Jan. 28, 2005
Illinois Men's Basketball Game Notes vs. Minnesota in PDF Format
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FIGHTING ILLINI BASKETBALL
Game #21: #1 Illinois (20-0, 6-0) vs. Minnesota (14-5, 4-2)
Jan. 29, 2005 •1:30 p.m. CT •ESPN+ Regional
Champaign, Ill. •Assembly Hall (16,618)
Probable Starters
#1 ILLINOIS (20-0, 6-0)
F - 43 Roger Powell, Jr. (Sr., 6-6, 235, 12.7 ppg, 5.2 rpg)
F - 40 James Augustine (Jr., 6-10, 230, 10.0 ppg, 7.7 rpg, 1.4 bpg)
G - 4 Luther Head (Sr., 6-3, 185, 16.9 ppg, 4.0 rpg, 4.2 apg)
G - 5 Deron Williams (Jr., 6-3, 210, 12.9 ppg, 4.0 rpg, 7.0 apg)
G - 11 Dee Brown (Jr., 6-0, 185, 13.0 ppg, 2.6 rpg, 5.1 apg)
Off The Bench ...
G - 15 Calvin Brock (Fr., 6-4, 185, plans to redshirt)
G - 33 Rich McBride (So., 6-3, 215, 3.7 ppg, 1.4 rpg)
F - 34 Fred Nkemdi (Sr., 6-5, 235, 0.7 ppg, 0.3 rpg)
F - 41 Warren Carter (So., 6-9, 210, 3.1 ppg, 1.6 rpg)
C - 45 Nick Smith (Sr.-r, 7-2, 250, 4.2 ppg, 2.7 rpg)
C/F - 50 Jack Ingram (Sr.-r, 6-10, 245, 4.0 ppg, 3.1 rpg)
F - 55 Shaun Pruitt (Fr., 6-8, 245, 1.4 ppg, 1.0 rpg)
Injured
F - 42 Brian Randle (So., 6-7, 210, 1.8 ppg, 1.7 rpg in 2003-04)
Illinois Head Coach: Bruce Weber
Overall Record: 149-61/.710 (7th year)
At Illinois: 46-7/.868 (2nd year)
Big Ten: 19-3/.864
Vs. Minnesota: 1-0
Assistant Coaches: Wayne McClain (4th year), Jay Price (2nd year), Tracy Webster (1st year)
Assistant to the head coach: Gary Nottingham (2nd year)
Trainer: Al Martindale (22nd year at Illinois)
Minnesota Head Coach: Dan Monson
Overall Record: 145-95/.604 (8th year)
At Minnesota: 93-78/.544 (6th year)
Vs. Illinois: 0-10
Assistant Coaches: Jim Molinari, Bill Walker and Vic Couch
On the Air
Television
ESPN+ Regional: Jim Barbar, play-by-play; Doug Altenberger, expert analyst
Radio
Illini Sports Network - 47 stations: Brian Barnhart, play-by-play; Stephen Bardo, expert analyst; Loren Tate, pregame/halftime/postgame interviews.
Series Notes: Minnesota
Illinois leads the all-time series 104-60 over Minnesota, including a 64-16 advantage in games played at Champaign. The Fighting Illini have won 11 in a row in the series, including the last six meetings in the Assembly Hall. The last Gopher win (67-66) in Champaign came March 9, 1996, Lou Henson's final regular-season game as a head coach at Illinois.
Reunion Celebration this Weekend
The celebration of Illinois' centennial season of varsity men's basketball continues this weekend, as the University and the Division of Intercollegiate Athletics welcome back 350 former players, coaches, assistant coaches, managers, and support staff members to campus. A number of activities have been planned for those in attendance, including, receptions, luncheons, and campus tours.
