Illinois’ seniors did all they could in their final game at Assembly Hall, but it wasn’t enough.

Karisma Penn and Adrienne GodBold scored 24 and 14 points, respectively, but the Illinois women’s basketball team fell to Ohio State 64-53.

Penn and GodBold weren’t able to get much help from their teammates, as they accounted for 38 of Illinois’ 53 points, with only three other teammates scoring. Sophomore Ivory Crawford and junior Amber Moore were two main non-contributors; Crawford committed four turnovers and fouled out with just six points, while Moore recorded four fouls and five turnovers, adding just three points.

“We need someone else to step up,” Illinois head coach Matt Bollant said. “Some other people need to take some shots besides these two.”

Mental mistakes plagued the Illini all night, as Illinois finished with 21 turnovers and 23 fouls.

“Those aren’t very good numbers,” Bollant said. “The first half we had 13 turnovers. We’ve been pretty good in the first half taking care of the ball. With the foul count, we just weren’t very smart. We put their best foul shooter on the line too many times.”

The player Bollant spoke of was Tayler Hill, who went 12-for-14 on free throws, finishing with 21 points after scoring just three in the first half. Hill averages 21 points per game and has played especially well against the Illini, scoring 30 points in Illinois’ 79-73 victory Jan. 6.

Illinois struggled to make shots, converting on 29.5 percent (18-for-61) from the field and just 13.3 percent from 3.

“It wasn’t our night tonight,” Bollant said. “We shoot the ball best when we’re aggressive and when we have great energy, and we didn’t do that in the first half and that carried over.”

Illinois’ defense struggled as well, allowing the Buckeyes to shoot 47.8 percent.

The Illini also struggled to contain Ohio State forward, Ashley Adams, in its full-court defense. She found herself wide open under the basket on numerous occasions, finishing with 17 points and anchoring the post with 10 rebounds.

Illinois trailed 31-26 at the half, largely due to mental mistakes that led to 13 turnovers and 11 fouls.

Ohio State started the second half on a 5-0 run, extending its lead to 10 points. The Buckeyes kept adding to its advantage, extending it to as much as 16 points, 55-39, with 7:35 remaining.

Penn led the Illini with 11 points and six rebounds at the half, while GodBold had eight points. None of the underclassmen had more than one basket.

Ohio State’s Amber Stokes was injured during the first game against the Illini and missed five games. 

The Buckeyes went 1-4 while Stokes was out, but have been hot recently, going 5-2 in its last seven games.

Many of the 2,537 fans stuck around for Illinois’ postgame ceremony honoring Penn, GodBold and Kersten Magrum. The trio was honored on the court with their parents and were given framed jerseys.

Magrum, a redshirt junior, was medically disqualified from playing after suffering her fourth concussion this year. Her last game was Jan. 6 against Ohio State, and she will graduate in May.

Illinois (16-11 overall, 9-6 Big Ten) is now in a four-way tie for third. The Illini still have a chance to earn a first-round bye but no longer control their own destiny. They can earn a bye with a win at Purdue on Sunday and a Michigan or Michigan State loss.

Bollant still feels confident about his team’s NCAA tournament chances.

“We’re deserving already to be in,” Bollant said. “We’re tied for third in the second-best conference in the country.”

Johnathan can be reached at [email protected] and @jhett93.

Editor’s note: In a previous version of this article, the breakout box stated that the women’s basketball team could secure an NCAA Tournament first-round bye with a win, but in fact it would be for the Big Ten Tournament. The Daily Illini regrets this error.