|
Men's Basketball
Illinois Game Notes vs. Purdue
Jan. 26, 2006 Champaign, Ill. - Illinois Men's Basketball Game Notes vs. Purdue in PDF Format
FIGHTING ILLINI BASKETBALL On the Air Radio Probable Starters Off The Bench ... Illinois Head Coach Bruce Weber Purdue Head Coach: Matt Painter Series Notes: Purdue Illini Headlines • Illinois has won 57 of its last 60 games during the regular season. • Illinois owns the nation's second-longest homecourt winning streak at 32 games, trailing Southern Illinois by one and tied with Gonzaga. • Illinois' 32-game winning streak at the Assembly Hall has set a school record, breaking the previous record of 31 straight from Jan. 15, 1984 through Jan. 4, 1986. • Illinois is 89-3 (.967) at the Assembly Hall over the last six-and-a-half seasons, the best home mark in the nation over this time period. • Illinois is the second-winningest team in the nation over the past five-and-a-half seasons. Illinois has won 159 games since the beginning of the 2000-01 season, which trails only Duke (167 wins). • Bruce Weber is the winningest coach in the nation over the past four-and-a-half seasons. Since the beginning of the 2001-02 season, Weber has won 133 games, recording 52 wins in his final two years at Southern Illinois and 81 wins in his first two-and-a-half years at Illinois. He leads Duke's Mike Krzyzewski by one win over this time period. • Illinois and Duke are the only two schools in the nation to win at least 25 games each of the last five seasons. • Illinois, Duke and Oklahoma State are the only three teams to advance to the NCAA Sweet 16 each of the last two seasons. • Illinois has won 14 of 18 games by double figures, leading the Big Ten and ranking 10th in the nation (as of Jan. 23) in scoring margin at +15.6 ppg. • Illinois' opponents are averaging just 56.3 points on 38.7 percent shooting on the season, including just 27.5 percent from 3-point range. The Illini lead the Big Ten and rank seventh in the nation (as of Jan. 23) in scoring defense, are second in the Big Ten and 17th nationally (as of Jan. 23) in field goal percentage defense, and lead the Big Ten in 3-point field goal percentage defense. • Illinois is outrebounding its opponents by an average of 7.0 boards per game. The Illini lead the Big Ten and rank 12th in the nation (as of Jan. 23) in rebounding margin and have outrebounded 17 of 20 opponents on the year. • Dee Brown ranks second in the Big Ten and 25th in the nation (as of Jan. 23) in assists, averaging 5.7 apg. • James Augustine ranks second in the Big Ten in field goal percentage at 60.5 percent (107-177) and third in the Big Ten in rebounding, averaging 8.9 rpg. • Sharp-shooting freshman guard Jamar Smith ranks second in the Big Ten in 3-point field goal percentage at 52.7 percent (48-91). He has come off the bench to make his first 3-point attempt in 11 of 20 games and has made at least one 3-pointer in 18 games. • Dee Brown ranks second in the Big Ten in 3-pointers per game, averaging 2.7. • Seniors Dee Brown and James Augustine have accounted for 47.4 percent of Illinois' points during Big Ten play. • Dee Brown has an assist-to-turnover ratio of 2.84 over the past 14 games (91 assists, 32 turnovers), after opening the season with an assist/turnover ratio of 0.96 in the first six games (23 assists, 24 turnovers). • Dee Brown scored a career-high 34 points in the win over Michigan State on Jan. 5. It marked the most points by an Illini player in eight years, since Kevin Turner scored 35 vs. Indiana on Jan. 3, 1998. • James Augustine broke the school record for career rebounds vs. Tennessee-Martin on Dec. 30 when he collected his 854th rebound, breaking the previous Illini career record of 853 rebounds set by Efrem Winters from 1983-86. Augustine currently has 901 career rebounds and is on pace to become the first 1,000-point scorer and 1000-rebounder in UI history and just the 11th in Big Ten history. • Dee Brown and James Augustine have each played in 106 wins during their respective careers, ranking third on the UI career wins chart. The Illinois record for wins (played in) is 110 by Nick Smith (2002-05). • Dee Brown recorded his 1,500th career point vs. Coppin State on Dec. 18, becoming just the eighth player in UI history to reach that milestone. Brown currently has 1,647 points to rank seventh on the all-time UI list, and he is the top active career scorer in the Big Ten. • James Augustine has won the