CHAMPAIGN, Ill. – In front of a loud and energetic State Farm Center crowd, Illinois took down Saint Peter's, 103-33, on Wednesday afternoon. The game marked the Fighting Illini's seventh-annual Field Trip Day contest, with 11,563 fans filling the stands in Champaign, setting the fourth-highest attendance in program history.
With over 90 schools represented among the stands, the Orange and Blue led from start to finish en route to a 70-point win, the third-largest margin of victory in program history.
Jada Peebles led the way offensively, scoring 16 of her team-high 19 points in the first half. Peebles knocked down five 3-pointers and recorded a team-best +46 when she was on the floor.
Cori Allen tallied a career-high 16 points, 13 of which came in the second half. Allen, who had not registered a collegiate point before Wednesday, made six of her nine shot attempts and finished her career-high 21 minutes of play with six rebounds, three assists, and a block.
Shay Bollin scored eight straight Illini points in the fourth quarter before ending her afternoon with a career-high 14 points, and she hit her first 3-pointers of his college career. Bollin also had four rebounds, two assists, and a block.
Kendall Bostic recorded her 20th double-double of her Illini career, moving her into a tie for 13th place in program history. Bostic notched 14 points and 10 rebounds despite only playing 19 minutes.
The Illini registered an assist on 24 of their 38 field goals, with Kam'Ren Rhodes and Genesis Bryant leading the way with six apiece, a mark that set Rhodes' new career high. Adalia McKenzie ended her afternoon with five assists, her most in a game this season.
Illinois held Saint Peter's to only three second-half field goals, holding the Peacocks to single-digit points in three quarters. The Illini capitalized on 18 turnovers, scoring 20 points on those takeaways. Dominating the paint, the Orange and Blue won the battle in the lane, 42-20, and out-rebounded the Peacocks, 48-30, while scoring 20 second-chance points on 16 offensive rebounds.
The Illini started fast, opening the game with a Bryant triple before Saint Peter's called its first timeout of the frame with the home side ahead, 8-2. Back-to-back Peebles 3-pointers and consecutive Brynn Soup-Hill layups helped Illinois go on a 21-0 run and eventually take a 27-4 advantage through 10 minutes of play. The Illini defense played a big role in that stretch, as Illinois forced 14 straight misses and held the Peacocks without a basket for over eight minutes.
That lead continued to grow early in the second quarter. The Illini began the frame with a 6-0 run, which included Bryant second trey of the afternoon. Illinois led by as many as 33 points during the frame, and the Orange and Blue headed into halftime with a 50-19 edge.
Peebles led all scorers with 16 points before the break, while the Illini shot 61% from the field and 67% from behind the arc in the first half. 10 different players registered minutes during the first two quarters of play, with eight Illini knocking down a field goal.
Picking up right where she left off, Peebles opened the second half with her fifth 3-pointer of the day, the fifth time in her career she has reached that mark. A 12-0 run capped off by a Rhodes triple and back-to-back Allen layups extended the lead to 44 points with less than four minutes to play in the third quarter. Allowing only one field goal in the frame, the Illini closed the quarter with a 73-27 lead.
The Illini started the final period of play with a 10-1 run, which ended after Saint Peter's knocked down its first field goal in over 12 minutes of action. Back-to-back Bollin 3-pointers began a 12-0 run that ultimately was capped off by an Allen and-one layup. With the passionate State Farm Center crowd pushing the team on, Illinois closed the contest with an 8-0 run to clinch a 70-point win.
Illinois (2-1) travels to Washington D.C. for the Citi Shamrock Classic against No. 16 Notre Dame. The nationally televised broadcast from Entertainment & Sports Arena will air on NBC and Peacock at 12 p.m. CT on Saturday.
POSTGAME NOTES
Player Notes
- Kendall Bostic recorded her 20th double-double in her Illini career with 14 points and 10 rebounds.
- Grabbed her 10th rebound with 5:41 left in the 3rd quarter.
- Tied for 13th most double-doubles in Illini history.
