2023–24 Illinois Fighting Illini women's basketball
ConferenceBig Ten Conference
Record8–8 (2–4 Big Ten)
Head coach
Assistant coaches
Home arenaState Farm Center
2023–24 Big Ten women's basketball standings
ConfOverall
TeamW L PCTW L PCT
No. 2 Iowa7–0 1.00018–1  .947
No. 16 Indiana6–1 .85715–2  .882
No. 18 Ohio State5–1 .83314–3  .824
Nebraska5–2 .71413–5  .722
Michigan State3–3 .50013–4  .765
Minnesota3–3 .50013–4  .765
Michigan3–3 .50012–6  .667
Maryland3–3 .50011–6  .647
Penn State2–3 .40011–5  .688
Purdue2–3 .4009–7  .563
Illinois2–4 .3338–8  .500
Northwestern2–5 .2867–11  .389
Wisconsin1–6 .1438–9  .471
Rutgers0–7 .0006–14  .300
† 2024 Big Ten tournament winner
As of January 17, 2024
Rankings from AP Poll

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

Previous season

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

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

2023–24 Illinois Fighting Illini women's basketball team
PlayersCoaches
Pos.#NameHeightYearPrevious schoolHometown
G 0 Camille Jackson 5 ft 11 in (1.8 m) SoButler College Prep Chicago, IL
G 1 Genesis Bryant 5 ft 6 in (1.68 m) SrNorth Carolina State Jonesboro, GA
G 2 Cori Allen 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m) FrMontverde Academy Nashville, TN
G 3 Makira Cook 5 ft 6 in (1.68 m) SrDayton Cincinnati, OH
G 4 Kam'Ren Rhodes 5 ft 6 in (1.68 m) SoArizona Compass Prep Chandler, AZ
G 5 Gretchen Dolan 5 ft 11 in (1.8 m) FrWilliamsville South High School Buffalo, NY
G 11 Jada Peebles 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m) GSWakefield Raleigh, NC
C 21 Aicha Ndour 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) SrNorthwest Florida State College Somone, Senegal
F 22 Shay Bollin 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) SoDuke Raynham, MA
F 23 Brynn Shoup-Hill 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) JrDayton Goshen, IN
G 24 Adalia McKenzie 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m) JrPark Center Brooklyn Park, MN
F 33 Samantha Dewey 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) SoBrooks School North Andover, MA
C 41 Camille Hobby 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) GSNorth Carolina State Jacksonville, FL
F 44 Kendall Bostic 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) SrMichigan State Kokomo, IN
Head coach
Assistant coach(es)
Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • (S) Suspended
  • (I) Ineligible
  • (W) Walk-on

Roster

Schedule and results

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 Xfinity Center 
College Park, MD
January 25, 2024
6:00 p.m., Peacock		 Ohio State State Farm Center 
Champaign, IL
January 28, 2024
2:00 p.m., B1G+		 Minnesota State Farm Center 
Champaign, IL
January 31, 2024
6:00 p.m., B1G+		 at Michigan Crisler Center 
Ann Arbor, MI
February 5, 2024
7:00 p.m., BTN		 at Purdue Mackey Arena 
West Lafayette, IN
February 8, 2024
6:00 p.m., B1G+		 Northwestern State Farm Center 
Champaign, IL
February 11, 2024
2:00 p.m., FS1		 Maryland State Farm Center 
Champaign, IL
February 15, 2024
5:00 p.m., B1G+		 at Penn State Bryce Jordan Center 
University Park, PA
February 19, 2024
1:00 p.m., FOX		 Indiana State Farm Center 
Champaign, IL
February 25, 2024
12:00 p.m., FS1		 at Iowa Carver–Hawkeye Arena 
Iowa City, IA
February 29, 2024
7:00 p.m., BTN		 at Michigan State Breslin Center 
East Lansing, MI
March 3, 2024
2:00 p.m., B1G+		 Nebraska State Farm Center 
Champaign, IL
Big Ten Women's Tournament
March 6, 2024
 vs. TBD Target Center 
Minneapolis, MN
*Non-conference game. #Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses.
All times are in Central.

Rankings

Ranking movements
Legend: ██ Increase in ranking ██ Decrease in ranking
— = Not ranked RV = Received votes
Week
PollPre123456789101112131415161718Final
AP23RV—————————Not released
CoachesRV——————————

See also

References

  1. ↑ Richey, Scott (March 12, 2023). "Creme: Illinois' turnaround under Green 'remarkable'". The News-Gazette. Champaign, Illinois. Retrieved October 30, 2023.
  2. 1 2 3 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. 1 2 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.
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