Home About The Champaign Room Illini Inquirer VLR.gg K League United U of I Contact

TCR Game Recaps

The Champaign Room •

Illini brush off slow start, move to 2-0 against SIU Edwardsville

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — While they had some early hurdles to overcome in the process, Illinois moved to 2-0 for the sixth consecutive season, beating SIU Edwardsville 90-58.
Five Illini scored in double digits on Friday as they continued to showcase their new-look offensive approach.
The team’s “Live by the three, die by the three” mentality continued, as 38 of their 63 field goal attempts came from beyond the arc. They sank 15 of them, converting at a 39.5 percent clip.
Typically, three-level scorin...
The Champaign Room •

Riley’s second-half explosion sparks blowout in season opener vs. EIU

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — After shaking off some rust in the early moments, Illinois started off its 2024-25 season with a 112-67 victory over nearby neighbors Eastern Illinois.
What was a 15-point lead at halftime quickly snowballed into a larger one in the second half. Illinois outscored Eastern Illinois 62-32 in the final 20 minutes.
On Monday, 100 of the team’s 112 points were scored either from three, in the paint or from the free throw line.
Twenty-three of the team’s 50 first-half points were sc...
The Champaign Room •

No. 19 Illinois falls flat in second half against Penn State

STATE COLLEGE, Pa. — After a tight, competitive chess match of a first half, No. 19 Illinois couldn’t stay happy in Happy Valley, losing 21-7 to No. 9 Penn State.
It seemed like Saturday wanted Illinois (4-1, 1-1 Big Ten) to win. Two missed field goals. A turnover on downs in the Illinois red zone. Illinois, at one point, was on the Penn State (4-0, 1-0) two-yard line with the game tied at seven apiece, but a bad snap and a couple of penalties set kicker David Olano up for a 45-yard try on a day...
The Champaign Room •

Passing game pushes Illinois to Homecoming victory over CMU

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — Some things you don’t see too often? A September Homecoming, a pass-happy Illinois offense, and a 3-0 Fighting Illini football team.
Fans at Memorial Stadium on Saturday got to catch a glimpse of all three of those, with a Homecoming matchup against Central Michigan playing host to a fantastic day through the air for Luke Altmyer, en route to a 30-9 victory.
It’s Illinois’ first 3-0 start since 2011 when Ron Zook’s team won six to open the season before dropping its next six....
The Champaign Room •

Passing game pushes Illinois to Homecoming victory over CMU

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — Some things you don’t see too often? A September Homecoming, a pass-happy Illinois offense, and a 3-0 Fighting Illini football team.
Fans at Memorial Stadium on Saturday got to catch a glimpse of all three of those, with a Homecoming matchup against Central Michigan playing host to a fantastic day through the air for Luke Altmyer, en route to a 30-9 victory.
It’s Illinois’ first 3-0 start since 2011 when Ron Zook’s team won six to open the season before dropping its next six....
The Champaign Room •

Illinois made to rue missed chances, falls to No. 2 Kentucky

LEXINGTON, Ky. — Under rainy conditions in Lexington, Illinois would slip and slide, falling 6-1 to No. 2 Kentucky in a dominant defensive outing for the Wildcats.
The Illini came out on top against Indiana State on Friday despite not being as clinical as they could have been. They left nine runners on base. The trend of struggling to convert hits into runs continued on Saturday. The Illini would leave eight on base, leaving runners in scoring position on numerous occasions.
Saturday’s game, ini...
The Champaign Room •

Crowder’s gem leads Illinois to first NCAA Tournament win since 2015

LEXINGTON, Ken. — The NCAA Tournament has been host to a number of high-scoring affairs thus far, with the average game having just over 11 runs. On Friday evening at Kentucky Proud Park, Illinois, the No. 3 seed in the regional, didn’t need anywhere near 11 to take down 2-seed Indiana State.
Solid pitching, impressive defense, and just enough offensive production saw the Illini cruise to a 4-1 victory to open up their journey to the College World Series.
The victory is Illinois’ first since 201...
The Champaign Room •

Illinois shut down, eliminated by Michigan in Big Ten Tournament

OMAHA — After winning a regular season title race that came down to the very last weekend of the season, the Illinois Fighting Illini finished conference play with a 1-2 record in the double-elimination Big Ten Tournament.

