EVANSTON, Ill. - No. 21/23 Illinois fought off a late comeback attempt and returned to winning ways with a narrow 67-64 road victory against Northwestern on Sunday afternoon.
The Illini move to 16-4 overall and 6-3 in conference play this season and have now won back-to-back games against the Wildcats for the first time since 2013.
Three different Illinois scorers recorded double-digit points, while the victory marked the program's first in Evanston since 2014.
The Illini dominated in the lane, scoring 44 points in the paint, while they shot 49.1% from the field, the team's second-best mark in Big Ten action this season.
Illinois capitalized on turnovers, scoring 21 points on 18 Northwestern turnovers. The Illini also registered six blocks and six steals.
Genesis Bryant led all scorers with 18 points, 10 of which came in the fourth quarter. Bryant knocked down her lone 3-pointer with 18 seconds to play, and she has now hit at least one triple in each of her last 15 games. Bryant also recorded three assists and one steal.
Kendall Bostic registered her eighth double-double of the season, scoring 16 points and grabbing 13 rebounds in the victory. Bostic shot 80%, tallied five offensive boards, dished out two assists, and made a team-high three blocks.
Makira Cook scored 10 of her 14 points in the first half, though her two free throws with two seconds to play helped the Illini secure the win.
Jada Peebles provided a spark off the bench, recording nine points, her most since Dec. 21 and her highest mark in Big Ten play this season. Peebles made all three of her shot attempt, scored all nine points in the second half, and tallied two rebounds and one steal.
After a fast-paced first quarter in which neither team led by more than four points, the Illini led by two, 18-16, led by eight points on 80% shooting from Bostic. Illinois established itself in the paint early and often, scoring 16 of its 18 points in the lane.
Bostic achieved a double-double to close the second quarter, grabbing an offensive rebound and converting the second-chance putback to bring her up to 10 points and 10 rebounds, though the Illini trailed by one point at the break.
Though Illinois took a 31-30 deficit into halftime, both Bostic and Cook notched 10 points through two quarters of action. Nearly 75% of the Illini's first-half points came in the paint, while the visitors made five blocks in 20 minutes.
Opening the third quarter on a 7-1 run that included five points from Peebles, the Illini quickly jumped out to a five-point lead just over three minutes into the frame. After the Wildcats cut their deficit to a single point, a 6-0 run pushed the Illini advantage to seven points before Illinois eventually led, 47-41, heading into the final period of play.
The Illini extended their lead to a game-high eight points early in the frame on a Bostic jumper, and when the Wildcats cut their deficit to three with four minutes to play, Illinois used another scoring stretch to re-establish its advantage. A 5-0 run put the visitors ahead by eight with 90 seconds to play, and the Illini fought off a Northwestern comeback bid in the final minute to escape with the win.
Illinois (16-4, 6-3) will return to Champaign to open up a two-game homestand, taking on Purdue (13-6, 4-5) at State Farm Center on Thursday at 7 p.m. CT.
POST-GAME NOTES
Player Notes:
- Kendall Bostic scored 16 points, going 8-for-10 from the floor, and added 13 rebounds and two assists.
- Ended the first quarter with eight points and four rebounds.
- Recorded a first half double-double, with 10 points and 10 rebounds.
- Has back-to-back double-doubles.
- Posted her eighth double-double of the season.
- Has six double-doubles in her last nine games.
- Has grabbed at least seven rebounds in 12-straight games.
- Tallied her 13th game with double-digit rebounds
- Recorded a block for the 11th-consecutive game.
- Genesis Bryant scored a game-high 18 points, on 7-for-14 shooting, and dropped three assists.
- Has nine-straight games with at least 14 points scored.
- Makira Cook scored 14 points.
- Has scored in double-digits in 12-straight games.
- Adalia McKenzie scored eight points and added four assists.
- Jada Peebles scored nine points off of the bench, going 3-for-3 from the floor, including 2-for-2 from behind the arc.
Team Notes:
- lllinois held Northwestern scoreless the last 3:52 of the first quarter and first 1:58 of the second quarter for a 5:50 stretch.
- The Illini scored 16 of their 18 first quarter points in the paint.
- Illinois forced seven turnovers in the third quarter, holding Northwestern to just four field goals.
- Scored six points off of those turnovers.
- Illinois held Northwestern to just 10 points in the third quarter, marking the 14th occurrence this season.
- Illinois has won two-straight against Northwestern for the first time since earning wins over the Wildcats on Feb. 20, 2012 and Jan. 10, 2013.
- First win in Evanston since Jan. 15, 2014.
- First time winning two games over Northwestern in the same season since the 2009-10 campaign.
- The Illini have won at least 16 games in a season for the first time since 2012-13.
- Illinois has won six Big Ten games in a season for the first time since the 2014-15 season.Â
- Has scored at least 40 points in the paint in back-to-back games, the first time doing so this season since doing so on Nov. 21 and 25.
- Illinois scored 21 points off of 18 Northwestern turnovers.
Misc. Notes:
- Starters: Makira Cook, Genesis Bryant, Adalia McKenzie, Brynn Shoup-Hill, Kendall Bostic for the sixth-straight game. Illinois is now 5-2 with this unit.
- The Illini moved to 16-4 on the season.Â
- Illinois moves to 6-3 in Big Ten play.
- Illinois is 6-2 in true road games this season.
- Shauna Green is now:
- 16-4 at Illinois
- 6-3 in the Big Ten
- 143-54 as a Division I coach
- 172-79 overall
- Against Northwestern record: 36-49 (85th meeting)
- 14-24 when playing in Evanston.
- Shauna Green vs. Northwestern: 2-1
- Uniforms: Illinois is now 5-2 when wearing orange uniforms.
- Day games record: Illinois is now 10-3 in games played before 5 p.m.
