#18 Illinois Storms Back to Beat Ohio State

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. – No. 18 Illinois used a late 15-0 run to catapult past Ohio State, 87-79, at a sold-out State Farm Center on Sunday afternoon. 

Illinois trailed by as many as 11 points five minutes into the second half but outscored the Buckeyes 46-27 over the final 15 minutes to secure the win. Will Riley and Kylan Boswell combined for 13 points in the team's late 15-0 run in which the Illini held the Buckeyes scoreless for over five minutes coming out of the under-8 media timeout. 

Riley paced the Illinois scorers with 24 points on 7-of-9 shooting from the floor and 9-of-12 from the charity stripe. He hit his only 3-pointer of the game and grabbed three rebounds. 

Morez Johnson Jr. grabbed a game-high 15 rebounds with 14 points on 6-for-8 shooting for his third-career double-double. His 15 boards are tied with Kofi Cockburn's 15 rebound performance against Purdue (1/21/20) for the sixth-most in Illinois history for a freshman. 

Tomislav Ivisic returned to the lineup after missing the previous three games and scored 12 points, the 13th time this season he's surpassed double figures in scoring. He grabbed 10 boards for his team-leading eighth double-double of the season. 

Dra Gibbs-Lawhorn, making the first start of his collegiate career, added in 10 points, including a momentum-shifting steal and run-out dunk that brought the Illini to within 54-53 with just over 12 minutes to play. 

Boswell poured in 14 points on an efficient 5-for-8 from the field, while Kasparis Jakucionis dished out a game-high seven assists, his sixth game of the year with at least seven helpers, to go with eight points. 

Ohio State jumped out to an early 14-6 lead before a layup from Johnson sparked a 10-0 run, capped off by an Ivisic triple, for the Illini to give them their first lead of the afternoon, 16-14. 

A few minutes later Ohio State answered with a 10-0 run of their own to take a 29-23 lead into the final five minutes of the half. A Ben Humrichous trey, Johnson dunk, a pair of free throws from Jakucionis, and a Boswell 3-pointer in a 10-2 run pushed Illinois back in front, 35-34. Ohio State ended the half scoring seven points to take a 42-36 edge at the break. 

The Buckeyes came out of the half with some hot shooting to build up to their largest lead of the day at 11 points, 52-41. A Humrichous jumper started a 12-2 Illini run that included four points from Ivisic. Riley hit a mid-range jumper and Gibbs-Lawhorn added the final four points with a tip in, and his momentum-shifting dunk off of a steal.

Riley hit a step-back 3-pointer to knot the game up at 56 midway through the second-half. The first tie of the game since 2:24 left in the first half. With seven minutes remaining in the game, Riley hit two quick jumpers that sparked the game-changing 15-0 run. Boswell drove to the basket three times adding in nine points on three layups and three free throws. A Johnson layup completed the 15-0 run that spanned over 5 minutes. 

Illinois outscored the Buckeyes 51-37 in the second half to complete the come-from-behind win. 

No. 18 Illinois travels to Piscataway, N.J., to take on Rutgers on Wednesday night. The opening tipoff is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. CT in Jersey Mike's Arena.

HIGHLIGHTS

PRESS CONFERENCE

POSTGAME NOTES

Player Notes:

• Will Riley scored a team-high 24 points and added three assists.
  • Recorded his second 20-point game of the season, his first such performance since the season opener on Nov. 4 vs. Eastern Illinois (31 points).
    • Scored in double-figures for the 11th time this season (second straight). 
• Morez Johnson Jr. scored 14 points and grabbed 15 rebounds.
  • Recorded his third double-double of his career.
  • Became fourth Big Ten freshman this season to record 14+ points and 15+ rebounds in a game.
    • Derik Queen (Maryland) - Nov. 4, 2024 vs. Manhattan
    • Ace Bailey (Rutgers) - Dec. 10, 2024 vs. Penn State
    • Thomas Sorber (Georgetown) - Jan. 25, 2025 at Providence
    • Morez Johnson Jr. (Illinois) - Feb. 2, 2025 vs. Ohio State
  • Poured in double-digit points for the sixth time this season.
  • Recorded a career-high with 15 rebounds (seven offensive)
    • Broke the Illinois season-high set by Tomislav Ivisic vs. EIU (11/4).
    • Tied for second-most by a freshman this season in the Big Ten.
    • Tied for sixth-most by a freshman in Illinois history.
    • Secured double-digit rebounds for the fifth time this season.
      • Grabbed 10 boards in the first half, including five on the offensive glass.
• Kylan Boswell came off the bench to score 14 points and grab two rebounds.
  • Scored in double figures for the 15th time this season and for the sixth time in his last seven games.
• Tomislav Ivisic scored 12 points and secured 10 rebounds.
  • Returned to the lineup after missing the previous three games due to illness.
  • Recorded his eighth double-double of the season.
  • Scored in double-figures for the 13th time this season (third straight). . 
  • Has knocked down at least one 3-pointer in four-straight contests.
  • Posted his 10th double-digit rebounding game of the season.
• Kasparas Jakucionis scored eight points and added three rebounds and seven assists.
  • Dished out at least seven assists for the sixth time this season and for the third time in his last four games.
• Dra Gibbs-Lawhorn scored 10 points and recorded two rebounds and a steal.
  • Made the first start of his collegiate career.
  • Scored in double figures for the second-straight game, matching a season high, and did so eighth time during the campaign.

Team Notes:

• Starters: Kasparas Jakucionis, Dra Gibbs-Lawhorn, Tre White, Morez Johnson Jr., and Tomislav Ivisic
  • Fourth different starting lineup of the season for the Illini.
• Morez Johnson Jr. and Tomislav Ivisic became the second set of teammates this season to record double-doubles in the same game.
• Illinois outrebounded Ohio State 43-31.
  • The Illini have won the rebounding battle in 19 games this season.
  • Have posted a 10+ margin or better in 14 games this season.
  • The Orange and Blue converted 11 offensive rebounds into 18 second-chance points.
• The Illini bench outscored their Buckeye counterparts 43-4.
  • The 43 bench points mark the third-highest mark by the unit this season.
    • The four points allowed to the Ohio State bench is the second-lowest mark by an opposing bench unit this season.
• Illinois posted a 52-30 advantage in points in the paint.
  • The 52 points in the paint matches a season high, set on Jan. 5, 2025, at Washington.
• This win marks Illinois' sixth Quad 1 win of the season. 
• Sunday's attendance of 15,544 marked the Illini's eighth home sellout of the season at State Farm Center. 
  • Illinois is averaging 14,952 fans per game, 96 percent capacity