MADISON, Wis. – The Fighting Illini women's basketball team came into Sunday's contest at Wisconsin looking for a season sweep of the Badgers after a dominant win in the first matchup at State Farm Center last month. But despite a double-double effort from sophomore forward Kendall Bostic, the Illini dropped a 70-62 decision at UW's Kohl Center to finish with a regular-season split of the series.
Bostic led the Illini (6-12, 1-6 B1G) with a career-high tying 15 points and 13 rebounds to notch her fourth double-double of the season. She was joined in double-figures scoring by graduate guard Sara Anastasieska, who returned to the starting lineup for the first time since Dec. 22 and delivered 13 points, including 10 in the first half.
Freshman guard Adalia McKenzie also impressed in the loss, pulling down a career-high eight rebounds to go along with six points off the bench, while fellow first-year guard Jayla Oden, making the first start of her collegiate career, added eight points while dishing out a team-leading five assists.
The Illini opened the game with a 12-8 lead in the first quarter before Wisconsin (6-16, 3-9 B1G) closed the period on a 10-0 run. UW's scoring run continued early in the second with the first four points of the period giving the Badgers a 22-12 lead. The Illini answered with a 10-0 run to knot the game with five minutes left before half. But UW closed the first half on a 13-2 run to lead by double-digits at the break.
Illinois continued to battle, despite shooting woes that saw the team miss their first 11 three-point attempts. The Orange and Blue outscored the host Badgers in both the third (18-17) and fourth quarters (20-18) and made it a two-possession game, 55-49, with 4:15 to play. However, Wisconsin sealed the win from the free-throw line by hitting six of eight attempts in the final 40 seconds.
Next up, Illinois opens a three-game home stand on Wednesday, playing host to No. 6/5-ranked Indiana at State Farm Center. Tipoff between the Illini and the Hoosiers is set for 7 p.m. CT, and the game will be streamed live on B1G+.
TEAM NOTES
- The Fighting Illini move to 6-12 overall (1-6 B1G), and are now 0-8 in games played away from State Farm Center.
- Sunday's game marked the first in 14 days for the Illini who had a stretch of three games postponed due to the on-going COVID-19 pandemic and Winter Storm Landon.
- Illinois falls to 39-41 all-time vs. Wisconsin. The loss snaps a two-game win streak in the series for the Illini.
- The Illini entered the game ranked 77th nationally in three-point shooting (.331) but missed their first 11 attempts on Sunday before finishing 4-for-17 (.235), the team's third-lowest single-season three-point effort of the year.
- Illinois used its seventh different starting lineup of the season as freshman Jayla Oden earned her first start at point guard and opened the game along with Jada Peebles, Aaliyah Nye, Sara Anastasieska, and Kendall Bostic.
INDIVIDUAL NOTES
- Freshman G Jayla Oden, making the first start of her collegiate career and scored eight points while dishing out a team-leading five assists, which tied her personal high. It marked the fifth time this season that Oden led the team in assists.
- Oden also tallied career highs in minutes (30) and free-throws made and attempted (6-for-6) vs. the Badgers.
- Graduate G Sara Anastasieska started, who earned her first start since Dec. 22 vs. Mizzou, tallied 10 points at halftime and finished with 13. It is her fifth game in double-figures scoring as an Illini.
- Sophomore F Kendall Bostic recorded her fourth double-double of the season with a career-high tying 15 points and a game-high 13 rebounds Bostic's 15 points are her most as an Illini, surpassing the 14 she scored in the season-opener vs. N.C. Central, and matching her 15-point career-high established vs. St. Francis (PA) as a freshman at Michigan State last season.
- It marks Bostic's 13th game of the season with 10+ boards. She entered the game ranking first in the Big Ten and fifth nationally at 11.88 rebounds per game, and has led the Illini in rebounding in 14 consecutive games, and 17 of 18 games overall this season.
- Freshman G Adalia McKenzie pulled down a career-high eight rebounds, surpassing her previous best of seven vs. Purdue on Jan. 20.
HIGHLIGHTS