opening tip in 17 of 20 games this season, and has won the tip over 80 percent of the time during his career (97-23). • Illinois has played 69 consecutive games while ranked in the Top 25, and 13 straight games while ranked in the Top 10. • Illinois has the nation's longest nonconference homecourt winning streak at 46 games (tied with Oklahoma). • Illinois tied its fourth-best start in school history this season with a 15-0 start, marking the second straight season that the UI won its first 15 games. The Illini won a school-record 29 games to start last season. • Illinois sold out of season tickets for the entire season for the second year in a row and third time in the last five years. The Illini have played in front of a school-record 23 consecutive sell-out crowds at the Assembly Hall. Illini By the Numbers Under Weber • 81-11: Illinois' overall record under Weber, a winning percentage of .880. • 38-1: Illinois' record at the Assembly Hall under Weber, a winning percentage of .974. • 57-3: Illinois' record in its last 60 regular season games under Weber (beginning Jan. 31, 2004), a winning percentage of .950. • 37-2: Illinois' record last season, which tied the record for the winningest season in NCAA history. • 26-7: Illinois' record in Weber's first season (2003-04), which tied the fourth-winningest season in school history. • 18-2: Illinois' record so far this season, the second straight year under Weber that Illinois has gone undefeated in non-conference play and won its first 15 games. • 32-6: Illinois' record in Big Ten play under Weber - which incudes back-to-back outright championships in 2004 and 2005 - a winning percentage of .842. • 69-8: Illinois' record in regular season games under Weber, a winning percentage of .896. • 17-5: Illinois' record in road games under Weber, a winning percentage of .773. • 26-5: Illinois' record in neutral-site games under Weber, a winning percentage of .839. • 7-2: Illinois' NCAA Tournament record under Weber - which includes a trip to the Sweet 16 in 2004 and the program's first-ever appearance in the national championship game in 2005 - a winning percentage of .778. • 5-1: Illinois' Big Ten Tournament record under Weber - which includes the 2005 tournament title - a winning percentage of .833. • 12-3: Illinois' combined postseason record under Weber, a winning percentage of .800. Seniors Carry Scoring Load in Big Ten Play Home Cookin' Year Overall Big Ten 2005-06 11-0 3-0 2004-05 15-0 8-0 2003-04 12-1 7-1 2002-03 14-0 7-0 2001-02 13-1 7-1 2000-01 12-0 8-0 1999-2000 12-1 7-1 Total 89-3 (.967) 47-3 (.940) Following is a list of the current longest homecourt winning streaks in Div. I:
School Wins Next Home Game
1. Southern Illinois 33 Feb. 1
T2. ILLINOIS 32 Jan. 28
T2. Gonzaga 32 Jan. 28
Last Time Out: Minnesota Illinois won its school-record 32nd straight game at the Assembly Hall on Wednesday with a 77-53 victory over Minnesota. It marked the Illini's 14th consecutive win over the Gophers. Leading 52-46 early in the second half, the Illini broke the game open with a 21-2 run. Illinois shot 48 percent for the game and 44 percent from 3-point range with 10 treys. The Illini also took care of the ball, dishing out 18 assists on its 28 baskets and committing a season-low of just eight turnovers. The Illini defense was solid once again, holding Minnesota to just 19 field goals and 36 percent shooting, and forcing 14 turnovers. Dee Brown led four Illini in double figures with a game-high 17 points. Jamar Smith hit five 3-pointers and scored 16 off the bench, while James Augustine recorded his sixth double-double of the season with 13 points and 10 rebounds. Brian Randle finished with 10 points and eight boards. Augustine and Brown Approaching School Record for Career Wins Augustine Top Rebounder in Illini History Augustine now has 901 career boards, which is also the most rebounds of any current Big Ten player. He is on pace to become the first 1,000-point scorer and 1,000-rebounder in Illinois history and just the 11th in Big Ten history. Doing it with Defense The Illini have only given up more than 65 points once this season (Michigan, 74), with 12 opponents scoring under 60. Illinois has not had an opponent shoot 50 percent in a game this year, and only four teams have shot better than 45 percent. Illinois held back-to-back opponents to less than 50 points in wins over Arkansas-Little Rock (75-49) and Georgetown (58-48) for