After dropping its last four games, No. 8 seed Illinois (22-9) took down No. 9 seed Creighton (26-7), 66-57. It’s the programʼs first NCAA Tournament win since 2000.
It was truly a team effort for the Illini, who had four players in double figures. Illinois stayed in control almost the entire way. It took the lead early in the first quarter and held on to it the rest of the way. Good defense and offense led to a big win over a good Creighton team.
Fresh in the fourth
Coming into the game, Illinois had lost four straight. A huge part of that streak was its fourth-quarter effort. The Illini’s lack of depth led to long games for most of the starters. No matter how good they looked throughout the game, they would get increasingly tired as the fourth continued.
Illinois suffered because of it, looking lackluster on offense. It gave up back-to-back comebacks to Michigan (23-10) and Nebraska (21-12). Against Creighton, however, Illinois didn’t let its short rotation overcome them. It made play after play to stay in front, including a huge one from freshman forward Berry Wallace.
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With under two minutes to play, Illinois was up by four, and fifth-year guard Genesis Bryant was at the charity stripe. Uncharacteristically, she missed both. Wallace was ready, however, and got the rebound and putback to put the Illini back up six.
It was exactly what Illinois needed. The defense locked down and the offense kept the ball safe. After so many fourth quarter breakdowns, the Illini stayed strong to break their four-game skid and advance to the second round.
Battle beyond the arc
Illinois is the best team in the Big Ten defending the three-point shot. Creighton is one of the best three-point shooting teams in the country. Both teams landed blows but Illinois came away victorious in the long-range contest.
Despite good ball movement and some good looks, the Bluejays couldn’t get much going from beyond the arc. They shot just 6-22, lower than their average three-pointers made.
Senior guard Lauren Jensen, who averages over 37% from three-point range, didn’t make a single shot. It wasn’t from a lack of trying. Jensen put up six but couldn’t get any to fall. The Illini defense did well to keep her from getting clean looks, playing tight defense whenever she had the ball outside the three-point line.
All around defense
Keeping Creighton cold from beyond the arc was huge in Illinois’s win. The Bluejays don’t play through the paint very much, relying more on the three-point and mid-range shots. The Illini didn’t just stop them from making threes; they also stopped them from getting any field goal easily.
The defense was solid, never letting anyone find an easy shot. Senior guard Adalia McKenzie was her usual self on defense. She rarely let a player get around her and stuck to her assignment like glue. Multiple times throughout the game, she forced a bad shot from a Bluejay after forcing them to pick up their dribble.
Fifth-year forward Kendall Bostic locked down the paint for the Illini. The Bluejays don’t take many shots in the paint and the ones they did weren’t easy. Bostic stayed strong and vertical, blocking two shots against Creighton.
Player notes
Bryant started the game hot. She hit a pull-up three-pointer for the first points of the game. Shortly after, she went around her defender and scored while drawing a foul. However, she slowed down after the first quarter, only making one field goal the rest of the game.
She still finished the game with 17 points, coming up clutch at the end of the game. She went 6-6 from the free throw line inside the last minute of the game.
Wallace didn’t look like she was playing in her first NCAA Tournament game. The freshman scored 11 points, including a big layup in the fourth. She was physical on offense, especially under the rim. Wallace got the ball under the basket between two defenders early in the third quarter. She dribbled once or twice and went straight up, through both defenders, for a tough bucket.
Bostic was her usual dominant self. She notched another double-double, this one coming with 12 points and a season-high 17 rebounds. Her rebounding changed the game for Illinois. Creighton didn’t have anyone much bigger than Bostic and she took advantage.
While she didn’t shine on the stat sheet, senior forward Brynn Shoup-Hill played a huge part in the win. Her defense was good, especially around the paint. Her offense was big too. She made back-to-back corner threes in the third quarter after the Illini lead dropped to two points.
McKenzie was solid on offense as well as defense. She drove to the rim frequently. Her 14 points were the second most on Illinois. She did have a team-high three turnovers, but she made up for it with a late steal that led to a big layup.
Record-breaking night
Illinois won its first NCAA Tournament game since the 1999-2000 season when they beat No. 11 seed Utah. Since then, the Illini have only returned to the tournament twice. After working past injuries all season, Illinois’s hard work pays off to break the 25-year dry spell.
That wasn’t the only record broken on Saturday night. Bostic grabbed her 54th career double-double, which makes her the all-time leader at Illinois. She overtakes former Illini Jenna Smith, who also held the rebounding record before Bostic broke it earlier this year.
Next in line
Illinois has advanced to the Round of 32. It will play No. 1 seed Texas (31-3) on Monday at a time to be announced later. A win against the Longhorns will be tough for the shorthanded Illini.
@ben_some16