An Alumni Basketball Game will be played Saturday morning at sold-out Huff Gym. Doors open at 9 a.m., and the game begins at 10 a.m. A number of alumni are expected to participate in the game including Dave Downey, Marcus Liberty, Lucas Johnson, Bruce Douglas, Sergio McClain, Anthony Welch, Chris Gandy and Jerry Hester, along with many more former Illini players.
Illinois will wear orange throwback jerseys during Saturday's game vs. Minnesota, styled after the 1988-89 uniforms worn by the Flyin' Illini. A commemorative poster will also be on sale in the Assembly Hall concourse.
At halftime of the Minnesota game, the three former Illini coaches in attendance (Henson, Bartow and Schmidt) will be introduced, along with Jane Austermiller, the daughter of former coach Harry Combes.
Following the game, there will a ceremony on the Assembly Hall court, which will include a highlight video, remarks, introductions of all returning players, and special introductions of the Illinois Basketball All-Century Team.
Undefeated Illini
Illinois is one of just two teams in the country to boast a perfect record, and with 20 victories is tied with Syracuse for the most wins in the nation. The following is a list of the remaining undefeated teams in Div. I.
Illinois 20-0 (next; Sat. vs. Minnesota)
Boston College 17-0 (next; Sat. vs. Georgetown)
Illini Own Pair of Nation's Longest Winning Streaks
Illinois sits atop the NCAA Div. I charts with two winning streaks. The Illini's 20-game winning streak is the longest winning streak in the nation, and Illinois' 10-game road winning streak is tied with Boston College for the longest road winning streak in the nation. Illinois won its last six road games last year and has won its first four road games this season.
Hot Start
Illinois' current 20-0 record has set a school record for the best start to a season in the 100-year history of Fighting Illini basketball, and also ranks as the longest single-season winning streak in school history. The 20 straight wins also stands as the second longest winning streak in school history. Only the 25-game winning streak that included parts of three seasons from Feb. 21, 1914, through Feb. 9, 1916, bests the Illini's current string of victories.
Illinois' 20-0 mark also ranks as the fifth best start ever by a Big Ten team, and is the best start by a Big Ten team in 29 years, since Indiana went a perfect 32-0 during the 1975-76 season. The following is a list of the all-time best starts by Big Ten teams.
Rank School Start Year
1. Indiana 32-0 * 1975-76
2. Indiana 31-0 1974-75
3. Ohio State 27-0 1960-61
4. Ohio State 22-0 1961-62
5. Illinois 20-0 2004-05
6. Iowa 18-0 1986-87
T7. Ohio State 17-0 1990-91
T7. Illinois 17-0 1988-89
* Indiana went undefeated during the 1975-76 season.
Big Ten Streakin'
Illinois has won 16 straight Big Ten games - its final 10 conference games last season and the first six this season. Illinois' 16-game Big Ten winning streak is the second best conference run in school history, and is just one shy of the school record of 17 straight Big Ten wins from Feb. 21, 1914 through Feb. 9, 1916. The following are the Illini's all-time best Big Ten winning streaks:
•17 - Feb. 21, 1914 through Feb. 9, 1916
•16 - Feb. 3, 2004 - CURRENT
•15 - Jan. 20, 1951 through Feb. 2, 1952
•14 - March 7, 1942 through Jan. 3, 1944
•13 - Feb. 26, 1955 through Feb. 20, 1956
•13 - Feb. 23, 1924 through Feb. 21, 1925
Illinois has also set a school record with its current streak of nine straight Big Ten road victories - its final six conference away games last season and its first three road games this season. This broke the previous school-record streak of eight straight Big Ten road wins, which happened twice. The Illini won eight straight conference road games from Feb. 21, 1914 through Feb. 9, 1916 and again from Feb. 5, 1951 through Feb. 2, 1952.
