For the first time since 2008, Illinois went to Purdue and came out victorious, 79-62. Illinois overcame the adversity of sophomore Alan Griffin being ejected in the first half for stepping on Purdue’s Sasha Stefanovic and sophomore Giorgi Bezhanishvili picking up two early fouls. Illinois junior Trent Frazier, sophomore Ayo Dosunmu and freshman Kofi Cockburn all finished with at least 18 points to carry the Illini to victory over, arguably, the toughest team to play in the Big Ten.

Trent Frazier: A+

Northwestern coach Chris Collins said he was worried when Frazier came out and hit his first three deep on Saturday against his Wildcats. Frazier came out and buried his first three deep balls versus Purdue Tuesday night. His six-game streak of not having a turnover ended in the first half, but his defensive play was especially impressive outside of the arc. In the second half, his hot hand turned to fire nailing two more deep balls before the 13-minute mark. 

Ayo Dosunmu: A+

The sophomore had continued his impressive passing in the first half racking up five-assist as he continued to spread the ball around the court setting up his teammates. In the second half, Dosunmu dished out his 10th assist, a career-high. Dosunmu still needs to improve his outside jumper to become more diverse on the offensive end, but his midrange jump shot has really improved since the start of the season.

Da’Monte Williams: B

Williams has been held scoreless in the last six Big Ten contests, and he was held scoreless again in the first half against the Boilermakers on Tuesday night. Williams is still solid on the defensive end, but being more of an offensive threat would really open things up for the Illini in the offensive scheme Brad Underwood has designed for his team.

Giorgi Bezanizvili: B+

Giorgi Bezhanvili struggled to get into a rhythm on the offensive end because of his early foul trouble, but in the second half, he did a nice job of taking shots within the offense. The sophomore hit a reverse layup under the basket and hit a wide-open three on the wing. He was big down the stretch and showed lots of leadership when Illinois needed him the most.

Kofi Cockburn: A+

Cockburn filled the stat sheet in the first five minutes scoring four points and snagging three rebounds. Cockburn continued his assertiveness on the glass throughout the first half grabbing nine rebounds, four on the offensive glass, before the intermission. The freshman is becoming a spark plug for this team, and he slammed home an alley-oop dunk early in the second half. 

Kipper Nichols: B

Nichols saw increased minutes due to Alan Griffin being ejected before the 12-minute mark. He moved well without the ball on the offensive end in his first bucket of the game and drew an offensive foul as he finished.

Alan Griffin: F

He stepped on Sasha Stefanovic at the 12:18 mark and was ejected.

Andres Feliz: C

Feliz didn’t provide much on the offensive end, but he was solid defensively and didn’t give Purdue anything easy on the defensive end. Illinois needs him to get back to his aggressive ways and drive to the basket, which is something that coaching needs to get creative with so he can do it all again.

Tevian Jones: N/A

Jones went into the game for one minute, picking up a foul.

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