Illinois

Women’s basketball Game 2 preview: Marquette at Illinois, 7 p.m. Sunday

Published

1 year ago

November 9, 2024

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Women’s basketball Game 2 preview: Marquette at Illinois, 7 p.m. Sunday

Lineups

Illinois (1-0)

Starters

P Name Yr. Ht. PPG Hometown

G Makira Cook Sr. 5-6 20.0 Cincinnati

G Genesis Bryant Sr. 5-6 8.0 Jonesboro, Ga.

G Adalia McKenzie Sr. 5-10 20.0 Brooklyn Park, Minn.

F Brynn Shoup-Hill Sr. 6-3 5.0 Goshen, Ind.

F Kendall Bostic Sr. 6-2 18.0 Kokomo, Ind.

➜ FYI: Bryant, who played her 100th career game in Thursday night’s 83-74 home upset of No. 19 Florida State, was largely ineffective until late against the Seminoles. The fifth-year senior Bryant played only 22 minutes — the fewest of the five Illini starters — and didn’t make a shot attempt until the fourth quarter with six of the guard’s eight points coming in the final 10 minutes. Bryant ended up 1 of 5 from the floor after finishing 1 of 3 shooting in Illinois’ lone exhibition game against Lewis on Nov. 1.

Off the bench

P Name Yr. Ht. PPG Hometown

G Gretchen Dolan So. 5-11 11.0 Buffalo, N.Y.

F Berry Wallace Fr. 6-1 0.0 Pickerington, Ohio

G Jasmine Brown-Hagger So. 5-9 1.0 Shorewood

Marquette (0-1)

Starters

P Name Yr. Ht. PPG Hometown

G Olivia Porter Jr. 5-8 14.0 Chapel Hill, N.C.

G Halle Vice So. 6-1 0.0 Bettendorf, Iowa

G Lee Volker Sr. 6-1 10.0 Purcellville, Va.

F Skylar Forbes So. 6-3 11.0 Markham, Ontario

F Jada Bediako So. 6-3 4.0 Brampton, Ontario

➜ FYI: Porter was one of six transfers first-year coach Cara Consuegra brought in during the offseason with the junior guard following her coach from Charlotte to Marquette after Porter started every game for the 49ers last season, with Charlotte finishing 22-10 and making the NCAA tournament. Jaidynn Mason (Southern Illinois), Kennedi Perkins (Syracuse), Ayuen Akot (Frank Phillips College), Aryelle Stevens (Gulf Coast State College) and Bediako (Georgia Tech) were also among the transfer additions.

Off the bench

P Name Yr. Ht. PPG Hometown

G Bridget Utberg Jr. 5-5 3.0 Canton, Ga.

F Aryelle Stevens Jr. 6-1 2.0 Pearland, Texas

G Kennedi Perkins Jr. 5-6 2.0 Bolingbrook

Details

➜ Site: State Farm Center (15,544); Champaign.

➜ TV: Jason Ross Jr. (play-by-play) and Shimmy Gray-Miller (analysis) will have the call on BTN.

➜ Radio: Mike Koon will have the call on WDWS 1400-AM and 93.9-FM.

➜ Series: Marquette leads 6-2.

➜ Last meeting: Marquette won 71-67 on Nov. 11, 2023, in Milwaukee.

➜ FYI: That four-point win for the Golden Eagles saw Liza Karlen go off for a game-high 22 points and Jordan King add 19 points as Illinois played without Makira Cook because of a concussion. But neither player is back at Marquette this season. King exhausted her eligibility and Karlen transferred to Notre Dame.

Beat writer Joe Vozzelli’s storylines

Taking accountability as starters

A major talking point throughout the offseason for Illinois was fixing what had troubled the Illini last winter: Poor starts to games. Particularly in Big Ten play. So much so that Illinois coach Shauna Green didn’t just address it in the practice gym with different drills last season, but through visualization techniques, as well. Still, fifth-year senior Kendall Bostic made it clear where the responsibility lies to improve how Illinois starts games: On the players.

“The starters had a meeting earlier this week and just kind of talked about what we needed to do,” Bostic said. “In the end, it’s on us. We’re the ones that go out and start the game and essentially, when the hole is dug, it’s because we dug it ourselves.”

Getting to the rim, and finishing

Adalia McKenzie‘s ability to beat defenders off the bounce on straight-line drives is one of the 5-foot-10 guard’s best skill sets. But finishing at the rim has been an issue for the Illinois senior guard. But the Illini’s 83-74 win against Florida State on Thursday night featured McKenzie both driving and finishing. The highlight of the 20 points she scored came in the third quarter when McKenzie hung in the air and finished through contact from Seminoles guard Carla Viegas.

“I would just thank my teammates and coaches, them always putting confidence in me, and just work,” McKenzie said of showing more strength at the rim so far this season. “Actually just working on doing layups and being aggressive in practice.”

A banner night is in the plans

Sunday night will feature a banner celebration for Illinois before it tips off against Marquette. A first of sorts. The Illini will have a pregame ceremony, a banner unveiling and a banner raising to recognize the WBIT championship the program won last spring.

Carrying the momentum from how Illinois finished last season and continuing to build off that is top of mind for a veteran Illini team.

“Where the program started to where it is now, I think it’s absolutely insane,” Bostic said. “I’m really proud of everyone who has believed in this program, came in and put the work in. We have put a ton of work into everything, and the coaches have come in and changed our system. They got us to buy-in, and we bought into it. I’m just really proud of everybody across the board. It’s so cool to be a part of the foundation that turned Illinois around.”

