No. 14 Illini Welcome Nebraska to Sold-Out State Farm Center Sunday Evening

#14 ILLINOIS (16-5, 7-3) vs. Nebraska (16-6, 6-5)
Date | Time	Sunday, Feb. 4, 2024 | 5:30 p.m. CT
Location	Champaign, Ill. | State Farm Center
Tickets	Sold Out | Buy on SeatGeek
TV	BTN (Dave Revsine & Robbie Hummel)
Live Stream	foxsports.com/live/btn | FOX Sports App
Radio	Busey Bank Illini Sports Network | Varsity Network App | SiriusXM 195 or 211, SXM App 957
Live Stats	StatBroadcast
Digital Game Program	Game 22 vs. Nebraska
Printable Notes	Illinois | Nebraska
Pre-Game Media Availability	Coach Underwood (Feb. 3)
2023-24 Stats	Illinois | Nebraska
Record Book	Illinois
Shop	Online Store | Auctions
Social Media	@IlliniMBB | #Illini | @IlliniMBB | Facebook | YouTube

Head Coach Brad Underwood

Career Record: 239-111 (.683), 11th year
At Illinois: 130-84 (.607), 7th year
Big Ten: 73-55 (.570)

Series History

All-Time Record / Streak: Illinois leads 21-8  /  Illinois W-7
Last Meeting: Illinois 72, Nebraska 56 (1/31/2023 at Champaign)
Record at Champaign / Streak: Illinois leads 14-2  /  Illinois W-5
Underwood vs. Nebraska: 8-2

Opening Tips

• No. 14 Illinois returns home to host Nebraska at sold-out State Farm Center on Sunday (5:30 p.m. CT/BTN). 
• Both programs are coming into the game following key Big Ten victories; the Illini picked up their third Quad 1 win of the season at Ohio State on Tuesday, while the Huskers upset No. 6 Wisconsin at home Thursday night.
• Sunday evening's matchup with Nebraska, the lone regular-season meeting vs. the Huskers on this year's schedule, is the 30th in the series that began during the 1920-21 season. Illinois leads 21-8 overall. 
• Illinois also holds a 14-6 lead in the series since Nebraska joined the Big Ten in 2011-12. The Fighting Illini have captured seven straight victories over the Huskers, an active streak that began on Feb. 2, 2019.  
• The Illini are 11-2 at State Farm Center this season, while the Huskers are 1-5 on the road. 
• Illinois is No. 14 in the latest AP poll, marking the team's 10th consecutive week inside the Top 25.  
• Illinois is the Big Ten's winningest team in conference play since the start of 2019-20. Entering Sunday's game vs. Nebraska, the Illini are 62-28 (.689) in league games over the last four-and-a-half seasons.
• Following Illinois' road win at Ohio State on Tuesday, the Illini also have a Big Ten-leading 26 road wins (26-19, .578) on the road in conference play since the start of 2019-20, including a 3-2 mark this season. 
• Following a stretch of seven games in 19 days between Jan. 11 vs. Michigan State and Jan. 30 at Ohio State, Sunday's game is the Illini's only contest in an 11-day stretch between the win at OSU win and the team's Feb. 10 rematch at Michigan State.

Illini Team Notables

• Illinois is scoring an average of 82.3 points per game, the team's highest since 1993-94 (84.0 ppg).
• Illinois is fifth in the country in offensive efficiency (121.6), its second-highest ranking of the Kenpom era and best since 2005, when the Illini's NCAA Runner-Up team had the nation's No. 3 offense (122.3).
• Illinois ranks second in the Big Ten and 21st nationally with a scoring margin of +13.4 ppg.
• During the Illini's seven-game home win streak from Nov. 17 through Jan. 11, the Orange and Blue outscored opponents by an average of 23.7 points per contest. 
• Illinois has 21 wins over Top 25 teams since 2019-20, sixth-most nationally. Three of the team's four losses this season have been by single-digit margins against top-25 foes. 
• Illinois is among the top 25 nationally in two defensive categories via KenPom, ranking 15th in the nation in effective field goal percentage defense (.453) and 22nd in 2-point field goal percentage defense (.445). 
• KenPom rates the Illini among the top 35 programs nationally in adjusted efficiency on both offense (5th, 121.6) and defense (31st, 97.6). Illinois is one of 14 programs to rank inside the top 35 in both metrics. 
• The Illini lead the Big Ten and rank in the top 25 in the NCAA in total rebounds per game (42.9; fifth in NCAA), defensive rebounds per game (29.5, seventh in NCAA), and offensive rebounds per game (13.3; 23rd in the NCAA). The Illini also rank second in the Big Ten in rebounding margin (+9.4), which ranks 12th nationally.
• The Illini average 42.9 rebounds per game is the team's best single-season mark since 1972-73 (44.4 rpg).  
• The Illini have outrebounded their opponents in 16 of 21 games this season, and own a 14-2 record when winning the battle on the glass. 
• Illinois enters play this week leading the Big Ten in second-chance scoring, converting their offensive rebounds into 15.6 ppg, more than two points higher than the next closest Big Ten program (Purdue, 13.0). 
• The Illini are 54th in the NCAA in field goal percentage defense (.409), 78th in three-point percentage defense (.315), and 79th in blocks per game (4.2), marks that rank fifth, fourth, and fifth, respectively, in the Big Ten.  
• Illinois has pulled down 50+ rebounds in seven games this season, its most since 1979-80. Included in that was a stretch four straight – vs. Valpo, Southern, Western Illinois, and at Rutgers – that was Illinois' longest streak of consecutive games with 50+ rebounds since the 1963-64 season. 
• Illinois averaged 99.0 ppg (297) over a three-game stretch from Dec. 22-Jan. 2 in wins vs. Missouri (97-73), vs. FDU (104-71), and vs. Northwestern (96-66). It marked the first time Illinois had topped 90 points in three consecutive games in 30 seasons, since December 10-18, 1993.