- Jada Peebles registered a team-high 19 points on 60% shooting.
- Led all players at half with 16 points
- Fifth time in her career with at least five 3-pointers in a game
- Cori Allen tallied 16 points, six rebounds, and three assists.
- Career high in minutes (21), points (16), rebounds (6), and assists (3)
- Shay Bollin finished with a career high 14 points.
- Knocked down her first career 3-pointers on back-to-back possessions in the fourth quarter on her way to eight straight Illini points.
- Scored the 100th point of the game with 0:56 left in the fourth quarter.
Team Notes
- Saint Peter's won the tip, but the Illini scored first on a Genesis Bryant 3-pointer at the 8:56 mark.
- Four Illini finished in double-figure scoring: Jada Peebles, Kendall Bostic, Cori Allen, and Shay Bollin.
- The Illini accumulated 103 points in the game, their most in a contest since scoring 107 points in a 109-107 loss to Sacramento State on Nov. 24, 2018.
- It is the 17th time the program has hit the century mark.
- The program is 16-1 in games in which they hit triple digits.
- 103 points are the most in an Illini win since Nov. 17, 2013, vs. Alcorn State (112)
- Illinois has scored at least 100 points in back-to-back seasons for the first time since the 1998-99 and 1999-2000 campaigns.
- Illinois' largest run of the contest was an 21-0 burst that spanned the majority of the first quarter
- Illinois shot 59.4% from the field on 38-of-64 shooting.
- Illinois registered 24 assists, recording an assist on 63% of made baskets.
- The team's 24 assists are the Illini's most in a game since also recording 24 on Jan. 26, 2016, at Minnesota.
- Nine Illini players registered minutes in the first quarter alone, while 13 Illini registered minutes over the course of the game.
- Eleven different Illini scored during the contest, their most in a game this season.
- First time holding an opponent to single-digit points in a quarter this season (4 in Q1).
- Eight players scored in the first half, led by 16 from Peebles.
- Wednesday's win marked the first time the Illini have held their opponent to single-digit points in multiple quarters since Nov. 16, 2022, against McNeese State at last year's Field Trip Day.
- No opposing player scored in double figures for the first time since Nov. 25, 2022, against Charlotte.
- The Illini knocked down 12 3-pointers, which is tied for the fourth-biggest attendance in program history.
- The game marked the first time allowing single-digit points in three quarters since Nov. 4, 2022, against LIU.
- Saint Peter's scored 4 points in the first quarter, 8 points in the third quarter, and 6 points in the fourth quarter.
- The 70-point margin of victory is the third-largest margin of victory in program history and the second-largest margin of victory at home.
- The Illini held Saint Peter's without a field goal for over 12 minutes in the second half.
- The Illini allowed only three field goals in the second half.
- The first quarter of Wednesday game was the first time the Illini held an opponent to 4 points or fewer in a quarter since March 9, 2021, against Wisconsin in the Big Ten tournament.Â
Misc. Notes
- Starters: Genesis Bryant, Jada Peebles, Brynn Shoup-Hill, Adalia McKenzie, Kendall Bostic
- This lineup is now 2-1 on the season.
- Shauna Green is now:
- 24-11 at Illinois
- 151-61 as a Division I coach
- 180-86 overall
- Illinois set a new program record for Field Trip Day attendance at 11,563.
- That is the fourth-largest single-game attendance in program history and the largest mark since 2000.
- Illinois vs. Saint Peter's record: 2-0 (Second meeting)
- Illinois is now 1-0 when wearing white uniforms.
- The Illini are now 1-1 in games that tip off before 5 p.m.
- The Illini are now 2-1 in November.
QUOTES
Opening statement:
"Great atmosphere. We had 11,563 and I think 10,000 kids, so it was just a great experience, hopefully, for all those kids. We gave them a pretty good game to watch in terms of scoring, so hopefully they had fun with that. I know last year, we scored 100 on Field Trip Day, too, so they were chanting. I think we were like 20-something points away, and they were counting down already. They worked on their math skills, which was a good thing for them since they got out of school.
