(From Illinois Sports Information Office)

Illinois vs. Penn State

Head Coach Shauna Green

Career Record: 216-105 (.673), 11th season
Division I Record: 187-80 (.700), Ninth season
At Illinois: 60-30 (.667), Third season
Big Ten Record: 28-21 (.571), Third season

OPENING TIP

The 51st campaign of Fighting Illini women's basketball continues on Thursday, when Illinois hosts Penn State at State Farm Center at 6 p.m. CT on B1G+. Mike Koon will call the action for the Illini on the Busey Bank Illini Sports Network (1400 AM / 93.9 FM). Streaming, audio, and stats links are also available at FightingIllini.com/wbb.

• Illinois won 10 games before Christmas (Dec. 25) for the first time since 2022-23 and for the second time since 2006-07.
• Illinois has earned a win over a ranked opponent for the third consecutive season and is up to five under Green.
• Head coach Shauna Green earned her 200th win as a head coach on Nov. 14, 2024 vs. Eastern Illinois.
• The Fighting Illini have now been ranked in the Top 25 in all three seasons under Green.
• Illinois faced a ranked team in its Big Ten opener for the third straight season (#12/7 Ohio State, --/25 Michigan, #5/4 Indiana).
• Illinois returned four 1,000-career point scorers, tied for the most in the NCAA with Baylor, Notre Dame, and Kansas State.
• Illinois has won multiple Top-25 games in the same season for the first time since 2014-15.
• Illinois has won three Top-25 games in the same season for the first time since 1999-2000.
• Illinois' seniors (Cook, Bryant, McKenzie, Shoup-Hill, Bostic) have a combined 458 career starts (432 at Illinois) and played a combined 600 games (472 at Illinois).
• Kendall Bostic's 1,327 career rebounds rank second of all active NCAA D1 players and is the active Big Ten-leading mark.
• On Monday, Jan. 27, 2025, Kendall Bostic grabbed the 1,218th rebound of her Illinois career and broke Jenna Smith's all-time Illinois record of 1,217 boards.
• Also on Jan. 27, 2025, Bostic moved into third place on the Big Ten's career rebounding list, surpassing Indiana's Denise Jackson (1981-84) at 1,273 rebounds.
• Kendall Bostic owns 50 double-doubles across her Illinois career, ranking second in school history behind Jenna Smith's 53.
• Illinois' free throws made per game mark of 15.75 ranks 16th in the NCAA.
• Illinois' 12.5 turnovers per game rank 20th in the NCAA.
• Illinois' free throw percentage of 80.8% ranks 2nd in the NCAA and leads the Big Ten.
• The Fighting Illini are leading the Big Ten with a 27.4% 3-point defensive rate, which ranks 35th in the NCAA.
• Eight different Illini scorers have posted double-digit points in a game this season: Bostic, Bryant, Brown-Hagger, Cook, Dolan, McKenzie, Shoup-Hill, Wallace.

ABOUT THE OPPONENT

Penn State makes the trip to Champaign with a 10-14 record and a 1-12 mark in conference play this season. Currently battling through a five-game losing streak, the Nittany Lions are looking for their first win since defeating top-10 Ohio State at home on Jan. 19.

PSU is 1-7 on the road during the 2024-25 campaign, with that lone victory coming against Kansas on Dec. 15.

ALL-TIME SERIES INFORMATION

The Nittany Lions hold a 39-18 advantage in the all-time series, which dates back to 1986. Illinois has won each of the last two meetings between the sides, though, including an 86-71 road win last season. The Illini are aiming to win their third consecutive game against Penn State for the first time since 1997-98, while the Orange and Blue look to secure back-to-back home victories against the Nittany Lions for the first time since the 2006-07 and 2007-08 seasons.

LAST TIME OUT

Illinois earned its fifth-straight road win and sixth-consecutive victory overall with a 74-51 triumph over Wisconsin on Sunday afternoon.

The Fighting Illini led by as many as 26 in the contest, ultimately prevailing by 23 to improve to 19-5 overall and 9-4 in Big Ten play this season.

Adalia McKenzie made two 3-pointers, her first outing this season with multiple makes from beyond the arc, and finished with a team-high 18 points. Totaling 12 points across the opening 20 minutes of play, McKenzie ended the afternoon with eight rebounds, six assists, and a steal.

