2023–24 Illinois Fighting Illini women's basketball team

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2023–24 Illinois Fighting Illini women's basketball
WBIT champions
ConferenceBig Ten Conference
Record19–15 (8–10 Big Ten)
Head coach
Assistant coaches
Home arenaState Farm Center
Seasons
2023–24 Big Ten women's basketball standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT
No. 16 Ohio State 16 – 2   .889 26 – 6   .813
No. 2 Iowa † 15 – 3   .833 34 – 5   .872
No. 12 Indiana 15 – 3   .833 26 – 6   .813
Michigan State 12 – 6   .667 22 – 9   .710
Nebraska 11 – 7   .611 23 – 12   .657
Michigan 9 – 9   .500 20 – 14   .588
Penn State 9 – 9   .500 22 – 13   .629
Maryland 9 – 9   .500 19 – 14   .576
Illinois 8 – 10   .444 19 – 15   .559
Wisconsin 6 – 12   .333 15 – 17   .469
Minnesota 5 – 13   .278 20 – 16   .556
Purdue 5 – 13   .278 15 – 19   .441
Northwestern 4 – 14   .222 9 – 21   .300
Rutgers 2 – 16   .111 8 – 24   .250
† 2024 Big Ten tournament winner
Rankings from AP Poll

The 2023–24 Illinois Fighting Illini women's basketball team represented the University of Illinois during the 2023–24 NCAA Division I women's basketball season. The Fighting Illini were led by second-year head coach Shauna Green, and they played their home games at State Farm Center. This season marked the program's 42nd season as a member of the Big Ten Conference.

Previous season[edit]

Main article: 2022–23 Illinois Fighting Illini women's basketball team

The Illini finished the 2022–23 season 22–10 overall, with a 11–7 record in Big Ten play to finish in sixth place. As the sixth seed in the Big Ten women's tournament, they defeated eleventh seed Rutgers in the first round before losing to third seed Maryland in the second round.

The team was invited to the 2023 NCAA Division I women's basketball tournament as one of the First Four teams to play, losing to Mississippi State. This marked their first appearance in the NCAA tournament since 2003.

The Illini's turnaround in 2022–23 was considered "remarkable"[1] given the program's history since 2003. The 2022–23 team broke multiple records and streaks, including their first 6–0 start to a season since 1986–87, and their first six game winning streak since 2009. They finished the non-conference portion of their schedule with a 10–1 record. The team won four straight conference games from December 7, 2022, through January 1, 2023, including a dramatic victory over eventual national champion runner-up Iowa; this conference winning streak tied the fourth best streak in program history.[2]

On January 8, 2023, the Illini earned a spot in the AP Top-25 poll for the first time since 2000. Their 11–7 conference record was its most in league play since 1999–2000, and their 10-win improvement in conference games matched the largest turnaround in Big Ten history.[2]

On December 19, 2022, coach Green was named the ESPN Women's Basketball Coach of the Week. In the post-season, transfer player Makira Cook earned First-team All-Big Ten honors, the first Illini to be named to that team since 2010. Cook was also named to the Associated Press' All-American Honorable Mention list, the first Illini to make that list since 2013. Players Kendall Bostic and Genesis Bryant were named to the All-Big Ten second team, and Adalia McKenzie received an All-Big Ten honorable mention; these conference honors marked the first time since the 1986–87 season that four Illinois players earned all-conference accolades.[2]

Offseason[edit]

Assistant coach Ryan Gensler left the Illinois program on March 29, 2023, to become the head women's basketball coach at the University of Akron.[3] On April 20, 2023, Green announced that former Stanford University assistant coach Britney Anderson had been hired as an assistant coach at Illinois.[4]

Two non-starting players from the 2022–23 Illinois team, Jayla Oden and Liisa Taponen, entered the NCAA transfer portal after the end of the season and moved on to other programs, and Geovana Lopes exhausted her collegiate eligibility.

The Illini added two players from the transfer portal, center Camille Hobby from North Carolina State University and forward Shay Bollin from Duke University. They also added freshmen guards Cori Allen and Gretchen Dolan to the roster.[5]

All five of the 2022–23 starting lineup returned for the 2023–24 season.[5] The team was ranked number 23 in the Associated Press preseason Top 25, their first preseason ranking since 1999.[6]

Roster[edit]

