Three games later, No. 16 Illinois men’s basketball is back from a successful road trip that saw a conference victory and a ranked victory. Just like their last home game, the Illini were tasked with facing their opponents without a student section. Nonetheless, the State Farm Center was packed with Champaign faithful for Illinois’ 74-57 victory over Colgate.
Since senior forward Coleman Hawkins returned from injury against Rutgers, the starting lineup has been unchanged. Fifth-year guard Terrence Shannon Jr., graduate student guard Marcus Domask, sophomore guard Ty Rodgers and graduate student forward Quincy Guerrier completed Illinois’ first five.
Colgate came down with the tipoff, but committed a turnover that freed up Shannon for a stepback three that put Illinois in front. A full shot clock of defense and a pair of free throws pushed the lead to five, before Rodgers found Guerrier for an emphatic dunk.
Rodgers and Hawkins followed that up with some action of their own, Rodgers assisting on a layup and three pointer that pushed the lead to 12-0.
The Raiders finally got on the board with 16:21 remaining, stringing together five straight points overall. Shannon kept the run in check with a basket of his own and Domask provided further insurance via a layup banked off the glass.
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Another miniature run allowed Colgate to cut Illinois’ lead to seven but Rodgers, Shannon and Hawkins quickly responded with eight straight points and took a commanding 31-16 lead. Both squads mostly traded buckets until halftime but Shannon continued to impress all the while.
A chasedown block in the final minute of play was the cherry on top of a 14-point, one rebound and three block half for Shannon. Led by his efforts, Illinois held a 44-27 lead entering the break.
Illinois was a bit slow to start the second half and didn’t get a single basket within the first four minutes. Thankfully, the other side was having just as much trouble scoring and by the time Guerrier sank a three to end the field goal drought, Illinois’ lead had grown to 51-29.
The score remained at that mark for just over three and a half minutes, progressively making the game much more scrappy than the scoreboard suggested. Colgate eventually broke the seal and even added another basket on the very next possession.
A media timeout allowed the Illini to regroup and Hawkins eventually scored their first points in almost six minutes of play. Another basket from Hawkins and a three from Guerrier further signaled that Illinois had gotten out of its drought. It couldn’t have come at a better time either, as consistent scoring from Colgate had cut the lead to 17 points even after the quick seven-point flurry from Illinois.
Colgate continued to score at will, eventually causing an audible ripple of uneasiness to propagate through the arena when the lead was cut to 12 points. Rodgers and Domask found answers on a couple of occasions where the Raiders came even closer, but the Illini were ultimately fighting at a huge advantage.
By the final whistle, Illinois had kept the firing Colgate offense at bay for a 74-57 win. Hawkins thrusted himself to the top of the scoring charts with 16 points but Guerrier (15), Domask (15) and Shannon (14) were not far behind.
@blountco21
