CHAMPAIGN, Ill. – No. 9 Illinois rang in the new year with an emphatic victory over in-state foe Northwestern, taking down the Wildcats, 96-66, at State Farm Center on Tuesday night. Four Illini scorers finished in double figures as the Orange and Blue opened their Big Ten home slate with a dominant 30-point win.
Shooting a season-best 55.6% from 3-point range and leading from start to finish, the Illini capitalized on their 10 takeaways with 13 points off those turnovers. The Orange and Blue registered an assist on 17 points of its 35 field goals while going 62.5% from the field, and the team's 96 points are their most in a conference game since Dec. 23, 2020.
Marcus Domask recorded a team-high 32 points, his fourth consecutive game in double figures. After tallying 15 points in the first half, Domask shot 80% from the field in the second half en route to his second 30-point performance of the season. He also amassed a team-high six assists, five rebounds, and one block.
Justin Harmon set a new season-high with 20 points, including 16 points in the second half. Harmon went perfect from behind the 3-point line in the final frame, knocking down all four of his triple attempts after the break. The first man in off the bench, Harmon finished his night with two boards, two assists, and a block while hitting four treys in his second straight showing.
Quincy Guerrier secured his fourth double-double of the season, and his second in as many games, with 14 points and a team-high 10 rebounds. Guerrier dominated the boards in his 16 minutes in the second half, grabbing two offensive rebounds and seven total rebounds to reach the double-double mark.
Coleman Hawkins set the tone with a 3-pointer to open the game, and he carried that momentum into the rest of the game. Hawkins accumulated 13 points, his fifth consecutive game in double figures, five rebounds, a team-high two blocks, and one steal.
Ty Rodgers totaled six points, three rebounds, and four assists while also playing lockdown defense from start to finish.
Luke Goode, making his second straight start, notched all six of his points in the first half while grabbing five rebounds and a steal.
The Fighting Illini opened the contest with points on their first four trips down the court, ultimately going into the first media timeout with a 16-10 advantage. All five starters registered a basket within the first five minutes of the game, including five points from Hawkins, who began the night with a deep triple before converting an and-1 layup prior to the break.
With the hosts' edge climbing into double digits, Illinois brought the home crowd to its feet after a Hawkins block led to a fast break, which saw Dain Dainja and Harmon combine for a crafty sequence that saw the latter make an easy layup on a perfect feed from the Illini center.
After the Wildcats cut their deficit to seven points, the Illini used an 11-0 run, which included Domask hitting double figures for the fourth consecutive outing, to force a Northwestern timeout.
Leading by as many as 18, Illinois went into the break with a 46-29 advantage, led by a strong defensive showing and a game-high 15 points from Domask in the first half. Seven Illini student-athletes registered points through the opening 20 minutes of action, while the Orange and Blue combined to shoot 60% from the field.
Illinois picked up right where it left off to begin the second half. The Illini took advantage of a 6-0 run, which was book-ended by tough Domask finishes, to extend its lead to 54-31 and force a Wildcat timeout with 17 minutes left in the final frame.
After Harmon knocked down his second 3-pointer of the half, Hawkins tallied a triple and an emphatic dunk to jump-start an 11-0 Illini run that saw the hosts' lead grow to 33 points with just under 10 minutes to play.
A Guerrier trey as the shot clock expired pushed the Illinois edge back to 30 points before a Domask layup brought him to 30 points for the second time this season. Domask then found Hawkins for an alley-oop to bring the Illini advantage to 90-61 with three minutes remaining in the contest.
Closing the night with Harmon's fourth 3-pointer and leading by as many as 33, the Illini moved to 2-0 in conference play following the team's fourth consecutive triumph.
No. 9 Illinois (11-2, 2-0) does not need to travel far for its next Big Ten showdown, heading east to take on No. 1 Purdue (13-1, 2-1 B1G) in West Lafayette, Ind., on Friday at 7:30 p.m. CT. The game will air nationally on FS1.
Highlights
Press Conference
Postgame Notes
Player Notes
- Marcus Domask scored 32 points on 11-of-15 shooting, his second 30-point game of the season and his first in Big Ten play, plus added six assists and five rebounds.
- Domask is one of four Big Ten players to have multiple 30-point efforts this season, joining Purdue's Zach Edey, Michigan's Dug McDaniel, and teammate Terrence Shannon Jr.
- Domask's 32 points were one away from his career high set against FAU at Madison Square Garden earlier this season.
- Domask is the first Illini to post a 30/5/5 game since Ayo Dosunmu at Penn State 12/23/2020.
- Quincy Guerrier scored 14 points and grabbed 10 rebounds, his second straight double-double and his fourth double-double of the season.
- Justin Harmon tallied a season-high point total for the second straight game, pouring in 20 vs. Northwestern after an 18-point effort Friday vs. FDU.
- Harmon also tied his season-high with four 3-pointers (on five attempts), after going 4-for-7 from distance vs. FDU.
- Coleman Hawkins added 13 points, his fifth straight game in double-figures.
