Illini host Hoosiers in Big Ten tilt

Posted: Thu Feb 7 10:33 AM

Champaign, IL (Sports Network) - The 14th-ranked Indiana Hoosiers continue their quest toward a Big Ten regular season title, as they travel to Champaign, to take on the Illinois Fighting Illini in a conference showdown at Assembly Hall.

The Hoosiers are 7-1 in league play and had won 17 of their first 18 games this year, before suffering back-to-back losses to Connecticut and Wisconsin. Kelvin Sampson's squad got back in the win column on Sunday, topping Northwestern, 75-63.

Illinois would like nothing better than to hand the Hoosiers their third loss in the last four games, but must first turn around its own fortunes. The Illini are suffering through a horrific Big Ten slate thus far, losing eight of their first 10 league tilts. The team has dropped two straight games and four of its last five overall, including last weekend's 83-75 setback against Purdue.

Illinois is just 6-5 at home this year, but has won six straight against Indiana in Champaign. Still, the Hoosiers hold an 81-78 edge in the all-time series and are looking for the regular season sweep after a 62-58 win in Bloomington back on January 13th.

The Hoosiers got back to what they do best, as star freshman Eric Gordon poured in 29 points and D.J. White recorded yet another double-double with 26 points and 13 rebounds, leading their team to a much-needed win over the Wildcats this past weekend. Gordon erupted offensively, hitting 8-of-14 shots from the floor, including six three-pointers. There are a number of freshmen across the nation making huge impacts on their respective teams, but Gordon is one of the best. The 6-4 youngster is shooting .483 from the floor this year, including .412 from behind the arc. The result is a Big Ten-leading 21.8 ppg. White has been equally dominant in the paint. The senior big man is averaging a double-double this season, leading the Big Ten in rebounding (10.7 rpg) and ranking second in scoring (17.5 ppg). Gordon and White get scoring help from Jordan Crawford and Armon Bassett, who add 10.2 and 10.1 ppg, respectively. The Hoosiers, who are averaging a steady 77.0 ppg this year, are playing stingy defense as well, holding foes under 40 percent shooting (.398) and just 62.1 ppg, while outrebounding them by 8.2 caroms per game.

The Illini have struggled with offensive depth this season and stand little chance of hanging with the Hoosiers in a shootout. Illinois is shooting a rather bland .433 from the floor, leading to just 65.1 ppg. The team's best chance in this contest is to slow the pace down. The Illini have been successful at times doing just that, holding opponents under 40 percent shooting (.397) and 61.7 ppg. Center Shaun Pruitt is the team's best option at both ends of the floor, averaging team-highs of 12.6 points and 7.6 rebounds per game. Trent Meacham and Brian Randle are the only other reliable scoring threats, at 10.5 and 10.4 ppg, respectively. In Saturday's eight-point loss to league-leading Purdue, the Illini converted half of their shots (21-of-42), but it wasn't enough. Randle led four Illini in double figures, with a career-high 21 points. Pruitt just missed a double-double with 18 points and nine rebounds, while Demetri McCamey and Meacham tallied 15 and 14 points, respectively.