No. 25 Illinois Returns Home to Host Northwestern – University of Illinois Athletics

Head Coach Shauna Green

Career Record: 233-114 (.671), 12th season

Division I Record: 204-89 (.696), 10th season

At Illinois: 77-39 (.664), Fourth season

Big Ten Record: 34-27 (.557), Fourth season

THE NEXT WIN WOULD…

• Move the Illini to 41-49 all-time vs. Northwestern
• Improve Green to 7-0 overall vs. Northwestern
• Mark Illinois’ 7th straight win over NU under Green
• Move Illinois to 22-22 vs. Northwestern in Champaign
• Move Illinois to 49-12 in home games under Green
• Mark UI’s first 5-3 B1G start since 2022-23
• Move Green’s career record to 234-114 in 12 seasons
• Improve Green to 35-27 in Big Ten games
• Move Green’s DI record to 205-89 in 10 seasons
• Move Green’s Illinois record to 78-39
• Give Illinois WBB an all-time record of 724-779
• Move UI to 14-1 vs. unranked teams this season

OPENING TIP

The 52nd campaign of Illinois women’s basketball continues on Sunday, Jan. 18, when Illinois returns home to host Northwestern for a 2 p.m. CT game on B1G+ from State Farm Center. 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
• Illinois has been ranked at some point during all four 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)
• 3 of Illinois’ next 4 opponents are ranked

ABOUT THE OPPONENT

Northwestern is off to an 8-10 start on the season including a 2-5 reading in Big Ten play. The Wildcats and Illini both suffered losses to Ohio State while Illinois brought home a win over Missouri while Northwestern took a loss to the Tigers. NU is 1-5 in road games this season. Head coach Joe McKeown is in his 19th – and final – season in Evanston, announcing his retirement ahead of the 2025-26 campaign.

ALL-TIME SERIES INFO

Illinois trails the all-time series against Northwestern, 40-49, with Sunday’s game marking the 90th all-time meeting. The Wildcats lead 22-21 when the series has been played in Champaign. Illinois has won all six meetings vs. NU since Shauna Green took over the program after losing 14-straight to the Wildcats prior to her arrival.

18-GAME START

Illinois’ 14-4 start through 18 games matches the fourth-best start in program history. Green has also led the Illini to the top 18-game start.

BEST 19-GAME STARTS

The best 19-game start in program history is a 16-3 reading, achieved just once by the 1981-82 Illini squad. The 2025-26 Illinois team has the chance to match the second-best mark of 15-4 on Sunday with a win.

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 83.3% mark from the stripe.

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. Webber is one of just six P4 players across NCAA DI averaging 11.7+ points per game that has started 1 or fewer games this season.

Webber has scored in double figures 11 games in 2025-26 including a pair of 20-point outings. The junior is averaging 11.7 ppg across 23.9 mpg and is shooting marks of 49.4% FG, 45.8 3FG, and 72.0% FT. Webber exploded for 17 points in the fourth quarter at Michigan State on Jan. 4, the most points in a frame under Green.

BERRY WALLACE’S SOPHOMORE SURGE

Through 18 games of the 2025-26 campaign, Fighting Illini sophomore Berry Wallace is averaging 19.1 points per game up from 9.0 ppg last season, despite being at the top of every opponents’ scout.

Along with her 19.1 points, Wallace is averaging 6.8 rebounds, 1.7 assists, 0.5 steals, and 0.4 blocks across 34.0 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 53.5% FG, 39.7% 3FG, and 87.7 FT% through 18 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 10 20-point games on the season.

REGULAR SEASON BIG TEN WINS 

In her fourth season at Illinois, head coach Shauna Green has led the Fighting Illini to a 34-27 regular season record against the Big Ten. Those 34 victories are already third all-time among Illinois head coaches. 

FRESHMAN STANDOUTS

Destiny Jackson is one of 13 players across D1 averaging at least 8.0 points, 4.0 rebounds, 5.0 assists, and 1.4 steals per game in the NCAA and averages the fourth fewest turnovers per game (2.4). Jackson is averaging 29.0 minutes per game, the third-fewest minutes among the group.

Jackson is the only freshman across D1 averaging at least 8.0 points, 4.0 rebounds, and 5.0 assists. 

SCORCHING THE NETS AT PENN STATE

In Illinois’ 92-76 win at Penn State, Illinois saw four players score in double figures led by Berry Wallace’s 28 and Maddie Webber’s 26 points. The Illini shot 59.6% from the field (34-for-57), their most efficient shooting performance since recording an identical line on March 2, 2023. This marks their best field goal percentage in a regular-season game since Dec. 5, 2018, and their best percentage in a Big Ten game since at least 2002-03. Illinois shot 50% from 3-point range (11-for-22), with five different players making at least one triple. Hit 10+ 3-pointers for the third time this season. Shot at least 50% from beyond the arc for the third time this season.

RANKED ILLINI

For the fourth straight season under head coach Shauna Green, Fighting Illini women’s basketball has been ranked in the Associated Press Top-25 Poll, coming in at No. 25 in the Jan. 12 listings.

Illinois has been ranked in 11 combined AP polls under Green. In 2022-23, the Illini appeared in four Top-25 polls, followed by the preseason rankings in 2023-24, five weeks across 2024-25 and most recently on Jan. 12 2026. The Illini have now appeared in 74 AP polls all-time across 12 different seasons.

Green joins Naismith Hall of Famer Theresa Grentz as the only two coaches in program history to lead their teams to AP Top-25 ranking appearances in four-straight seasons. The last time Illinois was ranked in four straight seasons was a five season-span from 1996-97 through 2000-01.