Aggressive, tight defense has been the identity of Illinois basketball throughout the season, but consistent shooting from all areas of the court at Northwestern Thursday night helped guide the Illini to a 74-66 win. Illinois (19-9, 11-6) clinched its first winning conference season since 2010.

Sophomore guard Alan Griffin had a career night in Evanston scoring a career-high 24 points and six three-pointers. Griffin was incredibly efficient on both ends of the floor; he shot 81.8% from the field, grabbed seven rebounds, had two assists and never turned the ball over during his 21 minutes of play.

Griffin’s 14 second-half points took the spotlight, sophomore Ayo Dosunmu and freshman Kofi Cockburn dominated the first half. Dosunmu scored 13 points on 67% shooting through the first 20 minutes and Cockburn added 10 points on 83% shooting.

Cockburn added just two more points in the second half but recorded his 12th double-double this season with 14 rebounds.

Dosunmu, however, did not slow down through the last 20 minutes, scoring another nine points to total 21 on the night. Dosunmu has now scored 20 points or more in seven games this season and is averaging 21 points since missing the Rutgers game due to injury.

Northwestern’s offense shined as well, with four players scoring in double figures. Graduate student guard Pat Spencer led the Wildcats for the seventh time this season with 18 points. Freshman guard Boo Buie, who added 11 points, and Spencer challenged the Illini’s inside defense as they helped the Wildcats score 32 points in the paint, compared to the Illini’s 28.

Despite the disadvantage in points down low, the Illini controlled the lane, outrebounding the Wildcats 42-29.

Northwestern (6-21, 1-16) only led for two and a half minutes but kept within striking distance of Illinois for parts of both halves. The Illini held the 34-26 lead at halftime as they shot 50% from the field in the first half.

The Wildcats went on a 7-0 run a few minutes into the second half to cut the deficit to five points, but Griffin’s hot hand brought the Illini’s lead to double digits with nine minutes to play. Northwestern continued to push Illinois through the final minutes, but a pair of free throws by senior guard Andrès Feliz and a putback by Cockburn sealed the Illinois win.

Illinois’ third-straight win puts them in a four-way tie for second place in the Big Ten with Penn State, Michigan State and Wisconsin. The Illini will play their third game in six days on Sunday afternoon when they host Indiana. The Hoosiers will head into Champaign with a below-.500 Big Ten record after a loss at Purdue on Thursday night.

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