CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — Indiana men’s basketball entered Sunday with a daunting task: slowing the nation’s most efficient offense.
Although the Hoosiers hung with No. 8 Illinois throughout the first half, they couldn’t overcome a deficit as high as 21 points and ultimately fell 71-51 to the Fighting Illini inside the State Farm Center in Champaign, Illinois.
Fifth-year senior guard Lamar Wilkerson scored a team-high 21 points. Redshirt senior forward Tucker DeVries and senior forward Sam Alexis were the only other Hoosiers in double figures with their 13 and 11 points, respectively. Illinois freshman forward David Mirkovic poured in a game-high 25 points while freshman guard Keaton Wagler added 18.
The Cream and Crimson now sit at 17-9 overall and 8-7 in conference play with five regular-season games remaining — three at home and two on the road.
Both squads traded buckets for the first seven minutes. Then, Illinois went on a 10-0 run to take a nine-point lead. Indiana responded with junior guard Jasai Miles’ and Wilkerson’s back-to-back 3-pointers before the teams resumed the back-and-forth offensive nature.
Mirkovic’s 15 first-half points gave the Fighting Illini a seven-point lead at the break. Wilkerson paced the Hoosiers with 14 points on 6-for-9 shooting from the field.
Illinois junior center Tomislav Ivisic began the second half with five consecutive points. Wilkerson matched Ivisic with his own five points before Illinois went on an 11-0 run, taking an 18-point lead with 12 and a half minutes left in the contest.
The Hoosiers cut their deficit to 12 with six minutes remaining, but failed to get any closer to the hosts. The Fighting Illini’s 20-point victory marked their 21st of the season and keeps them second in the conference standings, while the Hoosiers sit in 10th.
Indiana has five days until its next contest, which is slated for 8 p.m. Friday against No. 13 Purdue inside Mackey Arena in West Lafayette. The second matchup between the in-state rivals will be broadcast on Fox.
Follow reporters Dalton James (@DaltonMJames and jamesdm@iu.edu) and Nathan Shriberg (@NShriberg and naashri@iu.edu) and columnist Kasey Watkins (@KaseyWatki8773 and kaslwatk@iu.edu) for updates throughout the Indiana men’s basketball season.
