Northwestern University Athletics
'Cats Welcome Intra-State Rival Illinois Thursday Evening
1/28/2009 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
Jan. 28, 2009
EVANSTON, Ill. -- Northwestern meets intra-state rival Illinois at 6 p.m. Thursday evening in the first showdown of the season between the two squads. Both teams are coming off encouraging contests on Sunday, with Illinois picking up its first conference win of the season--a 61-52 upset of then-conference top dog Indiana--while the Wildcats turned in a solid performance on the road against Minnesota.
Last Time Out ...
Northwestern came up just short in Minneapolis, dropping a tough 43-40 decision. Freshman Brittany Orban led the way for the Wildcats, netting 13 points and pulling down seven boards. The forward has led Northwestern in scoring in two out of the last three contests.
Scouting the Illini
Illinois is riding high entering Thursday's contest, having won its first conference victory of the season--a 61-52 victory over then-conference-leading Indiana. Junior Jenna Smith led the way for the Illini, pouring in a game-high 24 points while also grabbing 15 boards. Fellow classmate Lacey Simpson added 13 rebounds, five assists and four blocks in the winning effort. While Illinois is a very athletic team, its lack of depth has haunted the club all season. There are just nine players listed on the official roster and three are averaging above 34.0 mpg. Against the Hoosiers on Sunday, Lydia McCully, Macie Blinn and Smith all played every minute of the game. Smith leads the team offensively as the only player averaging double-figures (16.5) and is second on the squad in rebounding, retrieving 9.4 rpg. Smith is 37th in the country and third in the Big Ten in scoring. Simpson, meanwhile, is among the nation's leaders in steals per game with 3.0 (17th). Illinois' schedule has been challenging to say the least, peppered with three non-conference Top-25 teams, including Maryland, Virginia and North Carolina. Prior to the win against Indiana Sunday, the Illini were on a 10-game skid, having last won on Dec. 10 against UW-Milwaukee. Illinois is led by second-year head coach Jolette Law, formerly an assistant coach under Vivian Stringer at Rutgers.
The Series against Illinois
Northwestern holds a 31-27 advantage in the all-time series between these two squads.
Freshmen Phenoms
Among fellow classmates, freshmen Brittany Orban and Maggie Mocchi have held their own, especially in conference-only games. Mocchi is third in steals (11), rebounding (3.6) and blocked shots (0.33) in conference games. Orban, meanwhile, has led Northwestern in scoring in two out of the last three games. Against Minnesota on Sunday, the freshman notched a Wildcat-high 13 points and seven rebounds. She has started every conference game and is averaging 20.9 mpg and 5.4 ppg.
Spreading The Love
When freshman Brittany Orban topped the Northwestern scoring column last Sunday against Iowa, she became the seventh different Wildcat to lead the team in scoring (and did it again Sunday against Minnesota with a team-best 13 points). Amy Jaeschke, Ellen Jaeschke, Kristin Cartwright, Meshia Reed, Maggie Mocchi and Jenny Eckhart have also led the squad offensively in at least one game. Amy Jaeschke has been the top scorer in 11 games.
Home Sweet Home
Northwestern has scored 174 more points (662 vs. 488) in Evanston than on the road. Two Wildcats are averaging in double figures at home, including Amy Jaeschke, (17.3) and Kristin Cartwright (11.0), while Meshia Reed has contributed 9.2. Jaeschke is also pulling down a team-high 8.2 boards per game in Welsh-Ryan.
For complete game notes, please click on the PDF above.