- It marks the longest streak of consecutive double-digit scoring games of Hawkin's career.
Team Notes
- Illinois is 11-2 overall and 2-0 in the Big Ten. The Illini have won four straight.
- Illinois leads the all-time series against Northwestern, 144-43. The series dates back to the 1907-08 season.
- The Illini are 74-14 vs. the Wildcats in Champaign, including nine straight wins.
- Illinois has won 10 of the last 11 meetings against Northwestern.
- Illinois is 8-1 on the season at State Farm Center and have won six straight since a single-digit setback to No. 4 Marquette in mid-November.
- Illinois is ranked No. 9 by the AP Top 25, the Illini's first game in the top 10 this season.
- Illinois scored 96+ points in a regulation Big Ten game for the first time since a 98-81 win at Penn State 12/23/2020.
- Illinois shot 62.5% (35/56) from the field, the Illini's second-best shooting performance in a Big Ten game in the last 10 years. Illinois' only better shooting game in the last decade was an 85-69 win over Michigan at State Farm Center 1/11/2017 when the Illini shot 64.2% (34/53).
- After scoring on their first possession and jumping out to a 7-0 lead, the Illini never trailed.
- Illinois shot 55.5% (10-18) from three-point range, the Illini's best three-point shooting game of the season.
- Illinois beat Northwestern by 30 for the first time since a 70-37 victory 1/27/2008.
Quotes
Head coach Brad Underwood
Opening statement:
"It's so rare this league. Northwestern is really good. It's a little misleading when you make shots, and tonight we made shots. We had good looks, but we made shots. I thought that Ty actually got us going early. Unfortunately, he picked up a couple of quick ones.
"Obviously, Marcus was huge. We had every idea when their doubles were coming. Marcus is really hard to bother in a double team, both he and Ty because they're big and strong. I thought Coleman Hawkins was elite on the defensive side. I thought Quincy had some very well-timed cuts against what their rotations were.
"We went 10-of-18 from three, and we shot 62%. I'll be excited to really start watching the guts of the game and try to take the main shots out of it. Great game for Justin. He's being rewarded for his hard work, and that's tremendous to see.
"I thought that, defensively, we did a good job forcing. They shot 50% from three, but a bunch of those were late. I thought we did a good job on Boo: no assists, four turnovers. He's gonna be in actions, so he's gonna score some points. I just thought we did what we needed to do on that side tonight."
On the connectedness of the team:
"I pay attention to literally everything that involves our players: who hangs out, how they hang out, are there little cliques, are there little this or that. You start doing that right away. It is been just remarkable how this group, as a whole, hangs out.
You have Quincy coming in from Oregon, and Justin coming in from Utah. Well, they played against each other, so there's a little bit of a relationship there. Luke's so funny, and Coleman's so funny. They're personable. It's just been an easy fix. It hasn't been anybody getting worried about anything. They just all fit in.
"Marcus works so hard, is funny, and he's got a great sense of humor. I can't explain it, but they all care about each other."
On the team's ball movement and assist numbers:
"We're making the right reads and getting unselfish play. It's turning down a good one to get a great one. You not only have to be a good shooter, but you have to be a really good passer. You have to have some instincts and feel. Our turnovers are down. 10 turnovers in a game where we scored 96. You're gonna have a few, but we're a very unselfish, connected group."
On Hawkins' defense and what he brings on that end of the floor:
"He gives everything that you don't have to coach. What I mean by that is he is instinctive, he's smart, he's coming over in timeouts, he's talking to me constantly. The play might not have had him in it, but he just understands everything about that side of the floor.
"He's got length, and then he's got the mobility to guard a lot of guys. They get him on a switch there with Boo in the first half, and he was pretty good with that. He does everything we don't coach, he knows our stuff really well, and he knows the scouting report really well."
Marcus Domask
On what led to the team's offensive efficiency:
"Ball movement and trusting each other that if you give it up, you're still gonna get it back. We just trust each other with ball movement, and guys are hitting their shots. Justin's finding a rhythm. Quincy's finding a rhythm. Coleman, Luke: The list goes on and on. When guys hit shots, the floor just opens up."
On what it feels like to be a part of such a tight-knit, connected team:
"It's just fun. We enjoy being around each other. It's not like we see each other in practice, and that's when we see each other. We hang out with each other. We have fun with each other. We joke around. The locker room is fun. I think that just carries onto the court. You see the joy that we play with. We love making plays for each other. It's just contagious; it spreads."
Justin Harmon
On what the team has shown and proven over the last two games:
"We're a real connected team. We're locked in every day in practice. When we're not in practice, we're always locked in. We're just a real connected team and just love having fun with each other, and we all have the same goal: to win."
On adapting to a new role and his recent offensive and defensive successes:
"It's been fun. I really love my new role. It's about playing as hard as I can on the defensive end and just taking what the game gives me on the offensive end. I'm not really looking to score. I'm really looking to be unselfish, help my teammates, make them better, and just win. I want to do whatever I can do to win."
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