CHAMPAIGN, Ill. – Illinois never trailed in its season-opening 83-74 victory over No. 19 Florida State on Thursday night at State Farm Center.
Four Illini scored in double figures in the ranked nine-point win, including 20-point outings for both Makira Cook and Adalia McKenzie.
McKenzie set the tone early on both ends of the floor, going 8-for-11 from the field and registering four rebounds, three assists, and one steal.
Cook reached the 20-point mark for the 32nd time in her career, finishing with a team-most five assists, four rebounds, and two steals.
Kendall Bostic became the fourth player in program history to reach 1,000 rebounds during her Illini career, and she tallied 18 points after starting 7-for-7 from the field. Bostic totaled nine boards, two assists, one block, and one steal.
Gretchen Dolan equaled her career-best scoring output, amassing 11 points off the bench while also grabbing two rebounds and one steal.
Brynn Shoup-Hill set a new career-best rebounding total with 10 boards, including three on the offensive glass. She also made two blocks.
The Illini started fast, jumping out to an early 9-2 advantage behind tough defense and efficient offense. Illinois converted on four of its first five attempts of the night, with three different starters getting a shot to fall within the first two-and-a-half minutes of play.
Continuing to keep their foot on the gas, the Orange and Blue tallied their next two baskets in transition, capping off a 10-2 run and forcing the Seminoles to take a timeout with the home side in front, 13-4. The Illini led by as many as 12 in the opening frame, and they took a 20-10 edge into the second period.
Illinois started the second quarter the same way it started the first: fast. An 8-2 Illini run over the first two minutes of the frame saw Bostic move into double figures and pushed the hosts' lead up to 28-12. After the Orange and Blue went without a field goal for two minutes, Dolan ended the drought with a 3-pointer, her first of the night.
Florida State reduced its deficit with a 5-0 run, but Illinois answered right back with a 7-2 run of its own, bringing the home side's advantage up to 17 points. The Seminoles finished strong, with their 9-1 run bringing the score to 43-34 heading into halftime.
Bostic led the way offensively for the Illini through the first 20 minutes, as she recorded 14 points while going a perfect 6-for-6 from the field across the first two quarters.
The Illini brought their lead back up to double digits after the break, taking a 52-37 lead following a 9-3 run out of halftime. During that stretch, Cook and McKenzie reached double figures, and Dolan was not far behind. The sophomore guard's layup, which equaled her career-best scoring output, brought Illinois' advantage up to 56-44 and forced a Florida State timeout.
McKenzie accounted for the Illini's next four points, but the Seminoles closed the quarter strong and reduced their deficit to singles digits, 63-57, with 10 minutes to play.
The Orange and Blue extended their lead back up to double digits within the first two minutes of the fourth quarter, but a 6-1 Florida State run saw that advantage reduced to five with just under seven minutes remaining. The Illini responded with a 6-2 stretch to take a 74-65 edge with four minutes to go.
Illinois made its free throws late in the game, and some big stops in crunch time saw the Illini secure the ranked season-opening win.
Illinois (1-0) continues its five-game homestand on Sunday night, when the Illini play host to Marquette. First tip is slated for 7 p.m. CT on Big Ten Network. Tickets are still available at FightingIllini.com.
HIGHLIGHTS
PRESS CONFERENCE
POSTGAME NOTES
Player Notes:
- Genesis Bryant tallied eight points, three rebounds, and a pair of assists.
- Thursday's game marked the 100th game played of Bryant's career.
- Went 6-of-6 from the charity stripe.
- Makira Cook posted 20 points, including seven points from the foul line.
- First basket of the season for the Illini.
- Scored in double figures for the 12th consecutive game and for the 83rd time in her career.
- Posted at least 20 points for the 32nd time in her career.
- Brynn Shoup-Hill logged 10 rebounds and five points in the game.
- Recorded a career-high 10 rebounds, eight of which came in the first half.
- Adalia McKenzie went 8-for-11 from the field with 20 points.
- Scored in double figures for the 57th time in her career.