Illini Player Notables

Marcus Domask

• Domask has scored in double figures in 14 of the last 15 games, with two 30+ point performances – a career-high 33 vs. Florida Atlantic at Madison Square Garden and 32 vs. Northwestern – plus game highs of 26 points at No. 1 Purdue and vs. Maryland and team-leading 23 in a road win at Ohio State. 
• Domask is averaging 18.5 ppg over the last 15 games (277). He has climbed to 12th in the Big Ten at 15.5 points per game overall this season after averaging just 8.2 points over his first six games.
• In conference games only, Domask ranks fourth in the Big Ten at 20.2 points per game. 
• Domask is one of the Big Ten's most efficient scorers, ranking 15th in the conference with a .449 (114-254) field goal percentage. 
• Domask ranks No. 2 in the Big Ten in free throw shooting at 88.6% (78-88), closing in on the Illinois program's single-season record of .874 (76-87) set by Alfonso Plummer in 2022. 
• Domask is averaging 5.0 assists over the last 11 games (55), compared to 1.6 apg the first 10 games (16), and ranks 12th in the Big Ten 3.4 assists per game, and 14th with an assist-to-turnover ratio of 1.48.  
• Domask was named Big Ten Player of the Week by the Big Ten (Jan. 8) and Associated Press (Jan. 9), and was  also honored as one of five USBWA Oscar Robertson National Players of the Week (Jan. 9), after averaging 29.0 points, 5.5 assists and 4.0 rebounds while shooting 59.4% from the field, 66.7% from 3-point range, and 90% from the free-throw line in matchups vs. Northwestern and at No. 1 Purdue.

Coleman Hawkins

• Hawkins has scored in double figures in 11 of the last 13 games and is averaging 13.8 points, 6.5 rebounds, 2.3 assists, 1.4 blocks and 2.2 steals with 28 threes (2.2 per game) during that run.
• In Illinois' 88-73 road win at Michigan (1/18), Hawkins became first Big Ten player since 2007 (Purdue's Carl Landry) to record a stat line of at least 21 points, 10 rebounds, four assists, six steals and one block.
• Hawkins followed up his six-steal performance at Michigan (1/18) with five more swipes vs. Rutgers (1/21), becoming the first Illini player since Trent Frazier in 2018-19 to record two games with 5+ steals in a single season. His combined 11 steals are the most by an Illini over a two-game stretch in 38 years, since Bruce Douglas combined for 12 steals with seven at Michigan (1/18/86) and five at Michigan State (1/12/86).
• In back-to-back road games at Michigan (1/18) and at Northwestern (1/24), Hawkins recorded two double-doubles of 21 points and 10 rebounds vs. the Wolverines and 22 points and 13 boards vs. the Wildcats, while shooting 54% (14-26) overall, 50% (5-10) from 3-point range, and a perfect 10-for-10 from the free-throw line, while adding eight steals, five assists, three blocks.  
• Hawkins recorded at least one steal 14 straight games from Dec. 2 at Rutgers to Jan. 27 vs. Indiana, a career-long streak, before finishing without a swipe at Ohio State (1/30) for the first time since the season's first three games. He ranks seventh in the Big Ten at 1.78 steals per game. 
• Hawkins also posted a career-long streak of eight consecutive games with a block between Dec. 17 vs. Colgate and Jan. 18 at Michigan, and ranks 12th in the Big Ten at 1.28 blocks per game. 
• Hawkins is the one of two players in the Big Ten - along with Maryland's Julian Reese - to rank in the top 15 in the conference in both blocks per game (1.28 bpg, 12th) and steals per game (1.78 spg, seventh). 
• Hawkins ranks first in the Big Ten in 3-point shooting among players listed 6-foot-10 or taller with 31 triples on the season, more than the next two players - Wisconsin C Steven Crowl (14) and Minnesota F Dawson Garcia (12), combined.
• Hawkins has made 28-of-67 (.418) 3-pointers over the last 13 games, after going 2-of-14 (.143) from distance in his first five contests.
• Hawkins is averaging 7.9 rebounds per game over his last seven contests, and has climbed to No. 15 in the Big Ten with an overall rebounding average of 6.3 rebounds per game.

