SOUTH BEND, Ind. -- [11] Illinois' historic 2022-23 season came to a close in the First Four of the NCAA Division I Women's Basketball Championship, with the Illini falling to [11] Mississippi State, 70-56, at Purcell Pavilion at the Joyce Center on Wednesday night.
Three Illini scorers finished in double figures in the program's first NCAA Tournament appearance since 2003.
Makira Cook led the way with a team-high 21 points, her 15th 20-point performance of the season. Cook tallied a team-high four assists to go along with one block and one steal on the defensive end.
Genesis Bryant registered 11 of her 17 points in the second half, and she also finished with two rebounds and one assist. Bryant received a standing ovation from the Illini faithful after fouling out late in the contest.
Adalia McKenzie recorded 10 points in her first NCAA Tournament appearance, and she grabbed six rebounds and one steal.
Jada Peebles, who also made her NCAA Tournament debut, knocked down two 3-pointers and made two steals.
Kendall Bostic ended her night with two points, six rebounds, and two steals, while Geovana Lopes recorded four rebounds and two steals in the final game of her Illini career.
Illinois closes its season with a 22-10 record after setting several program records throughout the year.
QUOTES
Shauna GreenÂ
Opening statement:
"Obviously we came here to compete and win the game, but could not be more proud of these guys and this team for fighting, competing. Had a great first half, really did what we wanted to do.
"That third quarter really was the difference in the game. Then the rebounding, I knew the rebounding was going to be key. We were down only four on the boards in the first half, and that's why we were down one. Then they kind of just took off. Some turnovers led to some easy layups, gave them momentum. We couldn't score in the third either. Eight points, you're not going to win in an NCAA Tournament, or really any one, if you only score eight points. Then the rebounding separation was just too much, and there's multiple possessions where they got two and even sometimes three offensive boards, and you just can't do that.
"Again, so proud of our fight. There was a time where we could have given up at the end, and we just kept battling, kept competing, kept fighting. Also, I really knew we had to shoot it better, and we were 4 for 20 from three. That would have helped a lot, just kind of alleviate some of where we're not always having to attack if we can get some inside-out and get some threes, and they just weren't falling for us tonight.
"Just one of those games. Credit Mississippi State. It doesn't take away anything that we did this season. We had an absolutely amazing season, and you're lying if anyone in here said we'd be here. So just really, really happy for these guys to be able to experience this, and now we're going to learn from it, and we're going to use this as motivation coming back because we have pretty much our entire team coming back besides Geo. We are going to learn from this and use this as we go into next season."
On what she learned about the team and can carry over into next season:
"That's the one thing that's a great feeling is knowing that you have pretty much your same team coming back. Obviously with only one senior, so that's huge. I told them, if we can keep this core together and add pieces around it. We need more depth. We need some more size. You guys know that. I'm not telling you anything you don't know.
"The sky's the limit, I truly believe. We got here, and again, there's times tonight we had three healthy people on the floor, and we still had opportunities. With what they've learned, the journey that we've been on, the growth we've made, K.B. was right. She said last summer was about teaching them the footwork. I want them to shoot. I'm teaching them layups. I'm teaching them how we pass. I'm teaching them terminology. We're trying to grow as a unit and just getting to know each other.
"Now I have a crystal-clear vision of what we need to get better at, and believe me, we're going to work on it every single day. Some of the things that are glaring, we're going to attack those, and we're going to be better for it. So it helps me because I know now. I know what each of these guys needs to improve on. I know what we need to improve on collectively. That knowledge is power, and we're going to attack those relentlessly in the off-season."
On Geovana Lopes and what she has meant to the program:
"Just her positivity and the vibes that surround her. I said I'm going to miss her because every day she makes me smile and she makes me laugh. She's just a really good person.
"What makes me happy the most about Geo is that she really appreciated this year. She really soaked it in, and she was present. She wasn't playing a ton of minutes. She could have given up, but she was the most positive, the loudest every day, and I think you saw what it means to her by her emotion coming off the floor.
"We're going to miss her. We're going to miss her every single day. I'm happy that she got to experience this this year."
