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CHAMPAIGN, IL — Berry Wallace delivered her second-straight 20-point game to lead Illinois past Illinois State 75-65 at home Sunday.
The Fighting Illini (2-0) had two players score in double figures, led by Wallace, who had 22 points and seven rebounds. Gretchen Dolan tacked on 18 points, five assists and three steals, while Cearah Parchment added nine points, nine rebounds and four assists.
Illinois collected 33 rebounds in Sunday’s game compared to Illinois State’s 24, led by Parchment’s nine boards.
Illinois forced 16 Illinois State turnovers while committing just nine themselves in Sunday’s game. The Fighting Illini turned those takeaways into 13 points on the offensive end of the floor. Destiny Jackson led the way individually with four steals.
How It Happened
After playing to a 2-2 tie early in the game, Illinois went on a 9-0 run with 7:49 left in the first quarter, culminating in a 3-pointer from Jasmine Brown-Hagger, to take an 11-2 lead. The Fighting Illini entered the quarter break with a 20-16 advantage. Illinois did most of its first-quarter damage in the paint, scoring 14 of its 20 points close to the basket.
Illinois went on a 9-0 run starting at the 8:37 mark in the second period, highlighted by a bucket from Jackson, to increase its lead to 31-18. The Redbirds cut into that lead, but the Fighting Illini still owned a 37-31 advantage heading into halftime.Â
Illinois continued to preserve its halftime lead before going on a 6-0 run, punctuated by a basket from Jackson, to expand its lead further to 43-34 with 7:22 to go in the third. Before the third period was over, the Fighting Illini added to that lead and entered the fourth quarter with a 55-45 edge.Â
Illinois kept its foot on the gas leading to a 6-0 run to grow the lead to 70-60 with 42 seconds to go in the contest. The Fighting Illini held on for the 75-65 win.Â
HIGHLIGHTS
POSTGAME PRESS CONFERENCE
POSTGAME NOTES
Player Notes:
Berry Wallace finished with 22 points, 7 rebounds, 2 assists, and zero turnovers
Finished shooting 7-for-10 from the field including 8-for-11 from the free-throw line.
Went 6-for-6 from the field in the first half to go along with a 2-for-2 trip to the free throw line and was the first Illini into double figures.
Back-to-back 20-point games – first two of her career.
Gretchen Dolan registered 18 points, 5 assists, 3 steals, 2 rebounds, and a block
Finished with double-digit points for the 10th time in her careerÂ
Posted a career-best 18 points.
Back-to-back games with double figure points and five or more assists
Scored 15 of her points in the second half on 6-for-9 shooting from the field while playing the full 20 minutes.
Maddie Webber and Lety Vasconcelos were the first pair of Illini off the bench, checking in with 5:49 left to play in the first quarter.
Destiny Jackson logged career-highs of eight points, five rebounds, and 34:59 minutes of action.
Jasmine Brown-Hagger scored a season-high 7 points to go along with 2 assists, 2 rebounds, and a steal.
Illinois was +20 during the 24:52 that Brown-Hagger was on the court.
Cearah Parchment tallied career highs of 9 points and 9 rebounds.
Aaliyah Guyton made her Illini debut, checking in with 2:04 remaining in the first quarter.
Saw 5:07 minutes of action while working under a minutes restriction.
Team Notes:
Illinois State won the opening tip, but the Illini opened the scoring with a layup by Cearah Parchment.Â
After Illinois State responded to tie the score at 2-2, Illinois went on a 9-0 run to push its lead to 11-2 and would never trail again.
Held Illinois State scoreless for 3:45 during a 6-0 run in the third quarter.
The Illini had two double-figure scorers (Berry Wallace [22], Gretchen Dolan [18]).
Illinois scored 10 second-chance points off nine offensive rebounds while not allowing a second-chance bucket by Illinois State.
Illinois forced 16 Redbird turnovers converting those to 13 points while committing just 9 turnovers.
Misc. Notes:
Score after 1st Quarter: 20-16
Score at Halftime: 37-31(17-15 Q2)
Score after 3rd Quarter: 55-45 (18-14 Q3)
Score after 4th Quarter: 75-65 (20-20 Q4)
