Illini Rally Comes Up Short in Road Loss to Huskers

By lllliniGuys Staff

January 24, 2026

(Cover photo courtesy Illinois Athletics)

LINCOLN, Neb. - Cearah Parchment scored 23 of her career-high 25 points in the second half as Illinois rallied from a double-digit deficit before falling to No. 24 Nebraska 81-75 Saturday afternoon.

The Illini (15-5, 5-4 in Big Ten) fell behind 39-20 in the second quarter thanks to an offense that, outside of Berry Wallace, was held without a field goal. Wallace went 5-of-6 in the period while the rest of the team missed all eight field goal attempts. Illinois outscored the Huskers by 10 points in the second half behind Parchment, who added 11 rebounds for her fifth career double-double.

Wallace finished with 22 points, her 12th 20-point game this season and the 7th in Big Ten play as Illinois played its third straight game without junior guard Gretchen Dolan. The team's second leading scorer missed her third straight game with a knee injury. It's unclear when she will return to the lineup.

Destiny Jackson and Maddie Webber scored 11 each for Illinois.

Britt Prince scored a team-high 20 points for Nebraska (15-5, 4-5 in Big Ten).

The Illini return to action Wednesday night when they host All-American center Lauren Betts and 3rd ranked UCLA (6pm CT, BTN Plus).

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