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Illini win 74-69 as Wisconsin's Trice-led rally falls short

Posted February 27, 2021 6:00 am

By STEVE MEGARGEE

Illinois's Andre Curbelo drives past Wisconsin's D'Mitrik Trice during the first half of an NCAA college basketball game Saturday, Feb. 27, 2021, in Madison, Wis. (AP Photo/Morry Gash) The Associated Press

MADISON, Wis. (AP) - Illinois held on without Ayo Dosunmu.

Not even an amazing outburst from Wisconsin's D'Mitrik Trice could stop the Illini from completing the school's first regular-season sweep of the Badgers since 2005.

Kofi Cockburn scored 19 points and No. 5 Illinois topped No. 23 Wisconsin 74-69 on Saturday.

Dosunmu missed a second straight game after breaking his nose Tuesday in an 81-72 loss at Michigan State. Dosunmu recorded a triple-double Feb. 6 in a 75-60 victory over Wisconsin.

'œI could not be prouder of this group of guys and their toughness and ability to step up,'ť Illinois coach Brad Underwood said. 'œGrit was a big part of it today.'ť

Illinois (18-6, 15-4 Big Ten) has won its last three meetings with Wisconsin (16-9, 10-8) since a 15-game losing streak in the series.

Trice and Wisconsin pushed Illinois right to the very end.

After Wisconsin trailed by 13 points with less than three minutes left, Trice nearly brought the Badgers all the way back by scoring 19 points in the final 2:12. Trice's sixth 3-pointer cut Illinois' lead to 70-69 with 6.7 seconds left.

'œI honestly don't even know what was going through my mind,'ť Trice said. 'œI just knew that we needed to hit some shots and make some buckets and make some plays down the stretch to be able to come back and be in the position we were in.'ť

Illinois' Trent Frazier sank two free throws with 5.7 seconds remaining to make it 72-69. Illinois then fouled Trevor Anderson before Wisconsin could attempt a tying 3-pointer, and an exchange of words near the Wisconsin bench resulted in offsetting technical fouls.

'œOne of their players came into the (Wisconsin) huddle, which was not supposed to happen,'ť Wisconsin coach Greg Gard said. 'œThe officials took care of that and I thought handled it the right way.'ť

Anderson missed his first free throw. Wisconsin still could have attempted a desperation 3-pointer if Anderson missed his second attempt and the Badgers got the offensive rebound. But the rebound went to Illinois' Jacob Grandison, who hit a pair of free throws to cap the scoring.

Trice finished with 29 points. Micah Potter had 15 points for Wisconsin.

Andre Curbelo scored 17 points and Da'Monte Williams had 12 for Illinois, which committed a season-high 20 turnovers.

Illinois never trailed, capitalizing on Wisconsin's shooting woes. Wisconsin was shooting 17 of 62 (27.4%) before making its last seven attempts of the game.

Illinois led by as many as 14 in the second half before Trice got Wisconsin back into the game and nearly put the Badgers over the top. Illinois survived by making its final five field-goal attempts and going 10 of 10 from the free-throw line over the last 44 seconds.

'œYou just got to make sure you do your job at your end,'ť Underwood said. 'œAnd we did with our last five field goals and our last 10 free throws '“ and a lot of prayer.'ť

BIG PICTURE

Illinois: Playing its third game in five days, Illinois was in command from the start, but Dosunmu's absence was notable down the stretch. The road doesn't get any easier for the Illini, who close the season with road games against No. 3 Michigan and No. 4 Ohio State.

Wisconsin: The Badgers are shooting poorly, particularly against quality teams. Wisconsin remains in good shape to make the NCAA Tournament, but it's hard to imagine the Badgers staying there for long unless their shooting improves.

UNUSUAL HOME FINALE

It was an unusual atmosphere for Wisconsin's home finale. The Badgers tried to honor their seven seniors while observing pandemic protocols. As each senior was introduced and received a framed jersey in a pregame ceremony, parents cheered from several rows up the stands in an otherwise empty Kohl Center.

POLL IMPLICATIONS

Even after winning its last two games, Illinois still may drop a couple spots because of its loss to Michigan State. Wisconsin is in danger of falling out of the Top 25 for the first time this season.

UP NEXT

Illinois: At No. 3 Michigan on Tuesday.

Wisconsin: At Purdue on Tuesday.

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Follow Steve Megargee at https://twitter.com/stevemegargee

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More AP college basketball: https://apnews.com/hub/college-basketball and https://twitter.com/AP_Top25

Wisconsin's Tyler Wahl blocks the shot of Illinois's Giorgi Bezhanishvili during the first half of an NCAA college basketball game Saturday, Feb. 27, 2021, in Madison, Wis. (AP Photo/Morry Gash) The Associated Press

Illinois's Coleman Hawkins fouls Wisconsin's Micah Potter during the first half of an NCAA college basketball game Saturday, Feb. 27, 2021, in Madison, Wis. (AP Photo/Morry Gash) The Associated Press

Illinois's Trent Frazier shoots past Wisconsin's Micah Potter during the first half of an NCAA college basketball game Saturday, Feb. 27, 2021, in Madison, Wis. (AP Photo/Morry Gash) The Associated Press

Wisconsin's Jonathan Davis and Illinois's Kofi Cockburn go after a loose ball during the first half of an NCAA college basketball game Saturday, Feb. 27, 2021, in Madison, Wis. (AP Photo/Morry Gash) The Associated Press

Illinois head coach Brad Underwood argues a call during the first half of an NCAA college basketball game against the Wisconsin Saturday, Feb. 27, 2021, in Madison, Wis. (AP Photo/Morry Gash) The Associated Press

Wisconsin head coach Greg Gard reacts during the first half of an NCAA college basketball game against the Illinois Saturday, Feb. 27, 2021, in Madison, Wis. (AP Photo/Morry Gash) The Associated Press

Illinois's Andre Curbelo drives past Wisconsin's Nate Reuvers during the first half of an NCAA college basketball game Saturday, Feb. 27, 2021, in Madison, Wis. (AP Photo/Morry Gash) The Associated Press

The Illinois bench reacts after a basket during the second half of an NCAA college basketball game against the Wisconsin Saturday, Feb. 27, 2021, in Madison, Wis. (AP Photo/Morry Gash) The Associated Press

Illinois's Da'Monte Williams (20) and Giorgi Bezhanishvili (15) go after a loose ball with Wisconsin's Nate Reuvers during the second half of an NCAA college basketball game Saturday, Feb. 27, 2021, in Madison, Wis. (AP Photo/Morry Gash) The Associated Press

Illinois's Jacob Grandison tries to get past Wisconsin's Tyler Wahl during the second half of an NCAA college basketball game Saturday, Feb. 27, 2021, in Madison, Wis. (AP Photo/Morry Gash) The Associated Press

Illinois's Kofi Cockburn gets tied up by Wisconsin's Tyler Wahl and Aleem Ford during the second half of an NCAA college basketball game Saturday, Feb. 27, 2021, in Madison, Wis. (AP Photo/Morry Gash) The Associated Press

Wisconsin's Micah Potter shoots past Illinois's Giorgi Bezhanishvili during the second half of an NCAA college basketball game Saturday, Feb. 27, 2021, in Madison, Wis. (AP Photo/Morry Gash) The Associated Press

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