||| NO. 25 INDIANA 96, ILLINOIS 80 Beginning is end for Illinois
Illini fall behind 13- 0, offer little opposition vs. inspired Indiana
Associated Press
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. — Indiana calmed its fans by sending them into a frenzy.
James Blackmon Jr. scored 25 points, Thomas Bryant added 20 and the No. 25 Hoosiers snapped a three- game losing streak with a 96- 80 victory Saturday against Illinois at Assembly Hall.
The result was reassuring in many ways, not only for Indiana ( 11- 5, 1- 2 Big Ten) but for its fans. What was a blowout for most of the game served as a reminder that the Hoosiers are still capable of playing like the team that defeated thenNo. 3 Kansas and then- No. 3 North Carolina early in the season.
Indiana was energized, hungry and focused from the start. The Illini ( 11- 5, 1- 2) didn’t score in the first six minutes, and the Hoosiers raced to a 13- 0 lead. Illinois turned the ball over seven times in the first half, leading to 15 points for Indiana.
‘‘ The biggest thing this week was not just to regain health and energy but just absolutely to stay locked in on getting better and not get distracted from anything other than how much improvement can be made,’’ Hoosiers coach Tom Crean said. ‘‘ And I thought we did that.
‘‘ The most important thing was to not get away from what mattered most, and I’m proud of the way a young group of guys [ focused].’’
Indiana led by as many as 22 points. The Illini got as close as 10 with less than five minutes left, but the Hoosiers pulled away again to secure the victory.
Jalen Coleman- Lands and Malcolm Hill each scored 21 points for Illinois, and Maverick Morgan added 18.
‘‘ As I told the guys in the locker room, we’ll have to make some changes,’’ Illini coach John Groce said. ‘‘ I didn’t like our start, but I loved our response to cut [ into the lead].
‘‘ At the end of the day, I think the difference was certainly the start of the game.’’
Indiana’s performance followed a different approach in practice in the last week. Players focused on individual drills and exercises before full- team drills and scrimmages, Blackmon said.
‘‘ We’re really buying in to the scouting report,’’ he said. ‘‘ The coaches do a great job of giving us what we need, then it’s up to us to execute.
‘‘ We’re happy about our effort and how we came out from the beginning. That’s one thing we have to keep working on. We just have to maintain and build on this game.’’