| Illinois Probable Starters (from the last game) |
| Pos. |
No. |
Name |
Ht. |
Wt. |
Yr. |
PPG |
RPG |
APG |
Note |
| G |
11 |
Ayo Dosunmu |
6-5 |
200 |
Jr. |
21.3 |
6.0 |
5.1 |
4-time Big Ten Player of the Week |
| G |
1 |
Trent Frazier |
6-2 |
175 |
Sr. |
10.0 |
2.9 |
2.6 |
13.8 ppg last 6 games |
| G |
44 |
Adam Miller |
6-3 |
180 |
Fr. |
8.7 |
2.5 |
0.7 |
34.5% 3FG (38-113) |
| G/F |
3 |
Jacob Grandison |
6-6 |
205 |
r-Jr. |
3.5 |
2.8 |
1.1 |
Illini 6-0 with him in starting lineup |
| C |
21 |
Kofi Cockburn |
7-0 |
285 |
So. |
17.4 |
10.6 |
0.2 |
15 double-doubles (2nd in NCAA) |
| Off the Bench |
| Pos. |
No. |
Name |
Ht. |
Wt. |
Yr. |
PPG |
RPG |
APG |
Note |
| F |
2 |
Connor Serven |
6-9 |
215 |
Fr. |
0.7 |
0.3 |
0.0 |
First year walkon |
| F |
4 |
Zach Griffith |
6-6 |
220 |
Sr. |
0.7 |
0.7 |
0.0 |
2x Academic All-B1G |
| G |
5 |
Andre Curbelo |
6-1 |
175 |
Fr. |
7.6 |
3.3 |
4.3 |
3rd in assists in B1G play (4.9) |
| G |
10 |
Edgar Padilla Jr. |
6-1 |
165 |
Fr. |
0.0 |
0.0 |
0.0 |
First year walkon |
| C |
12 |
Brandon Lieb |
7-0 |
210 |
Fr. |
1.3 |
1.7 |
0.3 |
4 pts, 3 reb in debut |
| F |
13 |
Benjamin Bosmans-Verdonk |
6-8 |
235 |
r-Fr. |
0.0 |
0.0 |
0.0 |
Made season debut Jan. 7 |
| F |
15 |
Giorgi Bezhanishvili |
6-9 |
245 |
Jr. |
5.7 |
2.6 |
0.6 |
59.5% FG (50-84) |
| G |
20 |
Da'Monte Williams |
6-3 |
215 |
Sr. |
5.2 |
5.4 |
1.9 |
57.5% 3FG (23-40) |
| G |
22 |
Austin Hutcherson |
6-6 |
175 |
r-Jr. |
– |
– |
– |
Out for season |
| G |
32 |
Tyler Underwood |
6-2 |
180 |
Gr. |
0.0 |
0.0 |
0.0 |
Working on 2nd grad. degree |
| F |
33 |
Coleman Hawkins |
6-10 |
215 |
Fr. |
1.5 |
0.8 |
0.4 |
Career-high 5 pts at NEB (Feb. 12) |
| C |
34 |
Jermaine Hamlin |
6-10 |
235 |
So. |
1.2 |
0.6 |
0.0 |
4 pts vs. MINN (Dec. 15) |
Career Record: 171-81 (.679), 8th year
At Illinois: 62-54 (.534), 4th year
Series Notes vs. Minnesota
Record: Illinois leads 125-68
Streak: Illinois W-2
Record at Minneapolis: Minnesota leads 48-45
Streak at Minneapolis: Minnesota W-2
Last Meeting: #13 ILL 92, MINN 65 (12/15/20 @ILL)
Underwood vs. Minnesota: 3-2
Opening Tips
• Winners of six in a row, No. 5 Illinois begins a stretch with three straight road games on Saturday afternoon at Minnesota (2:30 p.m. CT, FOX).
• Illinois has won four consecutive road games during league play (at PSU, at NW, at IND, at NEB), its best stretch since a school record 13-game Big Ten road winning streak from Feb. 3, 2004 through Feb. 19, 2005.
• Illinois' 11-3 conference record is its best through 14 games since the 2005 Big Ten championship team started 14-0 en route to a 15-1 league record.
• Illinois' six-game winning streak is the fourth-longest active streak among teams from the high-major conferences behind undefeated Baylor (17), Ohio State (7) and USC (7).
• Illinois is fourth in the current NET rankings, and No. 5 overall (No. 2 seed) in the NCAA Tournament Committee's initial ranking of the top 16 teams.
• Illinois has six Quad 1 wins, tied for third-most in the NCAA. The Illini own a combined 10 victories in Quads 1 and 2, meanwhile, tied for fourth nationally.
