Illinois Overcomes 16-Point Deficit For Win Over Northwestern

The Illini trailed by as many as 18 in the contest, and outscored the Wildcats 47-25 in the second half in front of an electric, sold-out home crowd. Illinois held Northwestern to just one 3-pointer in the final 20 minutes, while the Illini got hot from deep, knocking down seven triples after halftime.

Terrence Shannon Jr. was electric in the second half, scoring 24 of his team-high 26 points after the break. Shannon went 7-for-8 from the field and knocked down all four of his 3-point attempts in the second half. 

Matthew Mayer registered all 14 of his points in the second half, making all eight of his free-throw attempts in the final frame. Mayer hit two 3-pointers, his fourth straight outing with at least two triples, and he grabbed eight rebounds and made a team-high two blocks.

Coleman Hawkins finished with six points, but his effort on the defensive end changed the game. Hawkins notched a team-high three steals and made the game-saving block in the final seconds to secure the victory.

The Illini freshmen played big minutes down the stretch. Sencire Harris tallied six points, including the game-tying layup with three minutes to play, while Ty Rodgers recorded six points and grabbed eight rebounds, including two on the offensive glass. 

RJ Melendez scored five points and grabbed six rebounds, and he made a 3-pointer for the third time in the last four games.

The Illini went into halftime trailing by double digits, but they started heating up to open the second half. Illinois came out of the break with an 17-3 run that included nine points from Shannon and six points from Mayer to cut the game to single digits with 15 minutes to play.

After falling behind by double digits, the Illini used an 14-2 run – including 3-pointers from Melendez, Shannon, and Mayer – to cut their deficit to four points with seven minutes left in the second half.

Three minutes later, with Northwestern ahead by seven, Shannon knocked down his fourth triple of the night, grabbed a steal on the next possession, and made a layup on the other end to cut the Illinois deficit to two points with under four minutes to play.

Those five points were the first in a 9-0 Illini run, as the hosts took their first lead of the game on a Harris layup and two Mayer free throws.

With Illinois ahead by two and Northwestern in possession with 18 seconds left on the clock, Hawkins recorded a block with two seconds to play to thwart a potential game-tying shot. Shannon's two free throws in the final seconds secured the Illini victory and complete the second-half comeback.

Illinois (19-9, 10-7) will travel to Columbus this weekend to take on Ohio State (11-17, 3-14) on Sunday at 11 a.m. CT in its next game.