A legacy game for a Michigan catcher on the mound caused struggles for Illini batters, resulting in a 4-2 Michigan victory on Friday night.

The night before was another full of tornado sirens in Omaha. The fourth-seed Michigan Wolverines and top-seed Illinois Fighting Illini
The Champaign Room •

Illinois leads Big Ten entering regular season’s final weekend

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — With six games left in the regular season and a one-game lead on top of the Big Ten, Illinois had a simple job heading into its last home series of the year: Win.

Win out and you take the regular season title. Drop even one game and you’ll have a share of it. Drop two and you’re toying with your own destiny, with a quartet of teams just one game behind you in the standings.

Iowa, a team that needed a LOT to go right for them if they wanted any shot at the regular season title
The Champaign Room •

Offensive takeaways from Illinois’ 2024 spring game

On an offense that replaces seven starters, there were several questions surrounding how well Illinois could get the ball downfield this fall.

With 41 points combined by the offensive units, questions were asked and answered on Saturday as the Blue and White teams drew 0-0 in a game that had no official scoring.

Leary was under center for the second-team offense White team, while Luke Altmyer started the game for the first-team offense Blue team. On the first exchange of offensive drives, the
The Champaign Room •

Illinois wins inaugural WBIT, first postseason title in program history

INDIANAPOLIS — For the first time in program history, the Illinois women’s basketball team is crowned as champions.

Less than two years after taking over a program annually at the bottom of the Big Ten, Shauna Green and Illinois capped a sensational run in the inaugural Women's Basketball Invitation Tournament with a 71-57 victory over Villanova on Wednesday night at Hinkle Fieldhouse in Indianapolis.

The Illini would out-rebound Villanova (22-13, 11-7 Big East), and force the Wildcats to take
The Champaign Room •

Illinois blows out WSU, advances to WBIT Championship Game

INDIANAPOLIS — For the first time in program history, the Illinois women’s basketball program will play for postseason hardware.

Illinois hasn’t won four straight games this season, but it’s done just that with an emphatic 81-58 blowout victory over Washington State at Hinkle Fieldhouse in Indianapolis in the Illini’s run to the WBIT Championship Game.

“It’s one thing to say we have an opportunity to play in March, but not a lot of teams can make it to April,” Camille Hobby said following the
The Champaign Room •

Illinois fights off late rally, punches ticket to WBIT Final Four

TULSA, Okla. — With a shot at the WBIT Final Four at Hinkle Fieldhouse on the line, Illinois traveled to Tulsa with the same goal they’ve had since round one of the tournament: Go 1-0.

The Illinois Fighting Illini (17-15) did just that, jumping out to a big early lead and doing enough to hold onto it until the end, winning 69-61 to advance to the semifinals over the Tulsa Golden Hurricane (25-9).

If you came into Thursday’s game being told that Makira Cook got into foul trouble and that the Il
The Champaign Room •

Illinois glides past Stony Brook to advance to WBIT Quarterfinals

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — It was all smiles for the Illini on Sunday.

The Illini had to work their way back from down big in their first-round victory over Missouri State on Thursday, but on Sunday Illinois dominated Stony Brook seemingly never letting their foot off the gas, 79-62.

Illinois (16-15) would lead by as many as 25, topping the Stony Brook Seawolves (28-5) to march onto the WBIT quarterfinals.

Adalia McKenzie led all scorers for Illinois with 28, a career-high, carrying on from a 21-point
The Champaign Room •

Illinois overcomes double-digit deficit to advance in WBIT

Just a couple weeks removed from its Senior Night, Illinois earned a WBIT bid and with it an opportunity to go on a postseason run.

Led by one of their best seniors, the Illini battled back from a double-digit deficit to take down Missouri State in the first round of the Women’s Basketball Invitational Tournament, 74-69.

“It’s really important, it is,” Shauna Green said of the ability to play at home in the postseason. “It’s so important to have that energy behind us.”

On Senior Night part tw
The Champaign Room •

Hot start not enough as Illinois falls to Maryland in Big Ten Tournament

MINNEAPOLIS, Minn. — Ninth-seed Illinois put Maryland in its largest deficit of the season against a Big Ten opponent, got their leading scorer in foul trouble and still could not find a way to win. Some teams just aren’t beatable, and that was the case on Thursday in the second round of the Big Ten Tournament as the Illini fell to the Terrapins for the 17th straight time, 75-65.

