Richardson helps Illinois hold off Lipscomb 79-64
CHAMPAIGN — D.J. Richardson scored 17 points, and Illinois used a 14-0 second-half run to put away Lipscomb 79-64 Thursday in the second round of the Cancun Challenge.
Illinois (3-0) survived the first half mostly without its 7-foot-1-inch big man, Meyers Leonard. The sophomore sat after picking up his second foul less than two minutes into the game and didn’t return until the second half.
Richardson’s jumper kept the Illini just ahead of the Bisons (1-2) through a sloppy first half and kept finding the basket as his teammates found their touch after halftime. Richardson was 7 of 12 on the night, including 3 of 5 from the 3-point line.
Three other Illini scored in double figures — Sam Maniscalco had 15, Brandon Paul had 12 and Joseph Bertrand added 11 to go with a team-high eight rebounds.
Jacob Arnett led the Bisons with 17. Robert Boyd had 16.
The Illini had little inside threat without Leonard. They had just eight points inside over the first 20 minutes and had only a slight edge on the boards, 22-19.
Lipscomb stayed in the game as a result. With 10:45 left in the first half, the Illini led 12-6, but Lipscomb coach Scott Sanderson reminded his team during a timeout that they were in a game that, on paper, maybe they shouldn’t have been.
“They’ve scored 12 points on us,” he told his team, repeating it for emphasis.
Down 19-14 with 6:55 left in the first half, Damarius Smith hit a breakaway layup of an Illinois turnover, drew a foul by Richardson and sank the free throw to cut Illinois’ lead to two at 19-17.
Just over a minute later, Zavion Williams’ jumper wobbled around the rim before rolling in, tying the game at 19 and setting off groans from a sparse crowd.
The Illini moved back ahead on a jumper by Richardson, then bought themselves a little breathing room at 25-21 on a dunk by Tyler Griffey that stood out. Griffey, who is Illinois’ most experienced big man with Leonard on the bench, only had two other first-half points.
With Leonard back on the court early in the second half, Lipscomb saw its biggest threat head to the bench for 2 ½ critical minutes with a left ankle injury.
Boyd had a team-high 11 points when he hobbled to the bench with 18:05 left in the game, and sat biting a towel, grimacing as a member of the Bisons staff worked on his ankle.
Meanwhile, the Illini opened up a nine-point lead. Leonard’s tip-in and a breakaway layup by Mansicalco on back-to-back possessions made it 42-33 with 16:03 to play.
Just over three minutes later, back-to-back baskets by Paul and Nnanna Egwu stretched the lead to 17 at 50-33, part of the 14-0 run that all but finished the Bisons. With Leonard back, Illinois outrebounded Lipscomb 21-14 in the second half.
Both teams struggled to handle the ball; Illinois turned it over 21 times and Lipscomb 18.
Illinois will face Richmond on Tuesday in Cancun, Mexico. Lipscomb will travel to Illinois State on Saturday.