GAME NOTES: After two straight three-point wins at home, the Indiana Hoosiers will hit the road to take on the Fighting Illini of Illinois Sunday in a Big Ten Conference bout at the State Farm Center.

Indiana has won three of its last four games overall, and owns a 13-4 record headed into Sunday's rivalry clash. The Hoosiers took down Ohio State (69-66) and Penn State (76-73) in consecutive contests leading up to this border battle.

Illinois has won two of its last three games, which includes a 72-67 victory over Northwestern in the team's most recent outing. But go back farther and the Illini have dropped three of their last five, and are 2-3 in conference play. Illinois is a perfect 8-0 at home this season.

The all-time series between these two teams could not possibly be more contentious. The series is all knotted up at 86 games apiece, with Illinois having won the most recent meeting, 64-54. In Champaign, Illinois leads the series, 51-31.

Indiana was able to grab a five-point lead over Penn State at halftime in the team's last outing, and grew that advantage to 12 points with just over seven minutes to play in the contest. But the Nittany Lions made a bit of a comeback, and cut the deficit to just three points before time ran out. Robert Johnson led the way for Indiana in the win with 20 points, while Troy Williams chipped in with 15 points. Stanford Robinson came off the bench to tally 12 in the win, and James Blackmon Jr. added in 11 points and six rebounds for the Hoosiers. Yogi Ferrell dished out a team-high six assists for Indiana.

Indiana's 2014-15 campaign has been fueled by a strong offensive effort, one that leads the Big Ten Conference. The Hoosiers enter Sunday's clash netting 81.6 ppg, and Blackmon is at the head of that explosive effort. Blackmon tops Indiana with a 16.4 ppg mark, shooting an impressive 40 percent from 3-point range. Ferrell adds in 15.4 ppg and a team-best 81 assists, while Williams checks in at 12.9 ppg with a team-high 5.9 rpg for the Hoosiers. Johnson rounds out the group of Indiana double-digit scorers on the season with 10.0 ppg. The Hoosiers haven't had as much success on defense, allowing opponents to score a whopping 71.2 ppg - ranked last in the Big Ten.

Northwestern outshot Illinois from the field in the Fighting Illini's last outing. The Wildcats were able to connect on 46.2 percent of their shots in the contest, while Illinois made 41.9 percent. But a better mark from 3-point range and just three turnovers helped the Illini pull off the win on the road. Kendrick Nunn led the charge with 25 points, adding in five rebounds. Aaron Cosby contributed 19 points and five boards as well, while both Malcolm Hill and Ahmad Starks added 10 apiece. The Illini shot 12-of-14 from the free-throw line in the victory.

The injury bug has bitten Illinois hard already this season, as the Illini lost both Tracy Abrams and Rayvonte Rice. Rice, who leads Illinois in scoring this season with 17.2 ppg (ranked fourth in the Big Ten in individual scoring), is out with a broken left hand. That means the scoring duties have fallen on Hill (13.7 ppg) and Nunn (9.7 ppg) to try and maintain Illinois's 74.1 ppg mark as a unit. Rice also takes his team-leading 6.9 rpg to the bench. The Illini have been strong defensively, holding opponents to 63.2 ppg this season, although that could change going against Indiana and the top Big Ten offense.

Without Rice on the floor, Illinois could be a bit lost when it comes to scoring. This isn't the first game Rice has missed, but Indiana is a completely different opponent than teams like Northwestern and Nebraska. Even at home, the Illini could struggle.