- Recorded at least 20 points for the 12th time in her career.
- Kendall Bostic recorded 18 points and was a rebound shy of a double-double.
- Bostic's sixth rebound of the night, which came in the third quarter, saw her become the fourth Illini in program history to record 1,000 career rebounds.
- Scored in double figures for the 50th time in her career.
- Reached double-digit points with 8:01 left in the second quarter.
- Started the contest 7-for-7 from the floor.
- Had a team-high 14 points in the first half.
- Gretchen Dolan scored 11 points while adding two rebounds.
- Tied career-high with 11 points.
- Registered double-digit points for the fifth time in her career.
- Jasmine Brown-Hagger made her debut with the Orange and Blue.
- Scored her first-career point as an Illini on a free throw in the third quarter.
- Berry Wallace made her Illini debut at the 4:25 mark in the first quarter.
Team Notes:
- Florida State won the tip, but the Illini opened the scoring on their first possession via a Cook 3-pointer
- Illinois had a 13-4 run to start the game, forcing an FSU timeout at 4:24.
- The Illini held the Seminoles scoreless for stretches of 2:02, 3:43, and 2:26 in the first quarter.
- Out of halftime, Illinois picked up a stop against the Seminoles on the first possession and followed with a layup to push the lead back to 11.
- The Illini held Florida State scoreless for a stretch of 2:54 in the third quarter.
- Illinois held at least a seven-point advantage from 7:02 in the first quarter until Florida State would cut the Illini lead to six at the end of the third quarter.
- The Illini led by at least two possessions from the 7:50 mark in the first quarter until the end of the game.
- The Illini had four players score in double figures (Kendall Bostic, Makira Cook, Gretchen Dolan, Adalia McKenzie).
- Illinois had two players with 20-point performances (Cook, McKenzie) for the first time since March 2, 2023, vs. Rutgers (Bryant, Cook).
- The Illini's largest lead in the first half was 17 points (42-25).
- Illinois never trailed in the game, leading for a total of 39:43.
- The Illini's 48 points in the paint were the most scored by a Florida State opponent since Jan. 4, 2024.
- Illinois won the rebounding battle, 40-39.
- Held a 33-27 advantage on the defensive glass.
- Illinois went 23-for-31 from the free-throw line.
- Most makes from the line in a game since also making 23 on Feb. 8, 2024.
Misc. Notes:
- Starters: Genesis Bryant, Makira Cook, Brynn Shoup-Hill, Adalia McKenzie, Kendall Bostic
- This lineup is now 1-0 on the season.
- This group has started 23 games together across the last three seasons, holding a 12-11 combined record.
- Shauna Green is now:
- 42-25 at Illinois
- 169-75 as a Division-I coach
- 198-100 overall
- Illinois vs. Florida State: 1-2 (third meeting)
- The Illini have won a ranked game in three consecutive seasons for the first time since doing so during the 2005-06, 2006-07, and 2007-08 campaigns.
- The Illini moved to 49-223 against AP Top 25 teams.
- The Illini are now 34-90 when playing against an AP-ranked team at home.
- Illinois is now 3-3 all-time when facing an AP-ranked team in a season opener.
- Nov. 26, 1982: L, 62-73, vs. #6 Maryland (Des Moines, Iowa)
- Nov. 29, 1987: W, 73-68, #14 Vanderbilt
- Nov. 25, 1988: L, 50-81, vs. #1 Tennessee (Honolulu, Hawaii)
- Nov. 23, 1997: L, 65-79, #3 Old Dominion
- Nov. 19, 1998: W, 76-58, at #19 Stanford
- Nov. 7, 2024: W, 83-74, #19 Florida State
- Illinois is now 7-7 all-time in season openers against power-conference opponents.
- The Illini have held opponents at/below 15 points in 1-of-4 regulation periods this season.
- Illinois is now 1-0 when wearing white uniforms this season.
- The Illini are now 1-0 in games starting after 5 p.m. CT this season.
- The Illini are now 1-0 in November.