• Illinois checks in at No. 5 in this week's AP rankings. It is the first time the Illini appear in the Top 5 of a February poll since 2005, and just the fourth time in the last 65 seasons (1989, 2001 and 2005).
• Over the last two Big Ten seasons, Illinois has the best win percentage (.706) and most league wins (24).
• Leading the Illini is Ayo Dosunmu. Owning numbers of 21.3 points, 6.0 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. He is the only player in the NCAA over the last 11 seasons to average at least 20 points, six rebounds and five assists, all while leading Illinois Basketball back among the nation's elite.
• 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.
• Dosunmu ranks 11th in the NCAA in scoring at 21.3 ppg. That is the highest average by an Illini since Rick Schmidt in 1974 (21.4 ppg).
• Kofi Cockburn ranks second in the NCAA with 15 double-doubles this season. He has posted double-doubles in 12 of 14 Big Ten games, averaging 18.8 points and 11.3 rebounds during league play.
• At 17.4 ppg and 10.6 rpg overall, 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.
• Cockburn is one of seven players nationally averaging at least 17 points and 10 rebounds, and he is the only player in the NCAA averaging 15+ points and 10+ boards while shooting at least 65%.
• Dosunmu and Cockburn are combining for 38.7 points per game, the sixth-highest duo nationally, and third from among the high-major conferences.
• Trent Frazier has seen his scoring increase recently, averaging 13.8 points (83) while making an average of 2.7 treys per contest (16) over the last six games.
• Freshman Andre Curbelo ranks third in the Big Ten in assists during league play at 4.9 apg. He is averaging 4.3 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.
• Illinois has freshmen playing prominent roles for the fourth year in a row under Coach Underwood. Adam Miller has started every game this season and ranks third among all Big Ten freshmen in scoring, averaging 8.7 ppg.
• Da'Monte Williams is second in the NCAA in 3-point shooting (min. 1.5 att/g), connecting on 23-of-40 for 57.5%.
• Since scoring a season-low 63 points in the loss to Maryland, Illinois is averaging 77.1 points over the last seven games (540).
• Illinois has held 10 of its last 11 opponents to less than 44% shooting. Since the loss to Ohio State, Illini foes are shooting a combined 39.8% over the last six games (150-377).
• Illinois is 13-1 this season when holding teams to less than 45% shooting.
Building a Winner
Head Coach Brad Underwood came to Champaign to recapture the success the program has achieved historically. The transformation has happened in a relatively short amount of time. In his third season last year, the Illini finished in sole possession of fourth place – just one game back of the league title – to earn a bye to the Big Ten Tournament quarterfinals for the first time since 2011.
His fourth Illini squad is ranked No. 5 nationally and currently sits one-half game out of first place in the Big Ten standings.
Putting them together, Illinois owns the highest winning percentage and the most victories over the last two Big Ten seasons:
Big Ten Win Percentage (2020 & 2021)
1. Illinois .706 (24-10)
2. Michigan .645 (20-11)
T3. Wisconsin .639 (23-13)
T3. Ohio State .639 (23-13)
5. Iowa .600 (21-14)
Big Ten Wins (2020 & 2021)
1. Illinois 24
T2. Wisconsin 23
T2. Ohio State 23
T4. Iowa 21
T4. Maryland 21
Notes from the Last Time Out: #5 Illini 73, Northwestern 66 | Box Score
• Illinois won its sixth-straight Big Ten game. This follows last season when the Illini had a seven-game win streak during league play.
• Illinois held Northwestern to 42.2% shooting, the sixth-straight UI foe to shoot less than 44%. Illinois improved to 13-1 on the season when opponents shoot less than 45%.
• Illinois shot 60% in the first half against the Wildcats, its best shooting half since making 61.3% vs. Minnesota 1/16/19.
• Ayo Dosunmu finished with 13 points and game-high 5 assists. He has scored at least 10 points in 35 straight games, the fourth-best active double-figure scoring streak in the nation and longest by a high-major conference player.
• The best closer in college basketball, Dosunmu closed out another victory, hitting back-to-back 3-pointers with 1:20 remaining and then 36 seconds left to turn a 65-63 lead into a 71-63 Illini advantage.
• Dosunmu is now 12-18 from the field in the final 90 seconds of regulation and overtime this season, according to ESPN Stats & Info.
• Kofi Cockburn finished with 17 points and game-high 10 rebounds, recording his third-straight double-double and 15th of the season.
• Cockburn's 15 double-doubles rank second in the NCAA this season and are tied for most by an Illini in a season since 1987 (Mike Davis also had 15 in 2009-10).
• Giorgi Bezhanishvili added 10 points on 5-7 FG, tallying double figures for first time in 12 games and fourth time on the season
» Complete Illinois Game Notes (PDF)
