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Illinois, for the second time in three games, faced a top-5 opponent away from State Farm Center and walked out a winner,
The Illini worked the inside-out game and hit the boards hard in the first half on Sunday in Lincoln. Nebraska, to its credit, started out hitting three-pointers like it was throwing paper into a wastebasket, hitting four of its first six behind the arc. They would make 11 out of 18 three-pointers in the first half. Inside the arc was a completely different story as the Illini held Nebraska to 3-of-14 shooting.
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Keaton Wagler was almost invisible with only five points in the first half. He didn’t need to score, as the Ivisic brothers worked inside and out for a combined 17 points. Tomislav had 10, and Big Z had seven. But the Cornhuskers went on a late 14-2 spurt to lead at the half by six.
In the second half, it was a different story. Wagler found his way in, around, and over the Husker defense for 23 points, giving him 28 for the game. Nebraska was 11-of-18 from the arc in the first and could only manage 4-of-17 in the second half. Nebraska outscored the Illini from the field 65-57. The Illini outscored the Huskers 21-4 at the free-throw line. Wagler had 10 of those.
When Kylan Boswell went down, fans hoped the Illini could survive the gauntlet of Purdue, Nebraska, and Michigan State with a win or two. They have convincingly won two games against highly ranked opponents. Since the loss of Boswell, the Illini have outscored opponents by 9.25 PPG and out-rebounded them by 4 rebounds per game. They shot 44% for the field and 36% from the arc. Defensively, everyone has gotten in the act. Big Z has become an elite rim protector. Mirkovic and Humrichous have stepped up their intensity on defense. Wagler and Stojakovic are getting better every game.
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So, where does this leave Illinois? They are in control of their own destiny. If I can steal a line from NCIS, “Sit Rep!”
The Illini and Michigan are 10-1, Michigan State and Nebraska…
Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/illinois-controls-own-destiny-big-133234344.html
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Publish date : 2026-02-04 13:32:00
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