After kicking off Big Ten play to a 1-0 start previously, No. 20 Illinois men’s basketball continued rolling as it knocked off No. 11 Florida Atlantic in the Jimmy V Classic at Madison Square Garden in New York City.
Head coach Brad Underwood utilized the same starting five that took the floor at the RAC previously, who were fifth-year guard Terrence Shannon Jr., sophomore guard Ty Rodgers, graduate student forward Marcus Domask, graduate student forward Quincy Guerrier and senior forward Coleman Hawkins.
It wasn’t a pretty start in Madison Square Garden. Despite a quick jumper from Guerrier and five quick points for the Owls, both teams fell into a combined four-minute scoring drought that junior guard Luke Goode put an end to at the 14:40 mark.
Shortly after the missed layups of the opening five minutes, Illinois and Florida Atlantic began to pick it up in the scoring department, going neck to neck on each possession. Despite falling into a five-point deficit following a lull in their play, the Illini managed to fight their way back in front thanks to a 9-0 run led by Hawkins, Shannon and graduate student guard Justin Harmon.
The Owls’ backcourt of Johnell Davis and Tre Carroll alongside big man Vladislav Goldin caused serious problems for the Illini in the first half to keep their team ahead during the final stretch of the first half. Still, Underwood’s squad continued to find success in driving to the rim, something Shannon took full advantage of.
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The Chicago native brought the Illinois fans to their feet after powering home a one-handed slam to cut the deficit to just two points. Despite efficient shooting from Harmon and Domask near the end of the period, however, Florida Atlantic headed into the break leading by a narrow 42-39 scoreline.
Coming out of the break was Domask to open the scoring for Illinois, beating the shot clock buzzer with a three-point make. Not long after, the Illini used their size and strength over the Owls to continue chopping away in the paint. An 8-0 run led by Domask saw Illinois back in front at 50-49 with 15:36 remaining in the contest. Shannon quickly extended the run to 14-0 after completing the and-one play and draining a triple during the Illini’s following possession.
Then a switch was flipped, as the Owls, who trailed by seven points, went on an 8-0 run of their own to regain the one-point lead at 57-56.
Red-hot Domask had other plans and sparked what became another 8-0 for Illinois to take the advantage back at 64-57 at the 12:32 mark. The graduate student quickly took over and could not miss, going head-to-head with Florida Atlantic on each possession.
The final five minutes of the game saw a nerve-wracking finish, with the Owls cutting the deficit to just four points before Domask responded with his 15th field goal make of the night.
It was a free throw contest to conclude the game as the Illini managed to close out the thriller by a 98-89 scoreline. In addition to Domask, Shannon also managed to hit a career-high 33 points in what was a spectacular night of basketball for Underwood’s program. The Domask-Shannon show led to an astounding scoring night that saw both players each record the most points scored by a player in the Jimmy V Classic since 2001.
With away victories against Rutgers and now No. 11 Florida Atlantic, Illinois will continue its road trip with a visit to No. 17 Tennessee on Saturday.
@james_kim15
