By IlliniGuys Staff

December 28, 2024

(Cover photo courtesy Illinois Athletics)

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. - Illinois struggled with cold shooting Saturday afternoon, so they turned to their defense in the clutch.

The Illini, playing again without starting point guard Makira Cook and key reserve Shay Bollin, held visiting Oregon to just two field goals in the final six minutes while attempting a season high 38 free throws in the game to carve out a 64-59 win at State Farm Center.

"Whenever you can hold a Big Ten team under 60, that's big", said Genesis Bryant, who scored a game-high 23 points and set career highs with 16 free throws made on 17 attempts.

The victory extends their home win streak to 13 games, the second longest in program history, and Illinois head coach Shauna Green said the 4,914 in attendance gave them a boost.

"Any Big Ten win is huge", Green said on her postgame radio show. "To be able to do that, you gotta be able to protect your home court. To have 5,000 here makes a difference. We need the fans here."

Illinois (11-2, 1-1 in Big Ten Couference) rallied from an early 9-4 deficit, behind Bryant. She scored the first eight points in the game for the Illini before her teammates jumped in to spur a 19-2 run to give the home team a 23-11 lead.

But Illinois went cold again from the field, missing their first nine shots from the field to allow the Ducks to go on an 11-0 run of their own. The Illini held onto a 28-27 lead at halftime.

Oregon, playing in its first true road game of the season, regained the lead when Nani Falatea scored five straight points in the opening minute of the fourth quarter to give the Ducks a 42-40 lead.

But sophomore Gretchen Dolan scored the next three baskets for the Illini, her second three-pointer in the sequence put Illinois on top for good at 50-47.

Illinois has made it a habit to getting to the free throw line, converting 30-of-38 from the charity stripe, both season highs. The Illini are 4-0 this season when attempting 30 free throws or more, something they hadn't done in Green's first two seasons leading the program.

"That's something we've been really good at all year", Green said. "When we're getting downhill and getting points from the free throw line, it helps all of us."

Dolan finished with 13 points in her first action in a month as she missed five games due to a knee injury.

"She hit three threes and that's big for us when we haven't had that. It takes the pressure off other players", said Green. "For not having played in a while and be able to produce like that was big."

Bryant agreed. "The past two days in practice, we told her 'we love you' and 'we miss you'. You could tell we missed her."

Adalia McKenzie added 10 points and Kendall Bostic finished with 10 points and 10 rebounds for her 43rd career double-double. That's second in Illini history behind Jenna Smith's 53.

Illinois ended up shooting 35 percent from the field, their third lowest effort this season.

Falatea scored 17 points for Oregon (9-4, 0-2), which has now dropped 15 straight conference games. That streak began last season in the Pac-12 Conference and has been extended with losses to 6th ranked USC and now Illinois in their entry into the Big Ten.

Illinois looks to close out 2024 with another win on Tuesday when they host another Big Ten newcomer in Washington. That's a noon CST tipoff and it can be viewed on Big Ten Network. Fans are encouraged to stick around in State Farm Center for a watch party as the 20th ranked Illinois football team faces #15 South Carolina in the Citrus Bowl in Orlando, which will kickoff at 2:00pm.

Stay with IlliniGuys.com for more postgame coverage.