The News-Gazette’s Pick

Illinois 75, Marquette 65

Now, comes a new test for the Illini: How does Illinois handle a big season-opening win? Avoiding a letdown on Sunday night after the impressive victory against Florida State is critical. Especially with the Golden Eagles, who lost 57-50 at UCF in their opener, still trying to find themselves after an offseason coaching change and with a new-look roster. (News-Gazette prediction record: 0-1).

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Illinois

Andretti family’s popular go karting and gaming facility opening first Illinois location. See inside

Published

10 hours ago

March 4, 2026

Press Room

Andretti family’s popular go karting and gaming facility opening first Illinois location. See inside

A popular indoor go karting and gaming company is opening up its first Illinois location in a Chicago suburb this week.

Andretti Indoor Karting & Games announced it will open its doors on a brand new Schaumburg location at 4 p.m. on March 10, with a grand opening event slated for March 14.

The facility will feature numerous attractions, including “high-speed electric Superkarts on a multi-level track” and an arcade with professional racing simulators and two-story laser tag arena, in a 98,000-square-foot facility. There’s also bowling, a movie theater and more, the company said.

The Schaumburg location, at 1441 Thoreau Dr., will mark Andretti’s 13th facility in the U.S.

“We’re thrilled to open our thirteenth location in the thriving village of Schaumburg,” said Eddie Hamman, managing member. “Andretti is the perfect addition to all the amazing experiences across Chicagoland, and we look forward to meeting the communities that make this market a top destination.”

The company said it plans to host a “sneak preview” event beginning at 11 a.m. on March 10, where several guests will “be treated to free racing, attractions, and arcade play with food and beverage options available for purchase.” The Andretti family will also be on-hand for autograph sessions that afternoon.

A limited number of spots will be made available to RSVP to the preview.

Then on March 14, the first 100 guests to visit the facility to be given one hour of free arcade play and entered to win a raffle for a free birthday party. Ten guests could also win free arcade play for a year.

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Illinois

New building owner addresses backlash over mural in downtown Springfield

Published

22 hours ago

March 4, 2026

Press Room

New building owner addresses backlash over mural in downtown Springfield

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. (KY3) – A long-standing mural honoring Robert E. Smith on the side of a building at Campbell and Walnut has been covered up, prompting community backlash against the building’s new owner.

David Pere, owner of FMTM LLC, purchased the building in downtown Springfield and said he intended it to reflect his business, which focuses on helping veterans with financial strategies and goals. Covering the mural was part of that plan.

Pere said he was out of town in Tennessee when painting began and learned about the community reaction through messages on his phone.

“I’m like, I was in Tennessee running an event. I didn’t even know he’d started painting until I got a bunch of really nasty messages on my phone,” Pere said. “And I go, oh, look, that’s our building getting painted. I guess he started.”

Pere said he did not anticipate the response. “You know, we didn’t. I didn’t know how much of an impact this was going to make,” he said.

Jesse Tyler, co-owner of SGFCO, said he wanted the mural to stay and expressed concern about the lack of safeguards for publicly recognized works of art.

“To paint over that is to say, like, could be interpreted as saying that his work is no longer relevant or that his story is no longer relevant. I don’t think that’s true,” Tyler said. “Robert’s artwork needs to be part of downtown for as long as we can maintain that memory and maintain that legacy.”

Tyler said the community had hoped protections would be in place for the mural. “Maybe we didn’t have those protections that we hope there would be, that maybe the sort of legacy and awareness of Robert’s work that we hope there would be wasn’t there,” he said.

The City of Springfield posted online, acknowledging the artwork held deep meaning for many residents. Because the building is privately owned, however, Pere is within his rights to make changes to its exterior.

Pere said he hopes to help relocate the mural to a more permanent location. “We want to help migrate that mural to a wall where it could be more permanent,” he said. “I’d love to help them find a space for it. I’d love to help. I’d love to see the city get involved to the point where that space could be a permanent space where it’s actually maintained because it is obvious now that it is very important to the city of Springfield.”

Pere is already working with an artist on a new mural for the side of the building, intended to represent veterans. That mural is expected to begin going up at the end of the month.

To report a correction or typo, please email digitalnews@ky3.com. Please include the article info in the subject line of the email.

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Illinois

Missed the lunar eclipse? See when the next one will be over Illinois

Published

1 day ago

March 3, 2026

Press Room

Missed the lunar eclipse? See when the next one will be over Illinois

Millions across the United States who woke up early Tuesday were treated to a “blood moon,” the only total lunar eclipse occurring in North America in 2026, according to NASA.

Illinois residents who missed it will be waiting some time for the next total lunar eclipse to shine above the U.S. — several years, in fact. But a partial lunar eclipse is coming sooner.

When is the next total lunar eclipse in Illinois?

After March 3, Illinois’ next visible total lunar eclipse won’t happen again until June 2029, writes Time and Date. There is a partial lunar eclipse coming sooner, however.

Others are reading: Free Full Moon Queso at Qdoba. How to get in Illinois

When is the next lunar eclipse?

A partial lunar eclipse will be visible in Illinois on Aug. 27-28, shining over the Americas, Europe, Africa and parts of Asia, according to NASA.

Provided you’re willing to stay up late to see it, the partial lunar eclipse will be at its maximum around 11:12 p.m., Thursday, Aug. 27, in Illinois.

Until then, here’s what people in parts of the U.S. were seeing Tuesday morning.

See photos of the March 3 total lunar eclipse

Calendar of upcoming eclipses

When is the next solar eclipse?

The next solar eclipse will be visible to roughly 980 million people on Aug. 12, 2026, writes Time and Date.

A total solar eclipse will occur over Greenland, Iceland, Spain, Russia and a small area of Portugal, while a partial eclipse will be visible in Europe, Africa, North America, the Atlantic Ocean, Arctic Ocean and Pacific Ocean, NASA reports.