Frazier leads strong 2nd half as Illini pull away
BLOOMINGTON, IND. — No. 18 Illinois needed someone other than Kofi Cockburn to produce Saturday.
Trent Frazier delivered with a nearly flawless second half.
The senior guard made all three of his shots inside the arc, went 2 of 3 from 3-point range and hit both free throws to finish with 23 points while leading the Illini to a 74-57 victory at Indiana.
“That’s why I came to this school, to play in these types of environments with the emotion and the energy,” Frazier said after Illinois produced its largest margin of victory in the 50-year history of Indiana’s Assembly Hall. “It’s always fun to play these types of games, especially (in) a victory.”
Frazier also returned this season to win a Big Ten championship, and after winning their fourth straight — and second straight on the Hoosiers home court — the Illini (17-5, 10-2) lead the conference.
Cockburn played a solid game, finishing with 17 points and eight rebounds, falling two rebounds short of his 41st career double-double to remain one short Skip Thoren’s program record that has stood since 1965.
Race Thompson had 13 points and Xavier Johnson 12 for Indiana (16-6, 7-5). Preseason All-American Trayce Jackson-Davis missed the final 15 ½ minutes of the first half because of foul trouble and finished with six points.
Frazier and Jacob Grandison finally gave Illinois the upper hand in the last 10 minutes.
Grandison started a decisive 16-3 run with back-to-back 3s, the second giving Illinois a 48-45 lead — its first since less than three minutes into the game. Cockburn and Frazier combined to score the remaining points in the stretch, capped by a Frazier 3 to put Illinois ahead 58-49 with 7:45 to play.
“I thought the game turned when Jacob made those two 3s. We never really recovered from it,” Hoosiers coach Mike Woodson said. “They put a solid 40-minute ballgame together and we put a 20-minute ballgame together.”
Illinois spent the rest of the game pulling away and Indiana lost its second home game of the season without making another serious challenge.
“How spectacular was he?” coach Brad Underwood said of Frazier. “We made six 3s, Jake’s two early ones were huge. Trent got downhill, got a few layups and broke the game open with a few stops.”
Big picture
Illinois: Underwood’s team played its way back into the conference lead behind an incredibly stout defense and Cockburn’s strong inside play. Frazier’s strong finish helped offset a mediocre day for Cockburn. The combination could lead Illinois to a conference title.
Indiana: The Hoosiers have rebuilt their defense-first philosophy under new coach Mike Woodson — and it has worked wonders. But on Saturday, they wore down against a bigger, stronger opponent.