The Illinois Fighting Illini held off a ferocious UCLA Bruin rally in the final minutes, prevailing with an 80-76 win in Champaign on Tuesday night. The win snapped UCLA’s seven-game winning streak.
Leading 76-60 with under five minutes to go, it looked as if Illinois was going to comfortably run away victorious. However, Mick Cronin and the Bruins had other plans. UCLA proceeded to score 13 unanswered points to get within one possession, but a few timely press breaks kept the Ilini from witnessing a disastrous finish.
Take a look at three key takeaways following the win as Illinois improves to 17-8 (9-6) on the season.
Impressive defensive effort…for 35 minutes
The Fighting Illini set the tone early, jumping to a 19-8 lead. Illinois’ defense, which has shown cracks amidst its inconsistent January, allowed just eight UCLA points in the first 11 minutes and made life difficult for the Bruins in the halfcourt in the first half.
For most of the second half, Illinois defense was solid. But it took a turn for the worst inside the final five minutes of regulation, allowing 18 points as UCLA’s Tyler Bilodeau remained scorching hot from deep.
Because of the problematic finish that transpired, Illinois has not held opponents under a point-per-possession since its win over Indiana. Even if its defense remains a strong point -- the Illini rank inside the top 30 in KenPom adjusted deficiency -- its alarmingly evident it's not what it once was in their November form, posing a critical question: can they defend for a full 40 minutes similar to what we saw early in the season?
European freshman duo propels Illini
The beauty of 2024-25 Illinois basketball is that they can beat you in many ways offensively. One night can be the Will Riley show. The other can be the Morez Johnon Jr. show. Tonight, it was the European freshman duo show that propelled the Illini to victory.
Kasparas Jakucionis finished with a team-high 24 points, eight rebounds and four assists. Tomislav Ivisic – who connected on four of six three-pointers – finished with 16 points, seven boards, and three assists, including a crucial tip-out off a missed Illinois free throw to seal the game in regulation.
The grueling stretch continues
If you thought snapping UCLA’s seven-game win streak was more than enough for your liking, you might want to look away for what’s ahead for Brad Underwood’s group. Illinois will host 11th-ranked Michigan State on Saturday followed by a road trip to the 16th-ranked Wisconsin Badgers next Tuesday before facing off against 3rd-ranked Duke in a rare February non-conference matchup inside the Madison Square Garden. Oh, and the Illini close the regular season with Michigan and Purdue.
Given just how difficult their upcoming stretch is, a win over a talented UCLA team tonight was imperative for the Illini as they search for more consistency as March rapidly approaches. While the end of the game leaves much to be desired, overwhelming a physically stubborn and tenacious UCLA Bruin squad for 36 minutes is no easy task whatsoever.