No. 11 Illinois (6-0, 1-0) maintained its perfect record against No. 28 Indiana (4-1, 0-1) to continue its dream start to the season. This 34-3 beatdown means the Illini have scored 20-plus points in every dual this season.
It matches their 2015-16 record, where they started 8-0, scoring 20-plus points in each dual. This was the fourth time the Illini scored 30-plus points this season. These statistics speak for themselves.
Illinois has been dominant this season, and the win in Indianapolis on Friday, Dec. 6, cemented its dominion, now on the Big Ten stage.
Illini outweigh Hoosiers
Indiana jumped off to an early 3-0 lead after a win in the opening weight class. Illinois 125-pound junior Caelan Riley has fallen to 0-5 this season. To suggest he is struggling would be an understatement — he has yet to make his mark. Indiana 125-pound graduate student Jacob Moran was undefeated entering this dual, and he would always be a big challenge for Riley.
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Barring the first clash, the Illini swept the Hoosiers. With two pins and one major decision, Indiana had no answer against Illinois’ heavyweights. 133-pound redshirt senior Lucas Byrd set things up for Illinois as he has consistently done throughout the season, building onto his undefeated season. 165-pound redshirt freshman Braeden Scoles and 285-pound redshirt senior Luke Luffman completed wins to maintain the “big three’s” undefeated start.
Mat fortress
The dual got interesting during the middleweight categories. Top-class defense was on display from both sides as the 157- and 165-pound weight class categories were won with mere 2-0 scores on the board. These were Illinois’ only second and third such wins this season where two points were enough to get across the line.
Luffman capped off Illinois’ incredible win with a pin in 5:52 minutes. The 34-3 scoreline in a fairly well-fought bout is representative of Illinois’ strength and resilience across the board.
Seven out of 10 rounds were won with a point difference of three or fewer points. The scoreline could have been much tighter, but a dominant win in this dual solidifies the 6-0 start and proves it wasn’t luck.
Big Ten, here they come
The Indiana matchup starts the final Big Ten run of the season for Illinois. The Illini will face seven more Big Ten teams before the championship competitions in March 2025. They will face three top-10 teams, and those outcomes will impact the Illini’s ranking for the championships in the spring.
Illinois’ best-ever start was in 2015-16. It just needs two more wins this season to match that record. It is safe to say the Land of Lincoln hasn’t had a wrestling group as strong as this one in a long time.
The record run continues on Friday, Jan. 10, 2025, as Ohio State (3-0, 0-0) visits Champaign for a marquee Big Ten matchup. The Buckeyes were their kryptonite in 2015-16, and it will be another fight for the Illini to continue this strong start.
@KikaniRudraksh
