Illini Face USC to Open Three-Game Homestand

Game 24: [RV/RV] Illinois (16-7, 6-6) vs [RV/--] USC (14-9, 6-6)
Date | Time	Sunday, Feb. 8, 2026 | 12 p.m. CT
Location	Champaign, Ill. | State Farm Center
Tickets	Single Game | $5 Tickets with Promo Code: WB25SELLOUT
Promotions	Play4Kay Pink Game and National Girls & Women in Sports Day | Digital Game Program
Stream	B1G+ | WATCH
Radio	Busey Bank Illini Sports Network | Listen | Varsity Network App | SiriusXM 385
Live Stats	StatBroadcast
Rosters	Illinois | USC
Game Notes	Illinois | USC
Stats	Illinois | USC
Record Books	Illinois | Big Ten | NCAA
Availability/Interviews	Media Availability (2/6/26) | YouTube Playlist
Shop	Online Store | Auctions
Social Media	@IlliniWBB  | @IlliniWBB  | Facebook  | YouTube

Head Coach Shauna Green

Career Record: 235-117 (.670), 12th season
Division I Record: 206-92 (.695), 10th season
At Illinois: 79-42 (.661), Fourth season
Big Ten Record: 36-30 (.556), Fourth season

THE NEXT WIN WOULD...

• Move the Illini to 1-1 all-time vs. USC
• Improve Green to 1-1 overall vs. USC
• Move Illinois to 1-0 vs. USC in Champaign 
• Move Illinois to 50-13 in road games under Green
• Move Green's career record to 236-117 in 12 seasons
• Improve Green to 37-30 in Big Ten games
• Move Green's DI record to 207-92 in 10 seasons
• Move Green's Illinois record to 80-42
• Give Illinois WBB an all-time record of 726-782
• Move UI to 14-2 vs. unranked teams this season

OPENING TIP

The 52nd campaign of Illinois women's basketball continues on Sunday, Feb. 8, when Illinois returns home to face USC at 12 p.m. on B1G+. The game marks the team's Play4Kay and NGWSD with the entire B1G+ broadcast crew being women to honor the occasion. Mike Koon (PxP) and Kendall Bostic (analyst) will call the action for the Illini on the Busey Bank Illini Sports Network (1400 AM/93.9 FM). Streaming, audio, and stats links are also available at FightingIllini.com/WBB.

• Illinois has a ranked win all 4 seasons under Green
• Back-to-back seasons with multiple ranked wins for first time since 1999-01.
• Illinois has been ranked during all 4 seasons under Green
• The Illini's 11-game win streak was the longest single-season streak and tied the longest win streak that spanned the 2023-24 and 2024-25 seasons
• 10 noncon wins tied program record
• Illinois went a perfect 6-0 in December
• Best 14-game start in program history at 13-1
• Matched best 15-game start at 13-2
• Illinois' 3-0 start in Big Ten play was the program's best start since a 4-0 start during the 1999-2000 season
• The Illini faced a 3-game 7-day span vs. ranked opponents (#7/6 Maryland, at #24/19 Michigan State, #19/19 Ohio State)

ABOUT THE OPPONENT

The USC Trojans (14-9, 6-6) enter Sunday afternoon's contest on a 3-game win streak highlighted by a 81-69 victory over No. 10 Iowa. USC also won conference matchups with Rutgers, Northwestern, Purdue, Nebraska and No. 24 Washington. 

With superstar guard JuJu Watkins out for the season with an ACL tear, the Trojans are led by a backcourt of Jazzy Davidson and Kara Dunn, averaging a combined 32.4 points per game. 

Head Coach Lindsay Gottlieb is in her fifth season at USC, leading the program to a 107-43 record and two Elite Eight appearances under her coaching. 

ALL-TIME SERIES INFO

Illinois and Oregon are tied 2-2 in the all-time series. Illinois has claimed the last two meetings while Oregon won the first two games in the series - both taking place in Eugene.

NOT SO SLEEPLESS IN SEATTLE 

Leading by as many as 14 against the ranked Huskies, Illinois ultimately led for the final 27 minutes en route to its second ranked victory of the season, 75-66.  The Fighting Illini (16-6, 6-5) had four players score in double figures, led by Parchment, who recorded her seventh double-double of the season with 23 points and 10 rebounds. Wallace added 22 points and seven rebounds, while Maddie Webber chipped in with 13 points from the bench. Destiny Jackson added 11 points, six rebounds, four assists, and two blocks of her own.

Illinois grabbed 33 rebounds in Sunday's game compared to Washington's 24, led by Parchment's 10 boards. The Fighting Illini also cleaned up the offensive glass, turning 14 rebounds into 26 second-chance points.

The Illini's pesky defense forced 16 Washington turnovers while converting those takeaways into 17 points on the other end of the floor.

TAKING CARE OF THE BALL

Since the arrival of Shauna Green, Illinois has taken care of the basketball at an elite clip, turning in three straight seasons ranked with the second fewest turnovers in the Big Ten. The staff's goal is 13 turnovers or less per game and the Orange and Blue have averaged below that all three seasons completed seasons. 

