The University of Illinois has instituted a proof of COVID-19 vaccination or negative-test protocol for all university sponsored events open to the public with more than 200 people in attendance. This policy will be in effect for Thursday's Illinois vs. Purdue women's basketball game at State Farm Center. CLICK HERE FOR MORE INFORMATION
PREVIEW
Opening Tip
The Fighting Illini women's basketball team opens up a two-game home stand this week with a Thursday matchup against Purdue.
» Tipoff between the Fighting Illini (6-9, 1-3 B1G) and the visiting Boilermakers (11-6, 2-4 B1G) is set for 7 p.m. CT at State Farm Center.
» The game will be streamed live on B1G+ with Anthony Pasquale (play-by-play), George Khouri (analyst).
» 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 stats are also available at FightingIllini.com.
» Thursday's game marks the 1,000th in the Hall of Fame career of Illinois head coach Nancy Fahey, who will be recognized before tipoff.Â
About the Illini
Illinois enters Thursday's game vs. Purdue with an overall record of 6-9 (1-3 B1G), and will be looking for their second consecutive Big Ten home win, and their second consecutive home win over Purdue.
» The Illini are 6-3 at home, most recently coming off of a dominant 68-47 victory over Wisconsin on Jan. 9.
» The team is 0-6 away from home, including a pair of neutral-site losses as part of the Daytona Beach Invitational in November.
» Offensively, the Illini have opened the season with an improved scoring average from last season. Through 15 games, the Illini are averaging 66.0 points per game, an improvement of more than six points per game over last year's season average of 59.6 ppg.
» Illinois enter Thursday's matchup vs. Purdue with a 5-1 mark in games in which the Illini offense scores at least 70 points.
» Leading scorer, sophomore G Aaliyah Nye, is averaging 11.7 ppg, an improvement of almost four points per game from her freshman campaign (8.1 ppg).
» Nye is joined by junior G De'Myla Brown in double-figures scoring for the Illini, averaging 10.2 points per game.
» Behind Nye and Brown, the Illini's offensive attack has been balanced with seven other players tallying at least one double-digit scoring game, and two others - Adalia McKenzie (9.0) and Jada Peebles (8.9) - entering action vs. Purdue averaging better than 8.0 ppg. Â
» Sophomore F Kendall Bostic is the top rebounder in the Big Ten Conference and enters play this week ranked fifth nationally at 12.07 rebounds per game.Â
About Purdue
Purdue enters Thursday's game with an overall record of 11-6 (2-4 B1G), and is coming off of a 73-68 home loss to No. 6/5 Indiana on Sunday (Jan. 16).
» The Boilermakers were an impressive 9-2 in non-conference play, including a 66-61 neutral-site victory over No. 17/22 Florida State in the St. Pete Showcase.
» In Big Ten play Purdue opened with losses vs. No. 18/20 Ohio State (70-53) and at No. 8/7 Maryland (86-71) on Dec. 5th and 8th, respectively. They then captured a home win over Rutgers (60-58) on Jan. 2, followed by a road win at Michigan State (69-59) on Jan. 9, before suffering setbacks vs. Iowa (79-66) and Indiana (73-68) last week.
»  Purdue is 3-1 on the road this year with wins at Western Kentucky (79-69), at Illinois State (76-64), and at Michigan State (69-59). Their only road loss came at No. 8/7 Maryland (86-71) on Dec. 8.
» Purdue is led by sophomore G Madison Layden who averages 12.7 ppg. Layden is one of three Boilermakers to average double-figures scoring along with sophomore C Ra Shaya Kyle (11.0 ppg), who has missed the last eight games with a leg injury, and junior G Abbey Ellis (11.0 ppg). A pair of senior guards, Brooke Moore and Cassidy Hardin, are just shy of double-figures at 9.9 ppg and 9.8 ppg, respectively.
» Ra Shaya Kyle, prior to her injury, also led the Boilermakers in rebounding at 5.7 rpg, ranking just ahead of former Illini Jeanae Terry (5.6 rpg) and junior F Rickie Woltman (5.2 rpg).
» Head coach Katie Gearlds, a Purdue ('07) alumna, is in her first season at the helm of the program after previously serving as the head coach for eight seasons at NAIA institution, Marian (IN).Â
Series vs. Purdue
Thursday's game vs. Purdue marks the 82nd in the series between the Illini and the Boilermakers, and is the first of two matchup scheduled for this season.
» The series is the second-longest in Illinois program history, trailing Illinois-Northwestern by just one game.
» Illinois trails in the all-time series, 19-62. The Illini are 13-24 in games played in Champaign, while posting a 5-33 record in West Lafayette, and a 1-5 mark in neutral-site contests.
» The programs split a pair of meetings last season decided by a total of just 9 points.
» Illinois captured a thrilling 54-49 home win on Feb. 7, 2021 as Aaliyah Nye recorded eight points - all in the final 6:02 - including a clutch three-pointer in the that gave the Illini their last lead with 41 seconds to play.
» Purdue held off a late comeback effort in West Lafayette on Feb. 28, 2021. The Illini erased a 16-point fourth-quarter deficit to tie the game with 2:21 remaining, and had a chance to take the lead on a Jada Peebles three-point attempt with 10 seconds remaining, before the Boilermakers sealed the win at the free-throw line. Â
1K For Coach Fahey
Nancy Fahey will coach in her 1,000th collegiate game when the Illini tip off vs. Purdue on Thursday. The Hall of Fame head coach will be recognized at State Farm Center prior to tipoff vs. the Boilermakers.
» Fahey enters Thursday's game with a career record of 778-221 (.779) in her 36th season as a collegiate head coach.
» She will become the 51st coach in NCAA history (24th active coach across all NCAA Divisions) to coach more than 1,000 games.
» With 5,841 women's basketball coaches in the NCAA records database, Fahey's reaching 1,000 games is a milestone reached by just 0.8 percent of coaches in the history of the sport.
» Fahey led WashU in 870 contests, including a record five national championships, in her 31 years at the helm of the Bears' program. She has now coached in 129 games at Illinois entering Thursday.
» Fahey is one of two coaches with Illini ties to reach 1,000 career games, joining Theresa Grentz who coached 366 of her 1,043 career games for the Orange and Blue.
Up Next
The Fighting Illini close out the week's two-game home stand, welcoming Nebraska to State Farm Center for a Sunday afternoon tilt. Â
» Tipoff between the Illini and the visiting Cornhuskers is set for 2 p.m. CT.
» Nebraska, which is receiving votes in the USA Today/WBCA Coaches Top-25 poll, is 13-4 (2-4 B1G) entering play this week.
» The Huskers host Rutgers on Thursday night at Pinnacle Bank Arena in Lincoln, Neb.Â
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)
