Illini travel to Madison to face Badgers
Brian Butch is averaging 13.7 ppg and 7.8 rpg.
Thursday, January 10th, 9:00 p.m. (et)
FACTS & STATS: Site: Kohl Center (17,190) — Madison, Wisconsin. Television: ESPN. Home Record: Illinois 4-4, Wisconsin 9-1. Away Record: Illinois 1-1, Wisconsin 3-1. Neutral Record: Illinois 3-2, Wisconsin 0-0. Conference Record: Illinois 0-2, Wisconsin 2-0. Series Record: Illinois leads, 106-70.
GAME NOTES: The 21st-ranked Wisconsin Badgers continue their run through their Big Ten schedule, when they welcome the Illinois Fighting Illini to Madison for a conference showdown at the Kohl Center. Bo Ryan’s team brings a six-game win streak into this contest and has opened its conference schedule and the 2008 calendar year, with wins over both Michigan (70-54) and most recently, Iowa (64-51). The Illini have fallen on hard times. Bruce Weber’s troops are hovering just over the .500 mark at 8-7, but have lost three straight games, including two in a row to open league play. After dropping the Big Ten opener to Ohio State last week (74-58), the Illini followed that up with a 68-64 defeat at the hands of Penn State over the weekend. Illinois holds a 106-70 edge in the all-time series with Wisconsin, but the Badgers won both meetings last season.
A lack of offensive punch has plagued the Illini this season, as consistency has been hard to come by in Champaign. The team is shooting just .430 from the floor and has really struggled from long range (.280), resulting in a meager 66.2 ppg. The shooting woes have even found their way to the free-throw line, where Illinois is converting just 59.3 percent of its charity tosses. The team’s top performer is center Shaun Pruitt, who paces the Illini in both scoring (12.6 ppg) and rebounding (8.1 rpg). Help up front comes from forward Brian Randle (10.1 ppg). Trent Meachem (10.0 ppg) has been a source of offense from the perimeter. In the loss to Penn State, Illinois was outrebounded 49-24 and allowed the Nittany Lions to haul in a whopping 22 offensive rebounds in the game. Demetri McCamey netted a career-high 18 points in 24 minutes of work off the bench, while Calvin Brock chipped in with a season-high 15.
Wisconsin has always been a defensive-minded team under Ryan’s watchful eye and this year is no different. The team leads the Big Ten in scoring defense (53.9 ppg) and ranks second in field-goal percentage defense (.378). With that kind of production at the defensive end, the team has not had to blow opponents away with gaudy offensive numbers. The numbers are certainly modest on the season, with Wisconsin averaging 71.4 ppg, on a steady .458 shooting. Brian Butch and Trevon Hughes are running neck-and-neck for the team’s scoring lead, averaging 13.7 and 13.6 ppg, respectively. Butch is also the team’s top rebounder (7.8 rpg), while Hughes leads the team in steals (26). Marcus Landry has been decent as a third option, adding 9.9 points and 5.1 rebounds per game to the cause. Butch led the way in the win over the Hawkeyes, as he hit 7-of-12 shots from the floor and finished with 22 points. Joe Krabbenhoft and Michael Flowers joined Butch in double figures, with 12 and 10 points, respectively.
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