Hoosiers Now

Guard Ali Patberg leads Hoosier Women's Basketball to a Monstrous Defeat Over Illinois

The No. 7-ranked Hoosiers cruise to a 93-61 victory against the Illinois Fighting Illini on Wednesday. Graduate student guard Ali Patberg scored her season-high 26 points and become Indiana's all-time ninth leading scorer in the process.

Haley Jordan

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — Graduate student guard Ali Patberg led No. 7-ranked Indiana to its third straight victory defeating Illinois 93-61 on the road.

"We needed to have a better start," Patberg said. "The past couple games, we've had a lot of slow starts, and so our goal was to come out with a lot of energy. Coach Moren came out with a lot of energy from the beginning. She came in the locker room with a lot of energy, and we fed off that."

Patberg scored a season-high 26 points and moved into sole possession of ninth place in the Hoosiers' all-time scoring with 1,611 career points. She went 9-for-15 from the field and 4-for-9 from the arc contributing to the Hoosiers' 57.6 field goal percentage.

"Ali Patberg should never pass up an open shot for us," Indiana head coach Teri Moren said.

Four Hoosiers scored in double figures and put up a total 20 assists, its third-highest single game total of the season.

"I don't want to pick one or two of our players tonight," Moren said. "I thought all of them came in and contributed and did something really really well throughout."

Indiana got off to a hot start scoring two quick buckets and leading 12-4 at the media timeout. 

Sophomore guard Chloe Moore-McNeil came off the bench to and cashed in on a jump shot extending the lead 19-6 with less than four minutes to go. She totaled nine points on the night.

"Loved everything she did," Moren said. "She's steady. She's calm. I thought she was terrific defensively. We put her on Nye who's their best offensive player."

In the second quarter, freshman guard Kaitlin Peterson swished a three-pointer building up a strong 54-24 lead at the half, Indiana's season-high for points in the first half. Peterson ended with a career-high 11 points as part of the bench's 23 points.

In the third quarter, the Hoosiers led by 36 off a second chance opportunity from sophomore forward Kiandra Browne.

"These minutes KB is getting right now are going to be beneficial when we do get Mack (Holmes) back," Moren said. "Tonight for the first time, I felt that KB looked way more comfortable. We've been talking to her. We've been watching film in terms of what we need from her."

Graduate student guard Nicole Cardaño-Hillary landed awkwardly on her right ankle coming down off of a shot and limped off the court in the third.

Moren said she thinks Cardaño-Hillary will be alright, and it doesn't look to be serious.

Indiana played with multiple lineups in the fourth quarter to finish strong. All available Hoosiers saw action in the victory in their 13th consecutive win over Illinois. Moren said it was one of their best offensive performances of the year.

"This is such a tight knit group of women," Moren said. "This is just a group that goes about their work in a humble kind of way. They're one of the toughest groups I've ever had the pleasure of coaching."

Up next, Indiana heads back home to face Michigan State in a rescheduled matchup on Saturday, Feb. 12. at 3 p.m.

Related stories on Indiana women's basketball

  • INDIANA TO FACE ILLINOIS ON THE ROAD: The No. 7-ranked Hoosiers were supposed to play Illinois back in January, but the Fighting Illini faced a three-game COVID-19 pause and are just now back to play this week. Indiana will head to Champaign to face Illinois on Wednesday, Feb. 9 at 8 p.m. ET. CLICK HERE. 
  • HOOSIERS BEAT PURDUE FOR SECOND TIME THIS SEASON: There were 7,891 fans who witnessed Indiana take down rival Purdue 64-57 on Sunday, the fifth-largest crowd in program history at Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall. Nicole Cardaño-Hillary led the Hoosiers with 19 points, and sophomore Chloe Moore-McNeil earned her first career double-double with 11 points and 10 rebounds. CLICK HERE.
  • INDIANA FACES PURDUE FOR SECOND TIME THIS SEASON: The Hoosiers will face the Boilermakers at home this time on Sunday at 1 p.m. ET. Indiana claimed the Barn Burner Trophy in its last meeting with Purdue and have already had two games of practice since then without starting forward Mackenzie Holmes who's still out with a knee injury. CLICK HERE.
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Haley Jordan
HALEY JORDAN

Haley Jordan is a Sports Illustrated/FanNation video director, staff writer, host and reporter for Hoosiers Now, Fastball and Fastbreak sites. She is a graduate from Indiana University with degrees in Sports Broadcast Journalism and Spanish.

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