Despite not playing in the fourth quarter, Genesis Bryant registered 11 points while going 8-for-8 from the free throw line. Bryant also dished out a team-most seven assists and grabbed five rebounds.

Kendall Bostic secured the 50th double-double of her career with 15 points and a team-best 11 rebounds. Notching three assists, Bostic also had a big day defensively with three steals and two blocks.

Brynn Shoup-Hill posted 11 points after tallying eight points on 2-for-3 shooting from deep in the second half. Five of her six rebounds came on the offensive glass, and she tacked on an assist and a block.

Jasmine Brown-Hagger added nine points, four rebounds, two steals, and an assist, while Berry Wallace went 3-for-5 en route to a 10-point effort off the bench, her third-straight game in double figures.

ILLINI CONTINUE TO BATTLE DESPITE INJURY BUG

Through the team's first 23 games of the season, Illinois has yet to have its full 14-player roster available. Holding an 19-5 record despite those setbacks, the Illini have remained resilient while battling injury issues throughout the campaign.

Eight different players have missed at least one game due to injury or illness this season, including sophomore transfer center Lety Vasconcelos, who was expected to be a key piece in the rotation before suffering a season-ending ACL tear over the summer. On Jan. 8, the program announced that fifth-year Makira Cook (ongoing health condition) and sophomore Gretchen Dolan (knee) would both miss the remainder of the 2024-25 season. Illinois is now 8-1 since announcing Cook and Dolan would miss the remainder of the season.

Five-star freshman guard Berry Wallace (hand) missed seven of the first eight games, while junior forward Shay Bollin, who played in 29 games for the Illini last season, has yet to make an appearance during the 2024-25 campaign. Freshman Irene Noya Catoira sat out the first seven games of the year while recovering from injury, while guard Jasmine Brown-Hagger, who has since moved into the starting lineup, missed three games while working her way back from a concussion. The latest Illini to miss a game was freshman Hayven Smith at Northwestern.

BIG TEN ROAD WINS

Illinois has won 13 road Big Ten games under Shauna Green, tied for the second-most in program history among Illinois women's basketball head coaches. In 2024-25, Illinois has brought home victories against Indiana, Northwestern, Rutgers, No. 14 Maryland, and Wisconsin.

BOSTIC MOVES ATOP PROGRAM'S CAREER REBOUNDING LIST

Fifth-year forward Kendall Bostic became the Fighting Illini's career rebounding leader during Illinois' game against Purdue on Jan. 27. After tying the previous mark in the first half, Bostic secured her record-breaking board in the third quarter, which saw her climb to 11 rebounds on the night and 1,218 rebounds across her time with the Orange and Blue.

Bostic surpassed Jenna Smith on the program's all-time rebounding list. Smith, who played at Illinois from 2006-10, posted 1,217 rebounds across her career; Bostic entered Illinois' game against Purdue needing 10 rebounds to tie the record and 11 rebounds to pass it.

Bostic is the fourth player in program history to record 1,000 career points and 1,000 career rebounds while playing for the Illini.

The Kokomo, Indiana, native sits in third place on the Big Ten's career rebounding rankings, only behind Iowa's Megan Gustafson (1,460) and Ohio State's Jantel Lavender (1,422). Bostic sits at 1,327 career rebounds across her four seasons at Illinois and one season at Michigan State.

GREEN CONTINUES TO CLIMB PROGRAM'S ALL-TIME WIN LIST

Third-year head coach Shauna Green continues to move up the program's all-time wins list. After the Fighting Illini defeated Wisconsin away from home on Feb. 9, Green posted her 60th win at the helm of the program, which currently ranks as the sixth-most victories by an Illinois women's basketball head coach.

SHARP SHOOTING FROM BEYOND THE ARC

Fighting Illini fifth year Genesis Bryant has been instrumental for the Orange and Blue from beyond the 3-point line. Through 89 games at Illinois, Bryant has connected on 183 3-pointers, which currently ranks fourth on UI's career list.

Bryant connected on 72 3-pointers in 2022-23, her first year at Illinois (178 att., 40.4%). As a senior in 2023-24, she tallied 65 makes from deep (188 att., 34.6%). This year, Bryant has made 46 3-pointers on 120 attempts for a 38.3% clip.