Illinois (18-8, 8-7) is preparing to face its in-state rival Northwestern (8-18, 2-13) for the second time this season. The Illini survived a dramatic fourth quarter against the Wildcats in their first matchup on Jan. 18, winning 74-71.
“Obviously, playing someone a second time is different because we’re not used to that in the Big Ten,” said head coach Shauna Green.
Last time, the Illini were without redshirt sophomore guard Gretchen Dolan and were learning to navigate playing without her. Now, the Illini are in a much better position to take on the Wildcats.
“I think we’re a lot different team from last time,” Green said. “I think they’ve grown in a lot of ways. We didn’t necessarily play that well, but give Northwestern credit, they played really well. They shot it really well.”
With the Illini’s only regular-season rematch, here are some predictions for Sunday’s contest.
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Vasconcelos gets double digits
Redshirt sophomore center Lety Vasconcelos is definitely in her comeback season. After being out for more than a year due to an injury, her return is well deserved.
“Knowing the extent of her injury and the surgery and the recovery, I went in like this year is just a blessing,” Green said of Vasconcelos’ return. “ … let’s try to get her as good as she can possibly be and continue to grow up confidence.”
Vasconcelos is clearly becoming more confident and more consistent as the year progresses. She is learning to play and be the post player that the Illini need her to be.
In three of her last four games, Vasconcelos has gotten 8, 7 and 9 points. Despite scoring 0 points against USC, she scored 8 points in the game prior at Oregon and bounced back after USC, scoring 7 points against Wisconsin.
However, during the contest against Rutgers, Vasconcelos set a new career high with 9 points. Vasconcelos is on the rise and on the right track to finally hit a double-digit point game.
Last time against the Wildcats, Vasconcelos grabbed five rebounds, dished out two assists, and scored 8 points. With her rise in scoring, Vasconcelos has a great opportunity to score 10+ points on Sunday against Northwestern.
“I’m just really grateful that she’s healthy and that she’s out there and she’s improving,” Green said. “I could not be more proud of where Lety is right now.”
On top of that, the Brazilian is starting to showcase more versatility across the board. While she didn’t have any steals or blocks against the Scarlet Knights, Vasconcelos strives with momentum. Once she gets going, she can get hot quickly. If she is able to get it going offensively, that should transfer over to being active on the glass and fueling her defensive plays more with steals and blocks.
Webber drops 20
Junior guard Maddie Webber is definitely one of the best additions to Illinois this season. Even Green has called Webber her “X-factor” with everything that she adds to the team. Something special about Webber is that while she is new to Illinois and the Big Ten, she comes with experience that is necessary. With the Illini’s young team, Webber’s experience outside of the Big Ten can be a huge asset for them.
“You just have to stay consistent in everything you do,” Webber said
Webber is clearly growing in her consistency this season. Webber has two 20+ point games this season and 14 other games where she scored in the double digits. Webber has scored double digits in five of the seven games since they last played Northwestern.
Against the Wildcats the first time around, Webber had a hard time. She went 1 for 10 from the field for a total of 3 points. Playing Northwestern is the perfect chance for Webber to drop another 20+ point game for Illinois.
“It just gives everyone confidence, and it obviously shows that we are playing together, and it shows that we are all threats on the court,” Webber said of the Illini’s back-to-back 24-assist games.
While Webber made up five of those 48 total assists, she benefited from them in other ways as well. If Webber can continue to provide assists alongside her other talents on the court, she is going to grow in her versatility.
Webber has shown her veteran skills on the court against the Wildcats. It is a great chance to redeem herself and prove who she is to them.
Parchment stays active on both ends of court
“She’s just a freshman,” Webber said. “I forget half of the time.”
For being just a freshman, forward Cearah Parchment has done wonders for the Illini this season. The Canadian is one of the Illini’s most versatile players. With a skillset like hers, many forget that she is one of the youngest players.
She is one of Illinois’ most active and accurate players on the offense. Parchment’s season average is 50.2% from the field and 41.9% from beyond the arc.
Parchment’s 347 points account for over 17% of the Illini’s total points this season. On top of that, Parchment’s activity on the glass accounts for over 27% of Illinois’ total rebounds this season so far.
But aside from Parchment’s offensive contributions, she is also a huge asset to the team defensively. The freshman currently leads the team in steals and is second in blocks. Parchment has amassed 45 steals so far, including one 10-steal game. As for blocks, she has 13, just 3 shy of tying Vasconcelos for the most steals.
With her versatile and unique playing style, it would be in typical Parchment fashion to grab her 11th double-double of the season with points and rebounds on Sunday. On top of that, it would be no surprise if Parchment got at least a combination of five steals and blocks against the Wildcats.
Free throws are key once again
During Illinois’ last matchup against Northwestern in January, one of the only reasons Illinois came out on top was because of free throws. The Illini made 19 of their 22 free throw attempts. In comparison, the Illini shot 37.9% from the field and 27.8% from beyond the arc.
If it had not been for those 19 made free throws, Illinois would have lost to Northwestern. Recently, however, the Illini have been struggling from the charity stripe. In their last three games, the Illini have gone 61.5%, 75.0% and 66.7% from the free-throw line, respectively. These last three percentages have caused the Illini’s overall free-throw percentage to go down. They are now hanging on by a thread to their first-place ranking.
After the last game, it is clear that the Illini know how to capitalize on the Wildcats’ defense and find opportunities to get to the charity stripe. If Illinois is able to repeat a bit of its good history from Northwestern, it has a chance to take easy points to push it in the lead.
Northwestern is Illinois’ last matchup before taking on the No. 13 Iowa Hawkeyes (21-5, 12-3) next week. A win against the Wildcats on Sunday is the momentum the Illini need before their final ranked opponent of the regular season. With Dolan out until further notice, the Illini will need all hands on deck for the final stretch of the regular season.
Tipoff for Illinois’ matchup against Northwestern is set for 2 p.m. CST at the Welsh-Ryan Arena in Evanston, IL.
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