Northwestern University Athletics
Sunday, February 22
Evanston, Ill.
2 p.m. CT
Northwestern
vs
Illinois
Photo by: Rey Del Rio/Northwestern Athletics
‘Cats Entertain In-State Rival Illinois On Sunday Afternoon
2/21/2026 9:30:00 AM | Women's Basketball
Northwestern dropped nailbiter to Fighting Illini earlier this season, 74-71
EVANSTON, Ill. (February 21, 2026) – With the regular season entering its homestretch, Northwestern (8-18, 2-13 B1G) welcomes in-state rival Illinois to Welsh-Ryan Arena on Sunday afternoon at 2 p.m. CT for the Wildcats' penultimate home game of the 2025-26 campaign.
LAST TIME OUT
No. 18 Michigan State raced out of the gate, operating at nearly 60 percent from the field in the first half, en route to downing Northwestern, 104-68, last Wednesday at the Breslin Center in East Lansing, Mich.
Grace Sullivan tallied her 17th game of 20-plus points in leading all scorers with 23 points. Sullivan, who has scored in double figures 24 times this season, is averaging 22.7 points in Big Ten Conference play.
Casey Harter posted her ninth game in double figures during Big Ten action, adding 14 points and six rebounds. Harter, the current league leader in minutes played (35.3 mpg), is putting up 10.7 points per game while shooting just over 41 percent against Big Ten Conference foes.
Caroline Lau came up just short of recording the third triple-double in program history, finishing with nine points, seven rebounds, and 11 assists. Lau enters the season's closing three games just 31 helpers shy of matching Nancy Kennelly's single-season record of 252 assists.
SCOUTING ILLINOIS
Illinois (18-8, 8-7 B1G) picked up back-to-back wins at home, dispatching Wisconsin, 92-60, and Rutgers, 76-56, to climb back above the .500 mark in Big Ten Conference play. Fourth-year head coach Shauna Green's team is receiving votes in the Associated Press Top 25 Poll.
Berry Wallace leads the charge for Illinois, averaging a team-high 18.9 points per game. Currently on a run of 16 straight outings in double figures, Wallace has upped that average to 19.8 points per game during Big Ten play, a mark bolstered by a career-best 29-point outburst in the Fighting Illini's win over Northwestern earlier this season.
Cearah Parchment has been a force on both ends of the floor, averaging 13.3 points and 8.5 rebounds, a latter tally which leads the Illinois roster. Parchment has a Big Ten-best 10 double-doubles to her name, six of which have come across the Fighting Illini's last eight games.
Destiny Jackson orchestrates the Illinois attack, dishing out 5.2 assists per game to rank fifth in the Big Ten in the category. Jackson has eight games with at least seven assists.
SERIES STUFF
Northwestern will look to snap a seven-game skid against its rival to the south as it searches for its first win over the Fighting Illini since an 82-59 win at State Farm Center on February 20, 2022. Illinois' recent run of success has seen it cut the Wildcats' lead in the all-time series to 49-41 (.544).
Northwestern pushed Illinois to the brink when the two teams met back on January 18 at State Farm Center, dropping a razor-thin 74-71 decision. Sullivan led Northwestern with 21 points and nine rebounds, while Xamiya Walton drilled five threes as part of a career-best 19-point effort.
UP NEXT
Northwestern hits the road for the final time on Wednesday, February 25, visiting No. 14 Maryland for a 5:30 p.m. CT tilt in College Park, Md.
LAST TIME OUT
No. 18 Michigan State raced out of the gate, operating at nearly 60 percent from the field in the first half, en route to downing Northwestern, 104-68, last Wednesday at the Breslin Center in East Lansing, Mich.
Grace Sullivan tallied her 17th game of 20-plus points in leading all scorers with 23 points. Sullivan, who has scored in double figures 24 times this season, is averaging 22.7 points in Big Ten Conference play.
Casey Harter posted her ninth game in double figures during Big Ten action, adding 14 points and six rebounds. Harter, the current league leader in minutes played (35.3 mpg), is putting up 10.7 points per game while shooting just over 41 percent against Big Ten Conference foes.
Caroline Lau came up just short of recording the third triple-double in program history, finishing with nine points, seven rebounds, and 11 assists. Lau enters the season's closing three games just 31 helpers shy of matching Nancy Kennelly's single-season record of 252 assists.
SCOUTING ILLINOIS
Illinois (18-8, 8-7 B1G) picked up back-to-back wins at home, dispatching Wisconsin, 92-60, and Rutgers, 76-56, to climb back above the .500 mark in Big Ten Conference play. Fourth-year head coach Shauna Green's team is receiving votes in the Associated Press Top 25 Poll.
Berry Wallace leads the charge for Illinois, averaging a team-high 18.9 points per game. Currently on a run of 16 straight outings in double figures, Wallace has upped that average to 19.8 points per game during Big Ten play, a mark bolstered by a career-best 29-point outburst in the Fighting Illini's win over Northwestern earlier this season.
Cearah Parchment has been a force on both ends of the floor, averaging 13.3 points and 8.5 rebounds, a latter tally which leads the Illinois roster. Parchment has a Big Ten-best 10 double-doubles to her name, six of which have come across the Fighting Illini's last eight games.
Destiny Jackson orchestrates the Illinois attack, dishing out 5.2 assists per game to rank fifth in the Big Ten in the category. Jackson has eight games with at least seven assists.
SERIES STUFF
Northwestern will look to snap a seven-game skid against its rival to the south as it searches for its first win over the Fighting Illini since an 82-59 win at State Farm Center on February 20, 2022. Illinois' recent run of success has seen it cut the Wildcats' lead in the all-time series to 49-41 (.544).
Northwestern pushed Illinois to the brink when the two teams met back on January 18 at State Farm Center, dropping a razor-thin 74-71 decision. Sullivan led Northwestern with 21 points and nine rebounds, while Xamiya Walton drilled five threes as part of a career-best 19-point effort.
UP NEXT
Northwestern hits the road for the final time on Wednesday, February 25, visiting No. 14 Maryland for a 5:30 p.m. CT tilt in College Park, Md.
Players Mentioned
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