Hot Big Ten Start
At 6-0 in conference play, Illinois is off to its best Big Ten start in 42 years, since winning its first six Big Ten games in 1963. This is the eighth time in school history that Illinois has won at least its first six games to open conference play. The following are the Illini's all-time best Big Ten starts:
Rank Start Year
T1. 12-0 * 1942-43
T1. 12-0 * 1914-15
3. 10-0 1955-56
T4. 7-0 1941-42
T4. 7-0 1924-25
T6. 6-0 2004-05
T6. 6-0 1962-63
T6. 6-0 1951-52
T9. 5-0 1969-70
T9. 5-0 1919-20
*Illinois went unbeaten in Big Ten play during the 1942-43 and 1914-15 seasons.
Illini Tally Sixth Straight 20-Win Season
With the victory at Wisconsin on Tuesday, Illinois has recorded its sixth straight 20-win season, which is also its eighth in the last nine years and 24th all-time. Illinois has also reached the 20-win plateau the fastest in school history in terms of both calendar date and number of total games, by winning its 20th game on Jan. 25 in just its 20th game of the season.
Prior to this year, the quickest that Illinois had recorded its 20th win in a season by calendar date was during the 1988-89 season, when the UI won its 20th game on Feb. 11, 1989. In terms of total games, the fastest that Illinois had recorded its 20th win had been in 23 games. This happened four times; during the 1948-49, 1951-52, 1983-84, and 1988-89 seasons.
Illini Remain No. 1
For just the third year in school history - and for the eighth straight week - Illinois is the No. 1-ranked team in the nation. This marks the first time in school history that the Illini have been ranked first for more than one week in the same season. Illinois' first tenure at No. 1 came the final week of January, 1952. Illinois' eight straight weeks at No. 1 is the longest streak by any team since Duke owned the top spot the first eight weeks of the 2001-02 season.
Prior to this year, the last time Illinois was ranked No. 1 was the week of Jan. 23-29, 1989. The UI was also ranked No. 1 in the Associated Press poll for a week during the final week in January, 1952. In each of the previous two seasons when the Illini achieved a No. 1 ranking, they went on to advance to the NCAA Final Four.
Home Cookin'
The Illini have a 16-game winning streak at the Assembly Hall, which is currently tied for eighth in the nation among active homecourt winning streaks ...Illinois is 61-2 (.968) at the Assembly Hall over the last four-plus years, with the only losses coming to Michigan State on Feb. 3, 2002 and to Purdue on Jan. 10, 2004 ... The Boilermakers broke a 23-game Illini winning streak at the Hall that at the time ranked fourth in the nation ... Illinois is 73-3 (.961) at the Assembly Hall over the past five-plus seasons, the best home mark in the nation over that period ...The Illini have also won 38 in a row at the Assembly Hall against non-conference opponents ... Illinois has won 38 of its last 40 (.950) Big Ten games at the Assembly Hall ... Below is a look at Illinois' home record the past five-plus seasons:
Year Overall Big Ten
2004-05 10-0 3-0
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 73-3 (.961) 39-3 (.929)
Last Time Out: at Wisconsin
The Illini traveled to Madison, Wis. on Tuesday and ended the longest homecourt winning streak in the nation, defeating Wisconsin 75-65 to end the Badger's 38-game winning streak at the Kohl Center. Illinois fell behind by eight points in the second half, but then went on a 13-2 run to take a three point lead with under eight minutes remaining. Wisconsin then fought back and was up by three, 64-61 with 4:30 left. But Illinois took over from there, outscoring the Badgers 14-1 down the stretch to end the Kohl Center streak and improve to 20-0 on the year and 6-0 in the Big Ten. Luther Head led four Illini in double figures with a game-high 18 points. James Augustine added 14 points and eight rebounds.
Illinois-Wisconsin Game Receives High TV Rating
The Illinois-Wisconsin game on Tuesday, which was televised by ESPN, achieved a 2.78 rating. That translates to roughly 2.5 million households, making it the 7th most watched regular-season college basketball game in ESPN history.
* For complete set of Illinois men's basketball game notes vs. Minnesota, click on .pdf link at the top of this page.
