Continuing their success over their border rivals to the east, the No. 8 Fighting Illini downed the No. 20 Indiana Hoosiers, 25-6. Taking eight of ten matches, Illinois (11-1-0, 4-1-0) defeated Indiana (14-5-1, 1-3-1) for the 12th consecutive time, including eight straight at Huff Hall.

“We’ve been wrestling really well, and they’ve been competing as up to their potential as they possibly can,” head coach Mark Johnson said. “It was important for us to not look past this team and not overlook these guys before Ohio State.”

Jimmy Kennedy gave the Illini an early 4-3 lead two matches into the meet, posting a 15-5 major decision over Indiana’s Matt Ortega. Kennedy notched six takedowns during the match, with all of Ortega’s points coming from escapes.

Kennedy’s major decision was the only match on the night that provided bonus points for either team, a stark contrast from last week’s meet against Wisconsin in which Illinois picked up bonus points in all five of its wins.

“It was kind of what I was expecting, to go out and dominate,” Kennedy said. “My coaches have wanted me to push my body to put myself in positions that normally I’m not in, and I was able to do that tonight to notch the major.”

Senior heavyweight John Wise capped of the night with an 8-4 decision over Indiana’s Nate Everhart. Illinois outscored Indiana 70-40 to pick up its fourth straight conference win.

The Illini will be off until Sunday, when the team travels to Columbus to take on No. 6 Ohio State.