University of Illinois
Pitt
ACC/B1G Challenge Up Next for Illini Women's Basketball
November 29, 2022 | Women's Basketball
Preview
| ILLINOIS (6-1) at PITT (5-2) | |
|---|---|
| Date | Time | Wednesday, Nov. 30, 2022 | 4 p.m. CT |
| Location | Pittsburgh, Pa. | Petersen Events Center |
| Tickets | PittsburghPanthers.com |
| Live Stream | ACC Network | ESPN App |
| Radio | Busey Bank Illini Sports Network | Listen | Sirius XM Channel 371 |
| Live Stats | StatBroadcast |
| Printable Notes | Illinois | Pitt |
| Availability/Interviews | Pitt Preview (11/29) |
| Stats | Illinois | Pitt |
| Shop | Online Store | Auctions |
| Social Media | @IlliniWBB  | #Illini | @IlliniWBB  | Facebook  | YouTube  |
| Illinois Starters Last Game (80-83 loss vs. Delaware) | ||||||||
| Pos. | No. | Name | Ht. | Yr. | PPG | RPG | APG | Season Note |
| G | 3 | Makira Cook | 5-6 | Jr. | 14.3 | 3.9 | 4.3 | 11-of-22 3FG, Pts/Asts double double vs. Delaware |
| G | 12 | Jayla Oden | 5-9 | So. | 7.4 | 2.7 | 2.1 | 5 steals, 14-for-19 FT |
| G | 24 | Adalia McKenzie | 5-10 | So. | 15.1 | 5.3 | 1.4 | 10 steals, 51.8% FG, double double vs. Delaware |
| F | 23 | Brynn Shoup-Hill | 6-3 | So. | 4.6 | 5.4 | 0.9 | 16 OReb, 9 blocks, 4 steals |
| F | 44 | Kendall Bostic | 6-2 | Jr. | 8.7 | 8.6 | 1.1 | 75% FG, 8 blocks, 2 double doubles |
Head Coach Shauna Green
Career Record: 162-76 (.681), ninth year
Division I Record: 133-51 (.723), seventh year
At Illinois: 6-1, first year
Big Ten: 0-0
Series Notes vs. Pitt
All-Time Record: First Meeting
Record in Champaign: First Meeting
Streak: First Meeting
Last Meeting: First Meeting
Green vs. Opponent: First Meeting
Opening Tips
- Illinois opened its 49th season of women's basketball with a 6-0 record for just the fourth time in program history before suffering its first loss.
- Shauna Green is the first coach in program history to open her Illinois career with a 3-0 start and has pushed the new mark a 6-0 start.
- Illinois has five returners on the 2022-23 squad, including: Jada Peebles, Jayla Oden, Geovana Lopes, Adalia McKenzie and Kendall Bostic
- Shauna Green brought in eight newcomers since being hired on March 21, 2022 - four freshmen and four transfers.
- Illinois' transfers include: Genesis Bryant (NC State), Makira Cook (Dayton), Aicha Ndour (NW Florida State College) and Brynn Shoup-Hill. Those three programs went a combined 85-13 last season.
- Shauna Green's trio of assistant coaches are no strangers to her or each other. Green, Calamity McEntire, DeAntoine Beasley and Ryan Gensler were on the Dayton Women's Basketball staff together for four seasons from 2017-21. With those four coaches leading from the sidelines, the Flyers posted a 79-34 overall record across four seasons.
Pitt Story Lines
- The Panthers are off to a 5-2 start, owning wins over Coppin State, George Mason, Bryant, Duquesne and Towson.
- Pitt went 11-19 overall last season (2-16 ACC)
- The Panthers played in the Fort Myers Tip-Off over Thanksgiving, going 1-2 with losses to DePaul & Maryland.
NAME OF THE GAME IS DEFENSE
Illinois women's basketball has instilled the goal of holding opponents to 10 points or less per quarter. Through seven games, Illinois has limited opposition to 10 or less points in 10 of 28 chances. Opponents have been held below 15 points in 21 of those 28 periods.
| POINTS ALLOWED BY QUARTER | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| OPPONENT | Q1 | Q2 | Q3 | Q4 |
| LIU | 9 | 8 | 7 | 16 |
| Alcorn State | 10 | 15 | 26 | 8 |
| McNeese State | 7 | 5 | 13 | 13 |
| Evansville | 6 | 15 | 15 | 18 |
| Oakland | 13 | 13 | 13 | 16 |
| Charlotte | 10 | 13 | 7 | 13 |
| Delaware | 21 | 19 | 13 | 30 |
BEST STARTS TO A SEASON
In the first season under Shauna Green, Illinois women's basketball tied the second-best start in program with a 6-0 mark before suffering a loss. The Illini's start was the best for the program in 35 years.
