Women’s basketball will try to shake off its first losing streak of the season tonight when they host Indiana at Assembly Hall at 7 p.m.

The Illini have dropped their last two games, losing last Sunday to No. 11 Minnesota 80-68 and to No. 12 Michigan State 62-42 on Jan. 19. The Illini were previously 4-0 in games after losses.

The Illini’s first losing streak of the season has made the team hungry for a win tonight.

“We lost two games in a row for the first time this season,” senior guard Tiffanie Guthrie said. “That has made us more anxious to come back and get a good win.”

Not only will the Illini be hungry for a win, but they might need one.

Thursday night’s game will be an important one to win because Illinois’ next three games come against ranked teams. After Thursday’s game, the Illini host No. 3 Ohio State on Sunday, then travel to West Lafayette, Ind. to take on No. 24 Purdue and to East Lansing, Mich. for a rematch against No. 12 Michigan State next Sunday.

“This is definitely an important game,” Guthrie said. “We have to definitely win the ones we are expected to win to compete in the Big Ten.”

The Hoosiers come into Champaign tied for last place in the conference with a record of 1-6 in Big Ten. They feature only one double-digit scorer – guard Cyndi Valentin who averages 16.1 points per game. As a team, Indiana averages just 51.8 points per game and only 45.3 in Big Ten play.

Indiana is without preseason All-Big Ten pick Jenny DeMuth, who is sidelined with a torn ACL.

Although the Hoosiers have trouble scoring on the offensive end, they play tough defense. They only allow an average of 52.6 points per game, and opponents are only shooting 35 percent against them.

“They are going to try to shorten the game through their defense,” said Illinois head coach Theresa Grentz. “Valentin is their go-to player now, with DeMuth out, so she will get a lot of looks. The key to their game plan is their defense.”

In the last two games, the Illini have suffered some offensive woes. Despite scoring 68 points against Minnesota, the Illini scored most of their points on a 19-0 run in the second half when the game was already out of reach.

“We are going to have to make strong cuts, execute good screens and distribute the ball against Indiana to be successful,” Grentz said.

Although the Illini are having trouble putting points on the board, senior forward Angelina Williams and Guthrie are the top scoring duo in the Big Ten. In the loss to Minnesota, Williams and Guthrie combined for 52 of the Illini’s 68 points.

The Illini are looking for others to step up and take some of the scoring load.

“They are going to try to hold Angelina and Tiffanie down,” Grentz said. “We want to get some other people on the team to score.”

The Illini, with a 3-4 conference record, are currently tied with Iowa for sixth place in the Big Ten. Illinois won the last meeting between the two teams 64-52 in Bloomington on Feb. 4, 2004.