EFFICIENCY FROM THE CHARITY STRIPE

Green's Illini have been incredibly efficient from the free throw line. Illinois has led the Big Ten in free throw shooting the last two completed seasons and is doing so once again in 2025-26. The Illini's numbers from 2023-24 and 2024-25 are the two best completed single-season free throw percentages in program history. Following the holiday break, Illinois leads Division I with an 82.3% mark from the stripe.

BERRY WALLACE'S SOPHOMORE SURGE

Through 23 games of the 2025-26 campaign, Fighting Illini sophomore Berry Wallace is averaging 19.4 points per game up from 9.0 ppg last season, despite being at the top of every opponents' scout.

Along with her 19.4 points, Wallace is averaging 6.7 rebounds, 1.8 assists, 0.6 steals, and 0.4 blocks across 35.0 minutes per game. The Pickerington, Ohio, native opened the season with four consecutive 20-point outings, including the first double-double of her career in the Orange and Blue's season opener. Wallace is shooting a scorching 50.8% FG, 35.2% 3FG, and 85.3 FT% through 23 games.

Wallace's four straight 20-point games to open the season made her the only player in a P4 + Big East conference to do so. The sophomore is up to 13 20-point games on the season.

20-POINT GAMES

Berry Wallace's team-leading 13 20-point games across the 2025-26 season rank as the fourth-most in the Big Ten and tie for 11th-most across NCAA DI this season. Wallace and Ohio State's Jaloni Cambridge are leading the Big Ten lead of freshmen and sophomores with 20-point games this season and rank third and fourth across the NCAA.

MADDIE WEBBER OFF THE BENCH

After starting 47 games across her two seasons at Villanova, Maddie Webber has embraced a new role at Illinois and is owning it. Webber become an instant spark for the Fighting Illini off the bench and is putting up a strong argument to be considered the sixth player of the year. Webber came off the bench for the first 17 games of the season and earned her first start as an Illini at Michigan due to a starter being out with injury. Beginning with the game vs. Northwestern, Webber asked to come off the bench for Illinois. Webber is one of just five P4 players across NCAA DI averaging 11.3+ points per game that has started 1 or fewer games this season.

Webber has scored in double figures 15 games in 2025-26 including a pair of 20-point outings. The junior is averaging 11.3 ppg across 24.9 mpg and is shooting marks of 45.4% FG, 40.7% 3FG, and 77.1% FT. Webber exploded for 17 points in the fourth quarter at Michigan State on Jan. 4, the most points in a frame under Green.

FRESHMAN STANDOUT

Destiny Jackson is one of 20 players across D1 averaging at least 8.6 points, 4.0 rebounds, 4.8 assists, and 1.4 steals per game in the NCAA and averages the fourth-fewest turnovers per game (2.4). Jackson is averaging 30.5 minutes per game, the fifth-fewest minutes among the group.

Jackson is the only freshman across NCAA D1 averaging at least 8.5 points, 4.0 rebounds, and 4.5 assists. 

NCAA FRESHMAN DOUBLE-DOUBLES

Fighting Illini rookie Cearah Parchment has recorded seven double-doubles across her freshman campaign. That mark ranks as sixth-most among all NCAA freshmen and leads all Big Ten freshmen Additionally, seven double-doubles is the second-most among Illinois freshmen since 1981-82. Kennedi Myles (2019-20) owns the Illini record with eight double-doubles as a rookie.

REGULAR SEASON BIG TEN WINS 

In her fourth season at Illinois, head coach Shauna Green has led the Fighting Illini to a 36-29 regular season record against the Big Ten. Those 36 victories are already third all-time among Illinois head coaches. 

YOUNGEST TEAM

Green's fourth Illini squad is by far her youngest, with an average age of 19.83 years as of the start of the 2025-26 campaign. This places Illinois as the third-youngest roster in the Power 4 + Big East behind Kansas State (19.78) and Creighton (19.79). Providence (19.91), Louisville (19.91), and Pittsburgh (19.91) are all tied as the fourth-youngest team while Wake Forest (19.95), NC State (19.97), and North Carolina (19.98) rounded out the teams with average starting ages under 20 for the 2025-26 season.

Only two players — redshirt-sophomore Gretchen Dolan and graduate student Gisela Segura — started the season above the age of 21 for the Fighting Illini. Segura is the team's oldest, celebrating her 23rd birthday in December. 

Meanwhile Cearah Parchment is the youngest player on the team, starting the season at 18 years, four months. She was born on July 4, 2007, just five days after the launch of the iPhone.

RANKED WINS UNDER COACH GREEN

Illinois' first ranked win of 2025-26 came over No. 7/6 Maryland, the first top-10 win for Illinois since 2012-13. The victory also marked the highest-ranked Big Ten win in program history. The Illini added another ranked road win at #25/24 Washington on Feb. 1.

In 2024-25, when Illinois went on the road and upset No. 14 Maryland in College Park, Green's unit became the first team since 1999-2000 to win three games vs. AP Top-25 ranked teams. Green led the team to a fourth ranked win in the NCAA Tournament First Round as Illinois took down No. 23 Creighton, which secured a ranked win at home, away, and in a neutral setting. Four ranked wins in a single season tied the program record (1999-00).

The latest win marked the eighth such triumph under fourth-year head coach Shauna Green, who guided the Illini to ranked wins six times in Big Ten play.

Green's eight wins over ranked teams are the second-most in Illinois program history behind Theresa Grentz' 26. Overall, Green is 8-21 against top-25 foes.