Midway through the third quarter, there was a feeling of déjà vu for the Illini. A strong and promising start was ev
The Champaign Room •

Illinois scrapes past Nebraska for Senior Night victory

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — State Farm Center was as loud as it’s been all season for Illinois’ women’s basketball team on Sunday, where it was host to a Senior Day shootout that went down to the wire.

It came down to the very last possession, with the ball in Nebraska’s hands, but a string of four consecutive stops gave Illinois the win 74-73.

It was a windy day in the 217 with winds reaching up to 20 miles per hour. While field goals may have been hard to come by across the street at Memorial Stadium,
The Champaign Room •

No. 12 Illinois collapses down the stretch at Penn State

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pen. — Despite Terrence Shannon Jr. having a career night, it was the Illini defense that let itself down on Wednesday.

After an uncomfortable and high-scoring first half, Illinois seemed to settle into the game in the second half. Despite the Illini holding a double-digit lead with less than four minutes to go, the Nittany Lions would claw their way back to a 90-89 comeback victory.

The matchup was Penn State’s first conference matchup in the cozy 97-year-old fieldhouse since
The Champaign Room •

Illinois topples No. 14 Indiana in blowout fashion

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — The Illini got their signature win of the season. Their first quad 1 and ranked victories of the season, and also their first win against Indiana since

After a huge win against Penn State on the road, Illinois was looking for a late-season spark before the Big Ten Tournament. With key matchups against No. 14 Indiana and No. 2 Iowa looming, the Illini are playing some of their best basketball to date.

Heading into the game, head coach Shauna Green was 0-3 in her career against
The Champaign Room •

Illinois falls to Maryland at home in offensive collapse

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — It’s not often that you can score 22 in one half and play a close game of basketball, but that’s what Illinois did on Sunday. At least for three quarters.

At the end of four quarters, Maryland would leave Champaign with the result it was probably expecting when they arrived, winning 69-53.

It’s also not often that you can shoot 31% from the field and keep it close. The Illini (11-12, 5-8 Big Ten) were out-rebounded and out-shot by the Terrapins (14-10, 6-7 Big Ten). Giving th
The Champaign Room •

Illinois bounces back, sweeps Northwestern

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — Off the heels of a disappointing overtime loss on the road to a regional rival, the Fighting Illini defended home court in dominant fashion against another nearby nemesis.

Illinois cruised by Northwestern comfortably, never trailing and only finding themselves tied with the visitors in the seconds following the tipoff. It wasn’t quite as close as the 82-71 scoreline would suggest thanks to a surge in the fourth quarter from the Wildcats, but the Orange and Blue would pull thro
The Champaign Room •

Illinois’ rally comes up short in overtime loss at Purdue

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. — With Orange Krush in attendance, Illinois traveled to the Mackey Arena in an attempt to extend their win streak to three.

On a seven-game losing streak, the Boilermakers needed to be at their best to stop the Fighting Illini, who won back-to-back heading into Monday night. Despite a late surge in the closing seconds of regulation to tie the game after trailing by as many as 14, Illinois’ comeback attempt would fall short as they lost 77-72.

Both teams were donned in whit
The Champaign Room •

Illinois exacts revenge for blowout loss with win at Michigan

ANN ARBOR, Mich. — About a month after suffering the wake-up call of its season against Michigan, Illinois marched into the Crisler Center with a mission to right their past wrongs.

After leading by as many as 11 against No. 12 Ohio State last week, the Illini (10-10, 4-6 Big Ten) had their work cut out for them: get ahead and stay ahead.

Illinois controlled the pace of the game early on, especially on the offensive side of the ball, starting 7-of-7 from the field and 2-of-2 from deep.

By the
The Champaign Room •

Illinois blows by persistent Rutgers, win second straight

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — After a dominant showing against Northwestern earlier in the week, Illinois found a way to keep the wins coming with a 96-68 win over Rutgers. They have 8 straight quarters scoring at least 20 points and have had back-to-back wins scoring at least 90.

Driven by a vintage Genesis Bryant performance, six Illini scored in double digits, giving fans a look at how the team can play out the rest of the season without fifth-year senior Jada Peebles.

The Illini (8-8, 2-4 Big Ten) bea
Load More

Let's get social