PREVIEW
OPENING TIP: Illinois (2-10, 0-9 B1G) travels to East Lansing, Mich., for a Thursday evening showdown with Michigan State (9-4, 4-4 B1G). Tipoff between the Illini and the Spartans is set for 8 p.m. ET/7 p.m. CT from MSU's Breslin Center. The game will be broadcast live on Big Ten Network. Mike Koon will call the action for the Illini on WDWS 1400 AM. Streaming audio and live stats are also available at FightingIllini.com.
ABOUT MICHIGAN STATE: Michigan State enters Thursday's game with an 9-4 overall record, including 4-4 start to Big Ten play. Most recently, the Spartans, who have had four games postponed in the last three weeks, suffered back-to-back conference losses at then-No. 7/10 Maryland (92-52) and at then No. 16/15 Indiana (79-67). Junior G Nia Clouden, who has tallied more than 1,000 points in her MSU career, paces the Spartans' offensive attack at 19.1 points per game. Clouden is one of four MSU players averaging better than 9.5 points per game alongside sophomore G Alysa Winston (11.4 ppg), junior F Alisia Smith (9.7 ppg) and sophomore G Julia Ayrault (9.5 ppg). Sophomore F Taiyier Parks is the team's top rebounder at 5.6 boards per contest, just ahead of Ayrault (5.0 rpg). The Spartans average 78.2 points per game, while holding opponents to 68.7 per contest. Michigan State ranks among the NCAA leaders in several categories including No. 7 in assists per game (19.2), No. 9 in assist-to-turnover ratio (1.45), No. 26 in scoring offense (78.2 ppg), No. 28 in field-goal percentage (.459), and No. 33 in both turnover margin (+4.38) and turnovers per game (13.3).
SERIES VS. MICHIGAN STATE: Thursday's matchup is the 73rd in the series between the Illini and the Spartans. Michigan State leads the all-time series, 44-28, including a 23-10 advantage in games played in East Lansing. The Illini are looking to snap an eight-game MSU win streak in the series. The last Illini win the series was Jan. 23, 2014, a 61-51 victory at the Breslin Center.
LAST TIME VS. MICHIGAN STATE: The first matchup between Illinois and Michigan State, scheduled for Jan. 14 at State Farm Center, was postponed due to COVID-related concerns within the MSU program. The most recent meeting between the two programs came Feb. 26, 2020 in the Illini's regular-season home finale. Michigan State grabbed the 72-58 win, using a 10-0 run to close out the second quarter to pull away. Jeanae Terry tallied 10 points and six rebounds for the Orange and Blue, while Kennedi Myles finished just shy of a double-double with nine points and 10 rebounds.
UP NEXT: The Fighting Illini welcome the Purdue Boilermakers to State Farm Center for a Super Bowl Sunday showdown. Tipoff between the Illini and the Boilermakers (6-7, 3-6 B1G) - who host Penn State on Sunday - is set for 2 p.m. CT. The game will be streamed live on Big Ten Network+. Mike Koon will call the action for the Illini on WDWS 1400 AM. Streaming audio and live stats are also available at FightingIllini.com
FULL GAME NOTES (PDF)
