An hour and a half before game time, Assembly Hall is mostly silent. The doors have not opened to the public, and while the Krush line wraps around the outside of the building, inside the seats are empty.

On the court, however, cheerleaders are already working, trying to get in one last round of practice before the players arrive.

While the No. 1 team in the country is making national headlines, there’s more to Illini basketball games than the 14 players. For every home game contested on the floor at Assembly Hall, a whole other show is produced on the sidelines.

“The crowd expects a lot from the team and expects a lot from us too,” said cheerleader Wayne Vonder Heide, sophomore in LAS. “We want to have more stunts to show them.”

Cheerleaders, Illinettes, the Basketball Band and feature twirler Mandi Patrick are all elements of each game’s atmosphere. And when your team has been camped at the top of the polls for 13 straight weeks, there’s pressure to make the show as exciting as the basketball game.

But for entertainers, the extra work is worth the experience.

“We feel so lucky to be a part of it,” said cheerleader Dan Ellis, sophomore in LAS.

With the heightened attention and expectations comes a heavy workload. Cheerleaders practice three days a week for three hours at a time, in addition to performing at both men’s and women’s basketball games.

Some weeks, that can mean working a women’s game one day, a men’s the next and following it up with practice. It’s a schedule that can be taxing, both physically and in terms of academics.

“We take a lot of conflict exams,” Ellis said.

While the cheerleaders and Basketball Band both rotate performers at each game, there’s more incentive to work as many games as possible than just being a part of the record-setting season.

For band members, a point system keeps track of who works what games. Those who attend the most games get to travel to the Big Ten and NCAA tournaments.

Sometimes, though, the biggest benefit is the seat you get at Assembly Hall.

“It’s been a ton of fun,” said Sarah Boghosian, junior in business and piccolo player in the Basketball Band. “It’s just awesome, because we get to sit courtside and get to cheer. It’s really fun.”

With an undefeated team, keeping the fans excited can often be a double-edged sword. It means each game is sold out, and each game is packed with support. But when the Illini top teams by more than 20 points, the excitement often wanes and keeping fans enthused becomes a much harder task.

“The atmosphere has kind of seemed like we expect to win,” Ellis said. “It isn’t as good. So that makes the job tough for us; we’ve got to pick them up.”

But cheerleader Dani Mrazek, sophomore in LAS, said it’s a challenge that’s easily met, especially as anticipation mounts in the face of the postseason.

“There’s a lot more spirit and team unity at Assembly Hall,” Mrazek said.