Dosunmu, Cockburn lead No. 18 Illinois past Penn State
STATECOLLEGE» Illinois coach Brad Underwood isn’t going to change his mind or his tune all season, especially if Ayo Dosunmu keeps playing like this.
Dosunmu scored 21 of his 30 points in the second half to lead the No. 18 Fighting Illini past Penn State 98-81 on Wednesday night.
“He’s the best guard in the country,” Underwood said. “He scores it in a lot of ways. When we get Ayo locked in at the defensive end, he might be as good as I’ve coached.”
The Illini (6-3, 2-1 Big Ten) didn’t need nearly as much from Dosunmu on the defensive end after withstanding an early push from Penn State. Kofi Cockburn scored 23 points and Andre Curbelo had 15 points and eight assists.
It was also their second straight win at the Bryce Jordan Center, where Penn State (3-3, 0-2) opened up a 19-4 lead over the first five minutes.
Myreon Jones scored 11 points during the Nittany Lions’ opening run and finished with 21. Izaiah Brockington also scored 21 points, Sam Sessoms had 12 and Myles Dread added 10 for Penn State.
“Frustrating is a good word,” Penn State coach Jim Ferry said. “They have two stars and they both had big nights, and that can’t happen.”
(13) CREIGHTON 66, (22) XAVIER 61» Antwann Jones and Denzel Mahoney scored
13 points each to lead Creighton (7-2, 3-1 Big East) over Xavier (8-1, 1-1), handling the Musketeers their first loss.
(23) OHIO STATE 80, (11) RUTGERS 68 » Duane Washington Jr. scored 22 points and Ohio State (7-1, 1-1 Big Ten) rallied from a 16-point second-half deficit to beat Rutgers (6-1, 2-1).