Fun-filled road romp for Illinois
From pregame warmup drills though the pickup-game vibe of the second half, Illinois’ players kept filling Minnesota’s mostly empty arena with chants and cheers.
There’s a fun and relentless energy around the Fighting Illini, making an already talented team even tougher to beat.
Ayo Dosunmu had 19 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists for his second triple-double of the season, Kofi Cockburn scored 22 points in 24 minutes and No. 5 Illinois cruised past Minnesota 94-63 on Saturday for its seventh consecutive victory.
“I always tell my teammates, ‘Enjoy this moment,’ ” Dosunmu said. “Don’t let COVID or not being able to see your family affect it, because this is memories that’s going to last for a lifetime.”
Trent Frazier added 15 points and six steals to help the Illini (16-5, 12-3 Big Ten) stay in second place in the bruising conference with two weeks to go in league play. The Illini had a 31-8 edge in fast-break points, shot 56% from the floor and forced 18 turnovers, as Frazier stifled Gophers star Marcus Carr.
“You’ve got to have guys who are enjoying doing what they’re doing and enjoying doing it with each other,” Illinois coach Brad Underwood said.
Freshman Jamal Mashburn Jr. led Minnesota (13-10, 6-10) with 16 points and six rebounds, with his father, former NBA player Jamal Mashburn, watching in person for the first time in his college career.
DePaul 88, St. John’s 83
Charlie Moore had a season-high 24 points as the Blue Demons took a tight victory on the road over the Red Storm.
Darious Hall had 11 points and seven rebounds for DePaul (4-10, 2-10 Big East), which ended its five-game skid. Ray Salnave had 11 points and Oscar Lopez Jr. 10.
Julian Champagnie had 29 points and seven rebounds for the Red Storm (14-9, 8-8). Isaih Moore had 16 points and Dylan AddaeWusu 13.
Green Bay 60, UIC 59
Amari Davis had 20 points as the visiting Phoenix (8-16, 8-12 Horizon) eked out a victory over the Flames (9-12, 6-10).
Maurice Commander had 12 points and six assists for UIC. Teyvion Kirk added 11 points and six rebounds. Braelen Bridges had 10 points.
Emmanuel Ansong had 19 points and 10 rebounds for Green Bay, which snapped its five-game road skid. PJ Pipes had 18 points and Japannah Kellogg III four blocks.
Syracuse 75, Notre Dame 67
Buddy Boeheim scored a careerhigh 29 points with six threes, and the host Orange (13-6, 7-5 ACC) rallied from a 20-point second-half deficit to beat the Fighting Irish (9-11, 6-8).
Notre Dame built a 19-point lead late in the first half before going into the break ahead 46-32 after shooting 54.5%, including 7-for-14 from the arc. But in the second half, the Irish fell to 32%, made just 5 of 17 three-point tries and committed eight of their 10 turnovers.
Duke 66, Virginia 65
Freshman Jaemyn Brakefield scored the go-ahead basket on a reverse layup with 1:58 left, and the host Blue Devils (10-8, 8-6 ACC) came up with a final-possession stop and upset the No. 7 Cavaliers (15-5, 11-3). Matthew Hurt scored 22 points to lead the Blue Devils, who claimed a third consecutive win to improve their chances of making the NCAA Tournament.
Michigan State 78, Indiana 71
Aaron Henry scored 16 of his
career-high-tying 27 points in the second half, and the Spartans (11-9, 5-9 Big Ten) rallied to beat the host Hoosiers (12-10, 7-8). Trayce Jackson-Davis finished with a careerhigh 34 points for Indiana.
Purdue 75, Nebraska 58
Jaden Ivey scored 15 points and Sasha Stefanovic 14 and the Boilermakers (15-8, 10-6 Big Ten) pulled away from the host Cornhuskers (5-15, 1-12) with a 19-4 run that ended with about six minutes left.