Terrence Shannon Jr.

• Shannon has reached double-figures scoring in each of his last 25 games as an Illini, doing so in all 15 of his appearances this season, plus the final 10 contests of the 2022-23 campaign. 
• Shannon recorded 16 points and four assist in the Illini's victory over Rutgers (1/21). 
• Shannon started at Northwestern (1/24) and posted 12 points, including 5-for-6 from the free-throw line. 
• In the Illini's victory over Indiana (1/27), Shannon scored 12 points, going 8-for-10 from the free-throw line and closing out the victory by knocking down six straight from the stripe in the final 63 seconds of the game.
• Shannon returned to form in the win at Ohio State (1/30), tying Marcus Domask for the team lead with 23 points (including 6-for-6 from the free-throw line), along with three rebounds and team highs in assists (3) and blocks (2).

Quincy Guerrier

• Guerrier leads one of the nation's most tenacious rebounding teams, ranking eighth in the Big Ten in overall rebounding (7.57 rpg) and sixth in the league in defensive rebounding (5.62 rpg).
• Guerrier leads the Illini and ranks third in the Big Ten with eight double-doubles through 21 games this season with the Illini. He totaled two double-doubles in 71 career games at Oregon, both coming during the 2021-22 season.
• Guerrier has scored at least 10 points in 10 of his last 13 games, averaging 13.9 points per game over that stretch after opening the season with a  6.3 points per game average through his first eight contests at Illinois. 
• Guerrier is 21-of-50 (.420) on threes over the last 13 games, compared to 2-of-20 (.100) over his first eight. 
• Guerrier enters play Sunday vs. Nebraska with 915 career rebounds, ranking 15th on the NCAA's list of active career leaders.

Luke Goode

• Goode started seven games, from Dec. 29 vs. FDU to Jan. 21  vs. Rutgers, averaging 30.4 minutes per game. Goode set his career high in minutes with 36 each in each game against Michigan State (1/11) at Maryland (1/14).
• Goode scored career-best 16 points at #1 Purdue and tied his career high with four 3-pointers against the Boilers, then two games later vs. Maryland he tallied 13 points including a trio of 3-pointers. 
• Goode ranks 12th in the Big Ten at 1.95 triples per game and is shooting team-leading 40.6% from distance while knocking down a team-high 41 total 3-pointers on the season.

Ty Rodgers

• Rodgers has provided the Illini with another excellent rebounder from his point guard position, ranking third on the team, behind Quincy Guerrier and Coleman Hawkins, at 5.3 rebounds per game. 
• Rodgers has been particularly effective on the offensive glass where he has pulled down a team-leading 43 offensive rebounds, or a team-high 38.7% of his 111 total rebounds. 
• Rodgers' 2.1 offensive rebounds per game ranks 14th in the Big Ten this season.

Justin Harmon

• Harmon ranks sixth on the Illini roster in scoring at 6.9 points per game, and has tallied 100 of his 145 total points over the team's last 10 games (10.0 ppg) after averaging just 4.1 points per game over the team's first 11 contests of the season. 
• Harmon shot 5-for-16 (.313) from 3-point range through his first 10 games, but has hit at a clip of nearly 43 percent (15-for-35) over his last 10 contests. 
• Harmon posted a season-high 20 points, hitting 7-of-11 from the field, including 4-of-5 from 3-point range, along with 2-of-2 at the foul line in 30 minutes of action in the Illini's win against Northwestern on Jan. 2.
• Harmon led the Illini in scoring for the first time this season, with 18 points in the 86-63 home win vs. Rutgers (1/21).

Every Day Guys Exclusive:

Read the latest feature stories on the Fighting Illini men's basketball team.  

• Jan. 10: 'I Just Wanted to be Different': Hawkins' Legacy Grows in Fourth Year With Program
• Dec. 7: Harmon Takes Long Road to Illinois in Final Year of Eligibility
• Nov. 30: 'I Owed That Sacrifice to Everybody': Goode Finds, Establishes Role in Third Season at Illinois
• Oct. 26: 'Now or Never': Hawkins, Shannon Gear Up for 'Last Dance' at Illinois
• Oct. 19: Every Day Guys: How Three Words Became Engrained in Illinois' Team Culture, Identity

Complete Illinois Game Notes (PDF)