CHAMPAIGN, Ill. (AP) – Ayo Dosunmu scored 18 points and Kofi Cockburn added 11 and grabbed 17 rebounds and Illinois held off Rutgers 54-51 at home on Saturday.
Dosunmu stepped up big in the final two minutes for Illinois (12-5, 4-2 Big Ten Conference). He scored four points (all at the free-throw line) to seal a defensive battle that saw Rutgers (12-4, 3-2) grab the lead early in the game.
Jacob Young led Rutgers with 16 points. Ron Harper Jr. added nine for the Scarlet Knights.
Illinois went on two 6-0 runs in the second half to close the gap against a fierce Rutgers defense. Both teams played exceedingly well defensively.
Rutgers was 20 of 59 (34%) from the field to Illinois' 18 of 63 (29%).
Cockburn, a 7-foot freshman, hit his seventh double-double of the season for the Illini,
Both teams shot poorly in the first half. Rutgers was 9 of 27 from the field (33%) while Illinois shot a paltry 6 of 31 (19%). Rutgers led 21-18 at the break. Cockburn had five points and 10 rebounds in the first half.
BIG PICTURE
Rutgers played the brand of defense it's known for this season, but couldn't contain Dosunmu down the stretch,
Illinois, on the heels on a huge road win against Wisconsin on Wednesday, stepped up again against a tough conference foe. The Illini slipped into second place in the Big Ten, trailing only No 8 Michigan State, which sits at 13-3 and 5-0 in conference play. The Spartans play Purdue on the road Sunday.
UP NEXT
Illinois has the week off before hosting Northwestern at State Farm Center next Saturday, Jan. 18, at 4 pm CT. Tickets are available for the Illini-Wildcats matchup.
ILLINOIS GAME NOTES
• Illinois (12-5, 4-2) is in sole possession of second place in the Big Ten, behind only Michigan State (13-3, 5-0).
• Illinois is holding Big Ten opponents to 59.2 points per game, 37.0% shooting (132/357), and 26.2% three-point shooting (33/126) this season.
• Illinois' 28.6% shooting was its worst in a win since at least 1979-80. It was the worst shooting percentage in a win by a Big Ten team in at least 10 years. It was the fourth-worst shooting percentage in a win by a Division I team in 2019-20.
• Illinois is 10-1 at State Farm Center this season.
• Illinois has equaled last season's win total (12).Last season Illinois was 12-21. This season Illinois is 12-5.
• Illinois is two games over .500 (4-2) in the Big Ten for the first time since Feb. 14, 2015 (7-5).
• Kofi Cockburn had 11 points and 17 rebounds, breaking his own Illini single-game rebounding record by a freshman. Cockburn's seventh double-double broke Efrem Winter's Illinois freshman record of six set in 1982-83.
• Ayo Dosunmu scored 18 points and had seven rebounds, increasing his season averages to 15.5 points per game and 4.3 rebounds per game.