the first time since Nov. 30 and Dec. 5, 1998 under Lon Kruger when the Illini defeated Valparaiso (53-49) and Bradley (53-48). On Dec. 18, the Illini held Coppin State to just 42 points, the second-fewest points by an opponent in the Weber era at Illinois and the fewest by a UI opponent since Penn State scored 37 in an 80-37 loss at the Assembly Hall on Jan. 21, 2004. Illinois' best defensive effort of the season came in the win over Michigan State on Jan. 5. The Spartans entered the game ranked 14th in the nation in scoring, averaging 82.8 ppg. But the Illini held MSU to a season-low 50 points, nearly 33 points below its average. MSU was 10th in the NCAA in field goal percentage at 50.4 percent but shot just 36.2 percent against the Illini defense. The Illini "D" did its best work on Michigan State's top two scorers, Maurice Ager and Paul Davis. Ager entered the game ranked 12th in the nation in scoring at 22 points per game, but he was held 13 below his average, scoring a season-low nine points on 3-8 shooting, his only game of the season not reaching double figures. Davis, meanwhile, came into the game third in the Big Ten in scoring, averaging 20 points, but scored just 12. In the win over Northwestern on Saturday, Illinois held the Wildcats to 35.4 percent shooting and 17 field goals on its home floor, which included just four first-half baskets. NU's Vedran Vukusic, the Big Ten's leading scorer entering the game at 20.9 ppg, was held to a season-low five points and just one field goal by the Illini, his first game of the year in single digits. Crashing the Boards Last season, Illinois averaged 34.3 rpg and outrebounded its opponent by an average of only 3.0 boards. Brown Eclipses 1,500 Career Points Illini Also Enjoy Success in Close Games Dee Does it All Brown put on one of the best scoring performances by an Illinois player in nearly a decade in the Big Ten opener vs. Michigan State on Jan. 5. He scored a career-high 34 points, making a career-high 12 field goals. Seven of his 12 buckets came from 3-point range, tying the most treys by a Big Ten player on the year. Brown was on fire in the first half, scoring 23 points on 8-12 shooting, which matched the number of first-half baskets that MSU had as a team. His 34 points are the most by a UI player in eight years, since Kevin Turner scored 35 vs. Indiana in the 1998 Big Ten opener vs. Indiana (Jan. 3, 1998). Brown was at it again in the win over Michigan on Jan. 14, scoring a game-high 26 points, which equaled his second-highest total of the season. He scored 16 of 26 in the final 11 minutes, nailing four 3-pointers and a key basket with less than two minutes left to put the Illini up by three. Brown, who played the entire 40 minutes against the Wolverines, also tied his best-ever performance from the free throw line by making 9-10. He had his first standout performance in a Big Ten road game at Northwestern on Jan. 21, scoring a game-high 18 points on 6-10 shooting, to go along with eight assists. He then led the Illini with a game-high 17 points on 7-11 shooting vs. Minnesota on Wednesday. Brown's first scoring explosion of the season came in the win at Oregon on Dec. 10 when he led the Illini with 26 points. Brown made 9-15 shots against the Ducks, including 5-8 from 3-point range. Against Missouri on Dec. 21, Brown played a brilliant all-around game, scoring a game-high 17 points while also recording a game-high seven assists. He played the entire game (36 min.) without committing a turnover. Brown's presence can be felt all over the court, as he leads the Illini in five total categories: scoring (15.3 ppg), minutes (34.7 mpg), assists (5.7 apg), steals (1.7 spg) and free throw percentage (52-68, .765). He ranks second in the Big Ten (and 25th in NCAA as of Jan. 23) in assists and fifth in steals, and leads the conference with 53 three-pointers. Brown has recorded double-digit assists three times this year, led by a season-high 11 assists at Indiana (Jan. 17) and 10 vs. both Arkansas-Little Rock (Dec. 5) and Tennessee-Martin (Dec. 30). He also owns an assist-to-turnover ratio of 2.84 over the last 14 games (91 assists, 32 turnovers). Augie Taking Over The leading career field goal percentage shooter in Illinois history, Augustine has made 60.5 percent of his shots this season (107-177), which ranks second in the Big Ten and 13th in the NCAA (as of Jan. 23). He's shot 50 percent or better in all but