Kendall Bostic
On reflecting on the season:
"With this being pretty much my third new team, I was pretty surprised with how fast we gelled, and I think that really kind of propelled us initially. Then we were able to really build off of that through the season as we learned each other a little bit more, learned the system a little bit more.
"That first practice was atrocious, but it's crazy to see the growth from then to now. It will be great because this summer we won't have to spend all of our practices working on the basic fundamentals of basketball. We can really kind of pick and choose what we work on, and kind of critique some of our games and stuff."
On how the season can positively impact the program moving forward:
"I think it was great to play in. I know it's crazy from the outside, but being able to be in the season and playing in this season has been really great. I know for recruits and for our fans that traveled here, it's got to be really cool from the outside looking in. I think it will be really, really good for the future knowing this program is only going up. That's got to make people excited."
Jada Peebles
On reflecting on the season:
"It means everything to be at this point. We just talked about it in the locker room. No one would have thought we'd be at this point at the beginning of the season because the first practice obviously wasn't too hot. It was so surreal going through the season, how we were so together from the start of it, and how we all came together throughout the season and went through all these ebbs and flows, all these ups and downs. We just really fought through every single moment and every adversity together."
On how the season can positively impact the program moving forward:
"I definitely think it really shocked everybody, and it shocked recruits coming in as well. Seeing how we changed the culture ourselves with being in this culture for only a year, I think it's only up from here. We made a huge impact in a year, so there's just so much to look back on."
POSTGAME NOTES
Player Notes:
- Genesis Bryant finished with 17 points before fouling out.
- Scored in double digits for the 25th game this season; 26th of her career
- Adalia McKenzie turned in a 10-point, 6-rebound effort.
- Scored in double digits for the 25th time season; 37th of her career
- Makira Cook scored 21 points and tallied 5 assists.
- Scored in double digits for the 27th time in 2022-23; 55th of her career
- Scored 9 of the Illini's 19 points in the first quarter.
- The outing was Cook's 15th 20-point game of the season.
- Cook played all 40 minutes for the sixth time this season.
- Brynn Shoup-Hill returned to the starting lineup for the first time since Feb. 19.
- The Goshen, Indiana native grabbed 5 rebounds and blocked 2 shots in 28 minutes of work.
Team Notes:
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Mississippi State won the tip and scored 26 seconds into play.
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Illinois' first lead of the game came at 17-16 with 1:26 remaining in the first quarter. Illinois' largest lead - 3 points (19-16, 0:53.6; 1st quarter)
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The Illini shot 52.9 percent from the field in the 1st quarter on 9-of-17 field goals.Â
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Illinois did not shoot a free throw in the first half, while MSU went to the charity stripe 12 times scoring 10 points. Illinois took its first free throw of the game at the 5:35 mark of the 3rd quarter with Makira Cook at the line making two.Â
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For the second quarter, the Illini outscored the Bulldogs 11-10 holding MSU to only two made field goals including one of their last seven in the period.
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MSU started the 3rd quarter with an 11-2 run in the first 5:35 of play. They finished the quarter outsourcing the Illini 21-8.
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Illinois finished with four 3-pointers to add to the program record {229} on the season.
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MSU out-rebounded the Illini 47-28
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Players in double figures
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Wednesday's NCAA First Four game was Illinois' first appearance in the NCAA Tournament since 2002-03.
Misc Notes:
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Starters: Makira Cook, Genesis Bryant, Adalia McKenzie, Brynn Shoup-Hill and Kendall Bostic for the first time since Feb. 9 at Nebraska. Illinois is 8-5 with this combination.
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Illinois held Mississippi State to 10 points in the second quarter, marking the 18th time a team has been held to 10 or less by the Illini defense this season.
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The Illini moved to 22-10 on the season.Â
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Illinois' 22 wins this season is the third most wins in a season since in program history and most since Illinois posted 23 victories in 1999-2000.
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Shauna Green is now:
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Against Mississippi State record: 1-3 (4th meeting)
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Illinois is now 12-2 when wearing white uniforms
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The Illini are now 9-6 in games after 5 p.m.
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The Illini are now 1-2 in March
Score after 1st Quarter: 19-21
Score at Halftime: 30-31 (11-10)
Score after 3rd Quarter: 38-52 (8-21)
Final score: 56-70 (18-18)