2023–24 Illinois Fighting Illini women's basketball team
Players Coaches
Pos. # Name Height Year Previous school Hometown
G 0 Camille Jackson 5 ft 11 in (1.8 m) So Butler College Prep Chicago, IL
G 1 Genesis Bryant 5 ft 6 in (1.68 m) Sr North Carolina State Jonesboro, GA
G 2 Cori Allen 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m) Fr Montverde Academy Nashville, TN
G 3 Makira Cook 5 ft 6 in (1.68 m) Sr Dayton Cincinnati, OH
G 4 Kam'Ren Rhodes 5 ft 6 in (1.68 m) So Arizona Compass Prep Chandler, AZ
G 5 Gretchen Dolan 5 ft 11 in (1.8 m) Fr Williamsville South High School Buffalo, NY
G 11 Jada Peebles 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m) GS Wakefield Raleigh, NC
C 21 Aicha Ndour 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) Sr Northwest Florida State College Somone, Senegal
F 22 Shay Bollin 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) So Duke Raynham, MA
F 23 Brynn Shoup-Hill 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) Jr Dayton Goshen, IN
G 24 Adalia McKenzie 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m) Jr Park Center Brooklyn Park, MN
F 33 Samantha Dewey 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) So Brooks School North Andover, MA
C 41 Camille Hobby 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) GS North Carolina State Jacksonville, FL
F 44 Kendall Bostic 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) Sr Michigan State Kokomo, IN
Head coach
Assistant coach(es)
Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • (S) Suspended
  • (I) Ineligible
  • (W) Walk-on

Roster

Schedule and results[edit]

Date
time, TV 		Rank# Opponent# Result Record Site (attendance)
city, state
Exhibition
October 30, 2023*
6:00 p.m., B1G+ 		No. 23 Truman W 121–60  0–0
 State Farm Center (2,598)
Champaign, IL
Regular season
November 7, 2023*
6:00 p.m., B1G+ 		No. 23 Morehead State W 81–61  1–0
 State Farm Center (2,680)
Champaign, IL
November 11, 2023*
2:00 p.m., FloHoops 		No. 23 at Marquette L 67–71  1–1
 Al McGuire Center (1,428)
Milwaukee, WI
November 15, 2023*
11:00 a.m., B1G+ 		Saint Peter's W 103–33  2–1
 State Farm Center (11,563)
Champaign, IL
November 18, 2023*
12:00 p.m., NBC 		vs. No. 16 Notre Dame
Citi Shamrock Classic 		L 68–79  2–2
 Entertainment and Sports Arena (N/A)
Washington, D.C.
November 26, 2023*
1:00 p.m., B1G+ 		Canisius W 90–58  3–2
 State Farm Center (2,962)
Champaign, IL
November 29, 2023*
6:00 p.m., B1G+ 		Central Connecticut W 89–50  4–2
 State Farm Center (2,743)
Champaign, IL
December 6, 2023*
6:00 p.m., B1G+ 		Northern Kentucky W 74–52  5–2
 State Farm Center (2,869)
Champaign, IL
December 10, 2023
2:00 p.m., B1G+ 		Michigan L 48–84  5–3
(0–1) 		State Farm Center (3,763)
Champaign, IL
December 17, 2023*
3:00 p.m., BTN 		Missouri
McBride Homes Braggin' Rights 		L 66–69  5–4
 State Farm Center (4,790)
Champaign, IL
December 20, 2023*
10:00 a.m., FloHoops 		vs. Arkansas
West Palm Beach Classic 		L 59–60  5–5
 Massimino Court (N/A)
West Palm Beach, FL
December 21, 2023*
12:15 p.m., FloHoops 		vs. UTEP
West Palm Beach Classic 		W 81–71  6–5
 Massimino Court (N/A)
West Palm Beach, FL
December 31, 2023
11:00 a.m., BTN 		at No. 16 Indiana L 71–77  6–6
(0–2) 		Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall (11,600)
Bloomington, IN
January 7, 2024
2:00 p.m., B1G+ 		Wisconsin L 61–67  6–7
(0–3) 		State Farm Center (3,691)
Champaign, IL
January 11, 2024
7:00 p.m., BTN 		at Nebraska L 48–56  6–8
(0–4) 		Pinnacle Bank Arena (4,040)
Lincoln, NE
January 14, 2024
2:00 p.m., B1G+ 		at Northwestern W 93–52  7–8
(1–4) 		Welsh–Ryan Arena (2,322)
Evanston, IL
January 17, 2024
6:00 p.m., B1G+ 		Rutgers W 96–68  8–8
(2–4) 		State Farm Center (2,845)
Champaign, IL
January 20, 2024
12:00 p.m., B1G+ 		at Maryland L 82–90  8–9
(2–5) 		Xfinity Center (6,409)
College Park, MD
January 25, 2024
6:00 p.m., Peacock 		No. 12 Ohio State L 59–67  8–10
(2–6) 		State Farm Center (3,254)
Champaign, IL
January 28, 2024
2:00 p.m., B1G+ 		Minnesota W 73–68  9–10
(3–6) 		State Farm Center (4,788)
Champaign, IL
January 31, 2024
6:00 p.m., B1G+ 		at Michigan W 77–64  10–10
(4–6) 		Crisler Center (2,522)
Ann Arbor, MI
February 5, 2024
7:00 p.m., BTN 		at Purdue L 72–77 OT 10–11
(4–7) 		Mackey Arena (3,953)
West Lafayette, IN
February 8, 2024
6:00 p.m., B1G+ 		Northwestern W 82–71  11–11
(5–7) 		State Farm Center (3,002)
Champaign, IL
February 11, 2024
2:00 p.m., FS1 		Maryland L 53–69  11–12
(5–8) 		State Farm Center (3,185)
Champaign, IL
February 15, 2024
5:00 p.m., B1G+ 		at Penn State W 86–71  12–12
(6–8) 		Bryce Jordan Center (2,376)
University Park, PA
February 19, 2024
1:00 p.m., FOX 		No. 14 Indiana W 86–66  13–12
(7–8) 		State Farm Center (3,878)
Champaign, IL
February 25, 2024
12:00 p.m., FS1 		at No. 4 Iowa L 85–101  13–13
(7–9) 		Carver–Hawkeye Arena (14,998)
Iowa City, IA
February 29, 2024
7:00 p.m., BTN 		at Michigan State L 70–87  13–14
(7–10) 		Breslin Center (3,392)
East Lansing, MI
March 3, 2024
3:00 p.m., BTN 		Nebraska W 74–73  14–14
(8–10) 		State Farm Center (4,311)
Champaign, IL
Big Ten Women's Tournament
March 7, 2024
11:30 a.m., BTN 		(9) vs. (8) Maryland
Second Round 		L 65–75  14–15
 Target Center (18,392)
Minneapolis, MN
WBIT
March 21, 2024*
6:00 p.m., ESPN+ 		(4) Missouri State
First Round 		W 74–69  15–15
 State Farm Center (1,391)
Champaign, IL
March 24, 2024*
2:00 p.m., ESPN+ 		(4) Stony Brook
Second Round 		W 79–62  16–15
 State Farm Center (1,527)
Champaign, IL
March 28, 2024*
6:30 p.m., ESPN+ 		(4) at (3) Tulsa
Quarterfinals 		W 69–61  17–15
 Reynolds Center (3,054)
Tulsa, OK
April 1, 2024*
4:00 p.m., ESPNU 		(4) vs. (1) Washington State
Semifinals 		W 81–58  18–15
 Hinkle Fieldhouse (1,748)
Indianapolis, IN
April 3, 2024*
6:00 p.m., ESPN2 		(4) vs. (1) Villanova
Finals 		W 71–57  19–15
 Hinkle Fieldhouse (N/A)
Indianapolis, IN
*Non-conference game. #Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses.
All times are in Central.