| START | SEASON | OVERALL | COACH |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10-0 | 1981-82 | 21-9 | Jane Schroeder |
| 6-0 | 2022-23 | TBD | Shauna Green |
| 6-0 | 1986-87 | 19-10 | Laura Golden |
| 6-0 | 1980-81 | 20-11 | Jane Schroeder |
| 5-0 | 2014-15 | 15-16 | Matt Bollant |
| 5-0 | 2002-03 | 10-18 | Theresa Grentz |
| 4-0 | 2018-19 | 10-20 | Nancy Fahey |
| 4-0 | 2015-16 | 9-21 | Matt Bollant |
FIRST SEASONS AT A NEW SCHOOL
Shauna Green has quickly taken Illinois women's basketball out to a refreshing start. Green is one of 38 head coaches in their first season at a new school this season. Additionally, Green's 6-0 start put her in elite company. The following are teams that have secured a better start (or still could) than Illinois.
| START | TEAM | COACH | PREVIOUS STOP |
|---|---|---|---|
| 8-0* | Virginia | Amaka Agugua-Hamilton | Missouri State |
| 7-0 | Georgia | Katie Abrahamson-Henderson | UCF |
| 6-0 | Illinois | Shauna Green | Dayton |
| 5-0* | UCF | Sytia Messer | Assoc. HC (LSU) |
| * denotes streak still active | |||
DOUBLE DOUBLE-DOUBLE
In Illinois' first loss of the season, the Illini had two players record double-doubles for the first time in the same game since Dec. 2, 2020 vs. Valparaiso.
Adalia McKenzie registered the first double-double of her career with 22 points, 10 rebounds along with 5 steals.
Makira Cook added the second double-double of her career - first as an Illini - and put her own twist on it. Cook tallied 16 points and 10 assists. She's the first Illini with double-digit assists since Jeanae Terry did so at Minnesota on Feb. 10, 2021. Cook's points/assists double-double was just the 20th of its kind through three weeks of play when Cook achieved it. Only seven of those occurrences saw a player score more than 16 points.
A PERFECT OPENING HOMESTAND
- The Illini closed their season-opening homestand with a perfect 5-0 record for the best start since 2014-15.
- The Illini downed Oakland, 84-55.
- Illinois' last five-game win streak came in 2014-15.
- Four Illini finished in double-figure scoring.
- The win marked the 300th Illini WBB win in State Farm Center.
- Eleven different Illini scored and all 13 saw action.
- Illinois' last five-game home win streak came during the 2019-20 campaign.
4-0 START
- Win four of the 2022-23 campaign came in the form of a 93-54 victory over Evansville.
- Illinois scored 90 or more points for the third-straight game - the first time in program the feat has been achieved.
- The Illini led 50-21 at the half, marking three-straight games with a 50-point half for the first time in program history.
- Five Fighting Illini finished with double-digit points for the third game of the season.
- Illinois recorded 10 combined blocks for the first time since Jan. 23, 2018.
- The Illini secured a 4-0 start to the season for the first time since the 2018-19 campaign.
GOTTA GIVE THE KIDS WHAT THEY WANT
- Illinois hosted its annual Field Trip Day on Nov. 16, when the Illini took on McNeese State.
- Attendance was called at 8,141 - the 11th largest crowd in program history and top mark in the last 20 seasons.
- Early in the fourth quarter, the school kids began a "we want 100" chant. With 31 seconds left in the game, Camille Jackson sank a free throw to push the Illini into triple digits for the 100-38 victory.
- The 62-point margin of victory is the second-largest in program history.
- The Illini are now 5-1 in Field Trip Day games.
ANOTHER 30-POINT WIN
- Illinois women's basketball earned its second win of the season on Nov. 13, taking down Alcorn State, 90-59.
- The Illini connected for 12-of-23 from beyond the arc - tying the third-most 3-pointers made in a game in program history.
- Illinois scored 90 points in the game, the first time reaching the mark since Nov. 5, 2019 vs. Chicago State.
- Jada Peebles delivered 14 points for the 30th double-digit scoring effort of her career.
- Makira Cook dropped 21 points, marking the eighth 20+ point of her career and first as an Illini.
- Illinois shot better from 3-point territory 52.2% (12-of-23) than the field 45.2% (28-of-62).
- Freshman Kam'ren Rhodes made her Illinois debut in the win.
SHAUNA GREEN ERA BEGINS WITH A WIN
- Illinois dominated in its regular-season opener, defeating Long Island, 75-40, in the team's first game under head coach Shauna Green.
- Kendall Bostic recorded the seventh double-double of her career, recording a game-high and career-best 16 points and 11 rebounds
- Twelve different players registered minutes in the 35-point win, while five Illini recorded at least 10 points.
- The Illinois defense did not allow an LIU player into double-digit scoring - the first time no opposing player scored in double figures since Nov. 25, 2011, vs. Arizona State (Arizona State 51, Illinois 50).
- Seven Illini made their debut in the Orange and Blue in the win, including: Camille Jackson, Genesis Bryant, Makira Cook, Liisa Taponen, Aicha Ndour, Brynn Shoup-Hill and Samantha Dewey.
