seen his scoring increase recently, averaging 16.0 points (64) while making an average of three treys per contest (12-32) over the last four games.

• Jacob Grandison has scored 32 points over the last five games (6.4 ppg) after totaling 29 points through this season's first 13 games (2.2 ppg). 

• Freshman Andre Curbelo ranks second in the Big Ten in assists during league play at 5.2 apg. He is averaging 4.4 assists on the season, currently ranking fifth on the school's all-time freshman assists chart behind legendary Illini point guards Bruce Douglas, Derek Harper, Dee Brown and Deron Williams.

• Da'Monte Williams leads the nation in 3-point shooting (min. 30 attempts), connecting on 23-of-39 for 59%.

• Since scoring a season-low 63 points in the Maryland loss, Illinois is averaging 78.0 points over the last five games (390).

• Illinois has held eight of its last nine opponents to less than 44% shooting. Since the loss to Ohio State, Illini foes are shooting a combined 39.9% over the last four games (99-248).

• Illinois is 11-1 this season when holding teams to less than 45% shooting.

• Illinois is 11-0 when shooting more free throws than its opponent, compared to 2-5 in games where it gets to the foul line less than the opposition.

Dos Does it Again

The awards are rolling in once again for Ayo Dosunmu. He has been named the Jersey Mike's Naismith Trophy Player of the Week by the Atlanta Tipoff Club as well as Big Ten Player of the Week for the second week in a row and fourth time this season by the conference office.

Dosunmu earns the honors after leading the Illini to a pair of victories last week, extending 6th-ranked Illinois' winning streak to four straight games:

• Averaged 15.5 points, 9.0 rebounds, 7.0 assists and 2.0 steals in Illinois' two Quad 1 victories last week. 

• Made national headlines in the win over No. 19 Wisconsin, recording just the third triple-double in school history and first since 2001.

• Registered 21 points, career-high tying 12 rebounds and career-high 12 assists as the Illini defeated the Badgers in Champaign for the first time since 2011.

• Recorded the first triple-double this season against a ranked team, and became the first Big Ten player to record a 20+ point triple-double against a ranked team since Michigan State's Denzel Valentine vs. No. 4 Kansas on Nov. 17, 2015.

• Helped Illinois earn its first win at Indiana since 2010, totaling 10 points, six rebounds and two steals in limited minutes due to foul trouble.

• Now averaging 21.2 points, 6.4 rebounds and 5.0 assists on the season, Dosunmu is vying to become just the fourth player nationally since 1993 to average 20 points, six rebounds and five assists, and first in the Big Ten since Ohio State's Evan Turner in 2009-10.

Notes from the Last Time Out

• Illinois snapped a seven-game losing streak against Wisconsin in Champaign, winning for the first time at home against the Badgers since 2011. 

• Illinois extended its winning streak to four games, trailing only Ohio State (5) among active Big Ten streaks.

• Illinois outrebounded Wisconsin 46-to-19, with the +27 margin its largest in a Big Ten game dating back to at least the 1996-97 season.  

• Ayo Dosunmu finished with 21 points, career-high tying 12 rebounds and career-high 12 assists to become the third Illini in history to record a triple-double:

     » Mark Smith, Feb. 1, 1979 vs. Minnesota - 18 points, 13 rebounds, 10 assists 

     » Sergio McClain, Jan. 13, 2001 vs. Michigan - 10 points, 11 rebounds, 11 assists

• Dosunmu became the first Illini in history to record a triple-double against a ranked team.

• Dosunmu became the first player in the NCAA this season to record a triple-double against a ranked team.  

• Dosunmu became the third player to record a 20+ point triple-double against a ranked team in the last 10 years, joining Dennis Smith Jr. (N.C. State) vs. No. 21 Virginia Tech, 1/4/2017 and Denzel Valentine (Michigan State) vs. No. 4 Kansas, 11/17/2015.

• Dosunmu became the first player to record a 20+ point triple-double in a Big Ten game since Ohio State's D'Angelo Russell at Rutgers 2/8/15 (23 pts, 11 reb, 11 ast).

• Dosunmu became the first player to record a 20+ point triple-double in a Big Ten game against a ranked team since 1999. Evan Eschmeyer (Northwestern) was the last to do it at No. 23 Indiana 1/13/1999 (27 points, 12 rebounds, 10 assists).

• Kofi Cockburn dominated inside, scoring a game-high 23 points on 10-of-13 shooting with a school-record 8 dunks, to go along with a game-high 14 rebounds for his 13th double-double of the season.

• Cockburn secured his double-double by halftime, tallying 12 points and 10 boards in the opening half.

» Complete Illinois Game Notes (PDF)