Illinois (10-2) beat Southern (2-11) 69-57 in the third game of its five-game homestand. It was a scrappy win over a physical team for the Illini in their last nonconference game. They went 10-1 in the nonconference slate, ending with a victory over the Jaguars.
This also marked the 11th straight home win for the Illini. That ties second place for the longest home win streak in team history. The longest streak is a ways off, coming in at 18 games. With one more win, however, the Illini can create themselves an exclusive No. 2 spot on the records.
Pressed to score
Throughout the game, Southern pressed hard; every inbound was covered for Illinois. It saw this frequently against No. 11 Ohio State (12-0) and more recently against Southern Indiana (9-3). Illinois didn’t have much trouble getting through it, but Southern was certainly a thorn in its side throughout the game.
“I thought we did a good job with the press for the most part,” said head coach Shauna Green. “Had some turnovers, but it was more in the half court when they’re just really jumping and being physical.”
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Sophomore guard Jasmine Brown-Hagger was a big help against the full-court press. She would streak up the court when she got the ball off the inbound and weave through defenders to get across the half-court line.
Southern’s defensive effort overall was impressive. It was active, switching and double-teaming consistently. Illinois struggled with the double teams at times. There were multiple instances where the double-teamed player was trapped with no one to get the ball to.
The Illini average 11.9 turnovers surrendered each game. In just the first half of this matchup, they coughed up the ball eight times. They ended the game with 18 turnovers, the second-highest total in a game this season.
Despite the Jaguars’ tough defense, the Illini ran the show. They played with the lead for most of the game, only trailing for less than a minute in the first quarter.
Four players reached double-digit points for the Illini for the second straight game. They were led by Brown-Hagger, who scored 20 points and shot 6-11 from the floor. This game marked her third consecutive start. She picked it up after only scoring seven total points combined in her first two starts.
Fifth-year forward Kendall Bostic also dominated, getting yet another double-double. She scored 14 points and grabbed 15 rebounds. It was her 42nd double-double as an Illini.
“Selfishly, it is pretty cool to have those (double-doubles),” Bostic said. “Just kind of chase those. It always helps me to have something to chase, just to help me keep going.”
High effort defense
Despite having a normally stout defense, Illinois looked lackluster in the first half. It did well to force turnovers, but Southern had no trouble sinking shots. The Jaguars shot 54.2% from the floor and 66.7% from three in the first half. On the season, the Illini hold their opponents to only 24.1% shooting from three.
While the Jaguars were efficient, they were also slow. The shot clock lowered into single digits nearly every possession for them. The Illini did well to keep them from getting easy looks.
The defense for Illinois was better in the second half. It allowed only eight points in the third quarter. Southern made just three shots that quarter and turned the ball over as many times. The fourth quarter was similar, but Southern found more ways to score. It did get a little chippy midway through the fourth quarter.
Fighting over fouls
Throughout the game, the Jaguars found themselves in foul trouble. They finished the game with 23 fouls, while the Illini only had 10. The fouls were once again big for the Illini. They shot 18-23 from the charity stripe.
It was obvious that Southern was frustrated with the officials. All game, coaches and players talked with the referees about calls they disagreed with. After a foul was called on fifth-year guard Genesis Bryant, the benches chirped back and forth.
Green called out one of Southern’s assistant coaches. He did not take it lightly and had some words for her and the refs. Both coaches and players got a little heated, but nothing came of the interaction.
B1G matchups
Illinois will kick off its conference slate against Oregon (9-3) and Washington (9-4) after Christmas. The Illini have already lost one game, falling to Ohio State in early December. Green is 19-17 against conference opponents in her time with the Illini.
“This league is so tough,” Green said. “You can play really well and still not win a basketball game … We’re going to compete like crazy and try to go 1-0.”
@ben_some16
