In Illinois, Brad Underwood is rapidly remaking history. The Fighting Illini have lost their opening round NCAA Tournament match in each of the previous three seasons. But after defeating Iowa State 72-69 on Thursday night in the Sweet 16, Illinois is vying to make its first Final Four berth in 19 years.
The Illini defeated the Cyclones behind 29 points from Terrence Shannon Jr., 12 rebounds and six assists from Coleman Hawkins at the end of the game, and 7 points, six rebounds, and five assists from Marcus Domask. From a team that hasn’t advanced to the NCAA Tournament’s second round since 2005, this was not a bad showing.
“I’m thrilled and quite proud. We came here to win two games, not just one,” Underwood remarked. “It’s special to make it to the Elite Eight. We’ll take on UConn on Saturday, starting at around three in the morning when we return. It’s going to be a fantastic test.”
On Thursday night, UConn defeated San Diego State, the No. 5 seed, with a fantastic score of 82-52. Stephon Castle led the Huskies, who outscored the Aztecs 42-21 in the second half. Castle finished with 16 points and 11 rebounds. Cam Spencer finished with a team-high eighteen points, while Tristen Newton chipped in with seventeen.
UConn has won its first three tournament games by an average margin of victory of 28.7 points per game. In the second round, the Huskies defeated No. 9 Northwestern 75-58 and No. 16 Stetson 91-59.
The challenge is manageable for the Illini, though. To them, it presents an opportunity.
“I wouldn’t say it’s necessarily intimidating, but I have more of a respect for them,” Hawkins stated. “I believe there is more respect for it. They’ve played really well, in my opinion, the entire year. They seem to be well-coached, and they accomplish what they do.
“A lot of respect to them for everything they’ve done,” added Domask. “We’ve played a lot of collegiate hoops, and I’ve faced a lot of teams that—if you want to put it that way—should beat us. They need to do the same for us, but we’ll figure out how to guard them and score on them. Really, it’s just another game.”
Illinois comes into the game as one of the hottest teams in college basketball, even though UConn has been the most incredible team for the majority of the season. The Fighting Illini have emerged victorious from ten of their last 11 games, including eight of their nine games in March. A push for the Big Ten Tournament title is part of that.
Thus, Illinois will be confident and confident going into their matchup with UConn on Saturday. Luke Goode, Domask, and Hawkins all conveyed enthusiasm and optimism about their chances of making it to the Final Four for the first time in almost 20 years.
“It’s the confidence in our teammates and their ‘why not us?’ mindset,” Goode stated. “We worked extremely hard during the off-season, beginning in Spain. We spent the summer rehearsing. You should prepare for this, just like we did.
“Having the chance to play the nation’s top squad in the Elite Eight is incredibly exciting. Nothing greater could be desired.”
Wisconsin and Purdue advance in the women’s NIT
On Thursday night, two Big Ten women’s basketball teams were competing in the NIT. After victories on their home courts, Purdue and Wisconsin advanced to the tournament’s Elite Eight stage.
With 15 points to lead the Boilermakers to beat Duquesne 71–50, Abbey Ellis led the way. Mary Ashley Stevenson, who finished the game with 13 points and nine rebounds, also made a significant contribution for Purdue. After coming off the bench, Sophie Swanson and Jayla Smith scored 14 and 15, respectively, for the squad.
In the victory, Jeanae Terry had a great floor game. Despite not scoring any points at the end of the game, she pulled down 11 rebounds and provided four assists.
Wisconsin easily defeated Illinois State, 86-61, to move on to the next round of the tournament. In the win, four of the starting Badgers finished the game with double figures.
The Badgers received 13 points, eight rebounds, and six assists from Ronnie Porter in addition to 18 points apiece from Serah Williams and Sania Copeland. D’Yanis Jimenez contributed 10 points off the bench, and Natalie Leuzinger added 12 points.
In the Women’s NIT, Minnesota is still in the running and will play North Dakota State on Thursday night (8 p.m. ET) in its third-round match.
In the NCAA Tournament, two Big Ten women’s teams are still in contention. No. 1 seed Iowa faces No. 5 seed Colorado on Saturday (3:30 p.m. ET, ABC), while No. 4 seed Indiana plays No. 1 seed South Carolina on Friday (5 p.m. ET, ESPN).
