NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Cearah Parchment scored 21 points as seventh-seeded Illinois beat No. 10 seed Colorado 66-57 on Saturday night in the first round of the women’s NCAA Tournament. The Fighting Illini (22-11) are the youngest team in this tournament after replacing four starters, and they now have won a first-round game for a second straight season. Illinois will play No. 2 seed Vanderbilt, a 102-61 winner over No. 15 seed High Point, on Monday night for a berth in the Sweet 16 of the Fort Worth 1 Region. After being the youngest team in the Big Ten all season, coach Shauna Green went from not talking about the youth of her Fighting Illini to embracing the energy as fuel for this season.“We can keep this group together, big picture it’s going to be really fun to see what we can do,” Green said. “Right now we’re worried about Monday.”Playing a lot of tight games in the Big Ten certainly has helped the young Fighting Illini grow up faster. Sophomore forward Berry Wallace said her younger teammates have been figuring out how each can help and lead. “We all just have a really big competitive spirit, and everyone wants to win,” Wallace said.Wallace added 18 points for Illinois, and freshman point guard Destiny Jackson grabbed 11 rebounds and scored 11 of her 16 points in the fourth quarter to help seal the win. “She just has such great composure,” Parchment said of Jackson. “I th …