"Overall, it's always great to see your whole bench get to play and get game experience and minutes. A lot of people stepped up, but I thought we came out and took care of business right away. That's something that we talked about. We needed to come out here, not mess around, take care of business, defend like we know we want to defend, really get our transition going, which we did. We had 24 points in Phoenix, our transition, in the first half, which is something that we were really intentional about.
"I really liked our start, and then I thought the second half, our bench came in and did a great job of sustaining and then propelling us to be able to finish with the huge victory."
On Cori Allen and Shay Bollin's performances:
"Being a freshman or being in your first year as a transfer is hard. Everything's new. You're learning a whole new system. You're learning my expectations, our standards. There's just so much. You gotta stay ready because you just never know. We've seen that. We've had injuries. We had another injury. You gotta be ready.Â
"Today, even at half, I got on them a little bit because I thought our bench could have had a little bit more juice, a little bit more energy coming off. They responded, so I loved to see that. I see it.Â
"I know their potential. They want to be here, or we wouldn't have recruited them. I know what they're capable of. Hopefully, these are just steps in the right direction of, 'OK, now you came in and had some success in a game, and it leads to some confidence. Now, when you go back in again, maybe it's a tighter game, hopefully this will help and prepare you to go in with a more confident mindset. Just play the game.'Â
"I've been telling everyone that on our team the last few games. Just play. You have to trust your training. Don't overthink this game. Just go out there, play free, have fun, and just play. I think sometimes we get so tight, we start overthinking everything. We're not going to be the best versions of ourselves as a team by playing that way. I'm really proud of all of our bench and especially those two who had bigger games."
On the environment at State Farm Center:
"It was really great to have that volume in there to practice for the bigger games. It's harder to hear when there's a huge crowd, and that's what we want every game. It was just really special.Â
"I can remember being younger, looking up to so many different college basketball players, being at different games, and being so excited to be there. For us, getting to be those people now where the kids all want to hug us after the games and are running over to take pictures, it was just a really special feeling."
On her performance and her path to getting healthy again:
"I finally felt like I was just playing, and that's something I've really been working through. I've been working really hard on it. I've been struggling with injuries but also going through the transfer process. I've been working a lot on my mind getting mentally tough and a lot stronger. That's something all my coaches have been preaching to me.Â
"Going into the second half, my assistant coach, Coach Cat, came over to me and he was like, 'Just play free, and have fun.' I felt my mindset shift. I was like, 'I don't know what I'm stressing about. I just need to play.' I just went out there and have fun.Â
"Also, seeing my teammates succeed was so exciting for me. Cori Allen was unbelievable. For her, too, it was kind of like a breakthrough moment, so seeing that and seeing the joy that it brought her and my other teammates, I felt that myself."
On hitting down the first 3-pointers of her college career:
"I'm so thankful that I have coaches who continue to push me to shoot and continue to tell me to look for my offense, even if I wasn't making them. Knowing that the first one goes in always makes it better.Â
"I'm working on still having confidence even if the first one doesn't go in. I know I'm a shooter and I can make them, so I'm continuing to be there. That's something that Coach Green always preaches: Be confident in yourself; if you're open, shoot it. That's the mindset that I had."
On the environment at State Farm Center:
"It's favorite game of the year because all those kids are excited to be there. They don't care if you score a point. They're just excited to be there. I really enjoyed it a lot. I do student teaching, so my school was there, so it was cool to get to see the kids I see every day. It just brought another level of energy for us and kept us going."Â
On what the team can learn and take away from the win:
"In these games, repeating the coverage and getting those mental reps, even when you're not in. We had some screening coverages that we didn't really follow and communicating that. It's a lot of those little things like boxing out. These guys shouldn't get rebounds over, so just taking the time to really work on getting those reps and boxing out because once we get to the Big Ten, those girls are going to be 6'5", 6'6". Those little things are going to help us in the long run."
