Women’s Basketball To Celebrate Victor Day Sunday Against Illinois

Sunday, December 3

Memphis, Tenn.

2:00 PM

University of Memphis

Illinois

Tickets

Photo by: Joe Murphy

Women’s Basketball To Celebrate Victor Day Sunday Against Illinois

Dec 02, 2017 | Women's Basketball

Memphis vs. Illinois Game Notes

Memphis looks to even the all-time series against the Fighting Illini

MEMPHIS, Tenn. – The University of Memphis women's basketball team continues its home stand with a 2 p.m. contest against Illinois Sunday afternoon at the Elma Roane Fieldhouse. Memphis will be celebrating its second Victor Day, a day to celebrate cancer survivors and those fighting cancer in our community.

GAME NINE
Memphis (1-7) vs. Illinois (5-4)
Tip-off: 2 p.m. CT
Location: Elma Roane Fieldhouse
Promotion: Victor Day
Live Stats | Watch | Listen

A year ago in Champaign, the Tigers came away with a 64-54 victory over the Fighting Illini. A win on Sunday for Memphis would extend their streak to three-straight wins over the Big Ten opponent and even the all-time series at 4-4. Coming into Sunday's game, here are five things to know about the Memphis women's basketball team.

Senior guard Brea Elmore has now had back-to-back 20+-point performances including a 25-point game against IUPUI, a total that matched her career-high. Elmore hit three, three-pointers and went 9-for-16 from the floor to lead the Tigers. She's now averaging a career-high 14.3 points per game.
Cheyenne Creighton played in her 100^th Memphis game last Wednesday against IUPUI. In her career, she has now amassed 860 career points, putting her in a position to become the 24^th player in program history to reach the 1,000-point milestone.
Freshman forward Alana Davis scored a career-high 16 points against No. 9/8 Ohio State to open the Play4Kay Showcase. She ranks third on the team and first among freshmen with 7.1 points and 3.7 rebounds per game. She started her first collegiate game against IUPUI.
The Tigers are much improved from the free throw line this year compared to just a season ago. In 2016-17, Memphis finished with a team mark of 64.1 percent from the line, whereas this season the Tigers are second in the conference at 74.6 percent. Breigha Wilder-Cochran has hit all 10 of her free throws taken this season.
Sunday is Memphis' second Victor Day game. Associate head coach Danielle O'Banion spearheaded the Victor Day game in her final season at Kent State. She was diagnosed with Stage 2 lymphoma cancer in 2014 and went through a series of chemotherapy treatments. Six months after being diagnosed, she was cancer free.

A Look At Illinois
Illinois has an overall record of 5-4 and has dropped the last two contests. One of Illinois' wins this season was against American Athletic Conference opponent Wichita State in the New Mexico Thanksgiving Tournament.

Memphis native Brandi Beasley at 12.9 ppg and Alex Wittinger at 12.7 ppg lead the Illini offensively. Wittinger is also leading the team in rebounding with 9.1.

Illinois is a very young squad with 11 underclassmen and five transfers under the direction of first-year Illinois coach Nancy Fahey. Fahey spent 31 years at Washington University in St. Louis and guided the Bears to an NCAA record five Division III National Championships. She now has 742 career victories.

Series History With Illinois
Illinois holds a 4-3 advantage over the Tigers, although Memphis has won the previous two matchups. Last season, Memphis defeated Illinois by a score of 64-54 in Champaign, Ill.

Final Details
Tipoff against Illinois is slated for 2 p.m. at the Elma Roane Fieldhouse. Fans can hear the game on the air waves at 91.7 FM WUMR with Jeff Brightwell on the call or watch the game at www.gotigersgo.com. For more information on the Memphis women's basketball team, follow the team on Twitter at @MemphisWBB.