Illinois` volleyball team plays this week in the NCAA`s Mideast Region, the toughest in the tournament. But the Illini will be playing in Huff Hall, where they`ve won a school-record 21 straight matches.
Top-seeded Stanford (27-2) meets No. 9 Penn State (28-3) at 5:30 p.m. Friday in Huff. The Illini (31-3) take on No. 7 Nebraska (22-5) at 7:30 p.m.
None of the other draws has as many Top 10 teams, but the coaches aren`t griping. ”If you`re going to win a national championship, you`ve got to beat everybody anyway,” Nebraska coach Terry Pettit said.
Illinois, bidding for its first Final Four appearance since 1988, had expected to be the top-seeded team in the Mideast. But under a recent NCAA rule change, the No. 1 and No. 2 teams in the nation can`t meet until the Final Four. With No. 1 UCLA already seeded in the West, Stanford was sent to the Mideast.
Illinois beat Nebraska 3-1 Sept. 11, lost to Stanford 3-2 Sept. 19 and split two matches with Big 10 rival Penn State.
Quick start: The Illinois women`s basketball team is off to a 3-0 start, its best since 1986-87. That was the last season the Illini went to the NCAA tournament.
The Illini picked up two victories in the Illini Classic over the weekend, defeating Eastern Michigan 80-51 Friday and Louisville 65-51 Saturday.
Senior point guard Jill Estes won tournament MVP honors by scoring a total of 29 points, dishing out 11 assists and grabbing eight steals. She also committed only two turnovers. And Cindy Dilger, a senior center from Oak Forest, made the all-tournament team with a total of 20 rebounds and a career- best 11 points against Eastern Michigan.
Illinois has won its three games by an average of 23 points, thanks largely to an 11-rebounds-per-game advantage over its opponents. The Illini also are limiting their foes to a 34 percent shooting.
On Wednesday night, the Illini visit Nebraska (3-0), which won last weekend`s tournament at Northwestern, and then meet Missouri Valley Conference favorite Southern Illinois at 2 p.m. Sunday in Assembly Hall.