Lineups
Illinois (1-0)
StartersP Name Yr. Ht. PPG Hometown
G Makira Cook Jr. 5-6 14.0 Cincinnati
G Jayla Oden So. 5-9 2.0 Baltimore
G Adalia McKenzie So. 5-10 12.0 Brooklyn Park, Minn.
F Kendall Bostic Jr. 6-2 16.0 Kokomo, Ind.
F Brynn Shoup-Hill So. 6-3 0.0 Goshen, Ind.
OFF THE BENCHP Name Yr. Ht. PPG Hometown
G Genesis Bryant Jr. 5-6 13.0 Jonesboro, Ga.
G Jada Peebles Sr. 5-10 2.0 Raleigh, N.C.
F/C Geovana Lopes Gr. 6-3 0.0 Bataguassu, Brazil
C Aicha Ndour Jr. 6-6 10.0 Somone, Senegal
FYI: The Illini shot 47.3 percent from the field in the 75-40 season-opening victory against Long Island on Wednesday night at State Farm Center. That number would have been even better, but Peebles was one of the few Illinois players to struggle to find her shot versus the Sharks, with the senior guard going 1 of 11 from the field and missing all six of the three-pointers she attempted.
Alcorn State (0-2)
StartersP Name Yr. Ht. PPG Hometown
G Cayla Obillo Sr. 5-2 1.0 Pass Christian, Miss.
G Kailyn Watkins R-So. 5-5 3.5 Inglewood, Calif.
G/F Kiarra Henderson Jr. 5-9 3.0 Fort Worth, Texas
G/F T’Naye Griffin So. 6-0 2.0 Minneapolis
F Akyriale Ford R-So. 6-2 9.0 Crystal Springs, Miss.
FYI: Two games. Two completely different starting fives for third-year Braves coach Nate Kilbert
- . It means 10 of the 16 players on Alcorn State’s roster have one start apiece. The Braves have been outscored 149-86 in their first two games, including a 49-point loss at Tulsa in the season opener on Monday night followed by a 67-53 defeat at Wichita State on Wednesday night.
OFF THE BENCHP Name Yr. Ht. PPG Hometown
G Ashanti Backus Jr. 5-4 1.0 Little Rock, Ark.
G/F Nakia Cheatham Jr. 6-0 5.0 Clarksdale, Miss.
F Tyginae Wright Sr. 5-9 7.0 Brooklyn, N.Y.
C Destiny Brown So. 6-3 6.0 Los Angeles
DETAILS
Site:
- State Farm Center (15,544); Champaign.
Radio:
- Mike Koon will have the call on WDWS 1400- AM, 93.9-FM.
Streaming:
- Big Ten Plus (subscription).
Series:
- Illinois holds a 2-0 lead against Alcorn State in all-time matchups.
Last meeting:
- The Illini cruised to a 112-28 victory on Nov. 17, 2013, at State Farm Center in Champaign.
FYI:
- Illinois is 10-0 in school history against the current members of the SWAC. Outside of the two aforementioned wins against Alcorn State, the Illini are 3-0 against Arkansas-Pine Bluff to go with a 2-0 record versus Alabama A&M. Illinois has one win apiece against Alabama State, Mississippi Valley State and Southern.
Beat writer JOE
VOZZELLI JR.’s storylines
McKenzie impressing new Illini staff
Adalia McKenzie was a popular player in the postgame autograph session after Wednesday night’s blowout win against Long Island in the season opener.
Kids from area grade schools crowded behind the Illinois bench asking, “Where’s No. 24?” as other Illinois players signed posters. Of course, that’s the jersey number McKenzie wears. A big cheer followed once McKenzie made her way over to sign autographs a few minutes later.
Turns out, local elementary school students aren’t the only ones who are a fan of McKenzie’s game.
What impressed first-year Illinois coach Shauna Green the most was how McKenzie created offense for herself by moving without the ball and despite the Illini coaches not running sets specifically for the 5-foot-10 wing.
“(This is) what I envision of her,” Green said after her first win at Illinois. “She impacted the game and she made plays. And how did she do that? Her rebounding. Her offensive rebounding. A couple rebounds, she got up so high. It just shows her athleticism. She went out there with nothing really ran for her in particular … and was 6 for 10, had seven rebounds, 12 points. That’s what she’s capable of doing. I loved her game (Wednesday night).”
No substitute for game experience
Illinois is the third different school for Aicha Ndour in as many college seasons. The Somone, Senegal, native — who completed her high school education in the U.S. at Cushing Academy in Massachusetts — spent one season at Rutgers before transferring to Northwest Florida State College on Florida’s Gulf Coast and playing a season for the Raiders.
Ndour was a late addition to the Illini, officially signing with the program on May 27, as the final player to join Green’s first Illinois roster. The progress Ndour made from the exhibition versus Quincy (three fouls in seven minutes) to the opening win against LIU (10 points, seven rebounds in 13 minutes) caught Green’s attention.
“We definitely need her size,” Green said of the 6-foot-6 center. “You think about it. She just needs game minutes. She needs experience. Once she gets some more experience, she’s going to settle in. … I also thought she had some bounce to her (Wednesday night). She had good energy about her. We need her to continue to progress.”
Recruiting update after fall additions
Green targeted length at guard and on the wing as recruiting priorities for her Illinois staff in the Class of 2023. The two players the Illini signed Wednesday in 5-10 guard Cori Allen and 5-11 guard Gretchen Dolan fit that bill.
“That was something that was really critical to us,” Green said, “and they both can score at all three levels. Cori can play 1 through 3 and Gretchen is a wing that can really shoot the ball well and stretch the floor.”
Green said Illinois has one open scholarship for next season and added “we’ll see what’s out there” to determine if the Illini will fill their full scholarship allotment.
The News-Gazette’s pick
Illinois 72, Alcorn State 48
Scoring the ball has been a problem for the Braves in their first two games and there’s no reason to think the Illini won’t have trouble repeating what they did defensively in the opener versus LIU. (N-G prediction record — 1-0).
