Illinois Dominates In 87-57 Win Over EIU

Coleman Hawkins registered the second double-double of his career, notching a career-high 23 points and a tying a career-best mark in rebounds with 12.

Terrence Shannon Jr. tied a career-best with 24 points, to lead all scorers, and recorded 14 second-half points in the Fighting Illini victory. Dain Dainja recorded his first-career double-double, coming off the bench to score 17 points and grab 10 rebounds on 8/9 shooting.

The Illinois defense made nine blocks, grabbed 10 steals, and forced 18 turnovers, while Eastern Illinois shot 35% from the field and 20% from behind the 3-point lin.

The Illini outscored the visiting Panthers, 41-26, in the second half while shooting 48.4% during the last 20 minutes of play.

Illinois also dominated in the paint, outrebounding Eastern Illinois, 53-30, and winning the offensive rebound battle, 20-10. The Illini also recorded 21 second-chance points while allowing four.

"1-0. It's always a good thing to be that. I thought we played really, really hard tonight. I thought our effort was very, very good," said head coach Brad Underwood. "It's game one. There's a lot of mistakes. It's never real pretty. We'll take the outcome, and wish (Eastern Illinois head coach Marty Simmons) and that group a great year. I like their team a lot, and we'll get ready for UMKC on Friday."

Illinois' first lineup of the regular season mirrored the one the team used in its lone exhibition, featuring three fresh faces – Shannon, Skyy Clark, and Matthew Mayer – and two returners, Hawkins and RJ Melendez.

Illinois jumped out to an 11-6 lead six minutes into the first half, with all five starters scoring.

Neither team went on a run longer than 5-0 in the opening half, but the Illini put together four such offensive stretches to eventually take as large as a 15-point lead in the first 20 minutes.

Hawkins led all scorers in the opening frame, scoring 18 points on 6-for-8 shooting, while his five three-pointers in the first half marked a career-high for the junior.

Illinois headed into the break with a 46-31 advantage, using a strong defensive half to take a double-digit lead into halftime. The Illini notched six blocks and five steals in the first 20 minutes of the contest.

After scoring 10 points in the first half, Shannon sparked a 12-1 Illinois run that spanned nearly four minutes. The senior guard scored 10 of the Illini's first 21 points of the second half, opening up a 67-42 advantage nine minutes into the final frame.

Illinois then extended its lead to 32 following a 9-0 scoring run over three minutes, holding Eastern Illinois without a field goal for over five minutes.

The Illini lead climbed as high as 35 points in the second half, while 12 different players picked up minutes in the final 20 minutes.

Illinois returns to State Farm Center on Friday night, when it takes on Kansas City at 8 p.m. CT.