Rankings[edit]

Main article: 2023–24 NCAA Division I women's basketball rankings
Ranking movements
Legend: ██ Increase in ranking ██ Decrease in ranking
— = Not ranked RV = Received votes
Week
PollPre12345678910111213141516171819Final
AP23RV——————————————————Not released
CoachesRV———————————————————

See also[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^ Richey, Scott (March 12, 2023). "Creme: Illinois' turnaround under Green 'remarkable'". The News-Gazette. Champaign, Illinois. Retrieved October 30, 2023.
  2. ^ a b c Janes, Jackson (March 21, 2023). "One Year Later: Green Breaks Records, Rewrites History in First Season at Illinois". Fightingillini.com. Learfield. Retrieved October 30, 2023.
  3. ^ "Akron names Gensler Women's Basketball Coach". Akron Athletics. March 29, 2023. Retrieved October 30, 2023.
  4. ^ Vozzelli Jr., Joe (April 20, 2023). "Illini women's basketball hires ex-Stanford assistant to fill out Green's staff". The News-Gazette. Champaign, Illinois. Retrieved October 30, 2023.
  5. ^ a b Vozzelli Jr., Joe (October 10, 2023). "Returning core, newcomers have Illini in good place entering Green's second year". The News-Gazette. Champaign, Illinois. Retrieved October 31, 2023.
  6. ^ Vozzelli Jr., Joe (October 18, 2023). "Preseason ranking part of heightened preseason expectations for Illini women's basketball". The News-Gazette. Champaign, Illinois. Retrieved October 31, 2023.

External links[edit]

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