four games, highlighted by a pair of 7-9 performances vs. Rutgers (Nov. 26) and Xavier (Dec. 3), 8-9 shooting vs. Tennessee-Martin (Dec. 30) and 9-11 shooting vs. Michigan (Jan. 14). In addition to his increased scoring, Augustine has remained the Illini's top rebounder and has increased his production in that category as well. He is averaging 8.9 boards per game this season to lead the team and rank third in the Big Ten. Augustine averaged 7.6 rpg last year and entered his senior season with a career average of 7.0 rebounds. Augustine broke the school career rebounding record vs. Tennessee-Martin on Dec. 30 and with 901 career rebounds, at his current average he is on pace to become Illinois' first-ever player to collect 1,000 rebounds. Augustine has six double-doubles on the season with 18 pts.-14 reb. vs. South Dakota State (Nov. 18), 14 pts.-10 reb. vs. Wichita State (Nov. 25), 13 pts.-13 reb. vs. North Carolina (Nov. 29), 10 pts.-13 reb. vs. Georgetown (Dec. 8), 19 pts.-11 reb. vs. Tennessee-Martin (Dec. 30) and 13 pts.-10 reb. vs. Minnesota (Jan. 25). Smith Gives Illini Instant Offense Smith has come off the bench to make his first 3-point attempt in 11 games on the year, and has made at least one 3-pointer in all but two games (Michigan State, Indiana) on the season. Smith's coming out party occurred during Illinois' victory over Arkansas-Little Rock on Dec. 5. He scored a career-high 23 points, connecting on 8-10 from the field, including 6-8 from 3-point range. Against Southeast Missouri State on Dec. 28, Smith scored 14 points on 5-5 shooting, including 4-4 from 3-point range. Smith had his best Big Ten game against Minnesota on Wednesday, scoring 16 points on 5-8 shooting from 3-point range. On the season, Smith has scored at least eight points in 16 of 20 games. Randle Hitting Stride Randle scored a career-high 16 points against Rutgers on Nov. 26, shooting 6-8 from the field. He then had 12 points on 4-5 shooting against North Carolina on Nov. 29. He came up huge in the clutch, scoring in traffic with 1:06 remaining to give Illinois a 66-62 lead after the team had gone scoreless for five-and-a-half minutes. Randle had 11 points on 5-7 shooting and six rebounds vs. Arkansas-Little Rock (Dec. 5). and had nine points and seven boards vs. Oregon on Dec. 10. Randle did not play vs. Coppin State on Dec. 18 due to a sprained ankle but returned to the starting lineup to score 13 points and collect six rebounds vs. Missouri on Dec. 21. His defense locked down MU's Thomas Gardner, who entered the game leading the Big XII in scoring at 22.3 ppg but managed just six points on 2-12 shooting and had five turnovers against the Illini. Randle had another superb defensive performance on Michigan State's Maurice Ager on Jan. 5. Ager entered the game ranked 12th in the nation in scoring at 22 points per game, but Randle held him 13 below his average, as Ager scored a season-low nine points on 3-8 shooting, his first game of the season not reaching double figures. Randle came within one point of his career high at Indiana on Jan. 17, scoring 15 points to go along with six rebounds. He nearly had a double-double vs. Minnesota on Wednesday, recording 10 points and eight boards. Randle has started 19 games on the year. He is fifth on the team in scoring, averaging 8.1 points while shooting over 50 percent from the field (62-123). He is third on the team in rebounding at 5.4 rpg and ranks second with 12 blocks. McBride Showcases All-Around Game McBride is still a threat from behind the arc, ranking second on the team with 48 treys on the year. He had a season-high 21 points vs. Tennessee-Martin on Dec. 30 behind a career-high seven 3-pointers, tying the most by a Big Ten player this season and also tying the third-most 3-pointers in a game ever by an Illinois player. McBride ranks fourth on the team in scoring at 8.7 points per game. He is second on the team in assists behind Brown, averaging 2.3. Pruitt Asserting Himself in the Paint Illini Nation's Second-Winningest Team over Past Five-and-a-Half Seasons
School Wins Record Pct. Next Game
1. Duke 167 167-28 .856 Jan. 26
2. ILLINOIS 159 159-35 .820 Jan. 28
3. Gonzaga 149 149-31 .828 Jan. 28
4. Kansas 148 148-41 .783 Jan. 28
5. Kentucky 145 145-40 .784 Jan. 29
Weber Nation's Winningest Coach over Past Four-and-a-Half Seasons *For complete set of Illinois men's basketball game notes, click on .pdf link at top of this page.
|
