MADISON, Wis. (AP) – Illinois coach Brad Underwood said he likes the no-fear attitude that sophomore guard Ayo Dosunmu has cultivated this season.
Dosunmu's effort was critical on Wednesday when the Illini needed a clutch basket most.
Dosunmu scored a team-high 18 points -- including a 3-pointer with 46 seconds left -- to rally Illinois to a 71-70 Big Ten Conference victory over Wisconsin.
"He's got what you don't coach," Underwood said of Dosunmu, who scored the final five points for Illinois and finished 7-of-15 shooting.
"He's not afraid, he's fearless and he's very, very poised. It takes a certain type of guy to want the ball in those situations and not fear the miss," he said.
The victory not only gave the Illini (11-5, 3-2) their first league road win of the season, it also snapped a 15-game winning streak against the Badgers that dated to 2011.
Freshman 7-footer Kofi Cockburn scored 15 points and reserve guard Alan Griffin added 12, including 3-of-4 shooting from 3-point range.
Griffin, who played limited minutes due to foul trouble said Dosunmu's late-game confidence sparked his Illini teammates. Dosunmu also had six assists.
"He was really locked in," Griffin said. "Everyone was locked in trying to win, even though we were down at one point. It was nice to see `Ayo' get that shot."
Kobe King scored a game-high 21 points for Wisconsin (9-6, 2-2), which had its four-game winning streak snapped.
King drained a 3 with 22 seconds left to pull Wisconsin to 71-70, but when the Badgers got the ball back after a missed free throw by Illinois forward Giorgi Bezhanishvili, D'Mitrik Trice missed a go-ahead bucket with three seconds left.
The teams traded the lead 10 times in the first half, until Potter and King collaborated during a 9-1 Wisconsin run -- capped by a King 3-pointer -- that extended the Badgers' lead to 28-21 with 3:57 before halftime.
King, who was 8-of-11 shooting, delivered eight of the Badgers' first nine points to open the second half.
Illinois pulled within 54-52 with 9:50 left on a dunk by Cockburn, who picked up his fourth foul 17 seconds later.
The Badgers maintained a slim lead late in the second half, but didn't score a basket for nearly two minutes. The Illini tied the game at 63 on back-to-back 3s by Griffin with 3:22 left.
Griffin played a limited 18 minutes due to picking up three of four fouls in the second half. He said no matter how many minutes he's on the floor, contributions are important.
"If you're ready, you're going to make those tough shots," Griffin said. "My confidence has grown from last year. I can see myself in those positions this year."
Micah Potter scored 13 points with nine rebounds and two blocks for Wisconsin. Potter, an Ohio State transfer playing in his fourth game since his eligibility began in late December, made all eight of his foul shots.
Wisconsin coach Greg Gard said the Badgers' performance on defense faltered in the second half.
"The offense wasn't the problem, it was the other end of the floor," Gard said.
"We allowed them to be very comfortable (shooting), specifically in the second half. That's been very uncharacteristic for us throughout the year."
The victory marked the first against Wisconsin during Underwood's five-year tenure, but the head coach said that he was more concerned with attaining a Big Ten road win.
"It's the best conference in the country and to get a road win, that's what means the most for this group," Underwood said.
UP NEXT
Illinois returns home for a matchup with Rutgers on Saturday at State Farm Center (11 am CT on BTN). Tickets are available for Saturday's contest.
ILLINOIS GAME NOTES
• Illinois leads the all-time series against Wisconsin 111-89.
• Illinois snapped a 15-game losing streak against Wisconsin, the longest ever by an Illinois opponent.
• Illinois snapped an 8-game losing streak at Kohl Center, which spanned 10 years (Last win: 63-56 at No. 11 Wisconsin 2/9/2010).
• Illinois will be the only school to sweep Wisconsin during the regular season in football and men's basketball in 2019-20.
• Illinois' 71 points were its most against Wisconsin in the last 29 matchups spanning nearly 15 years (W, 75-65 at Wisconsin 1/25/2005).
• Illinois won a 1-point game in Madison for the first time since 1/7/1984 (63-62 OT). Illinois has three 1-point wins in Madison during its 98 visits dating back to 1907 (also 34-33, 1/16/1928).
• Illinois is above .500 in Big Ten play for the first time since March 6, 2015 (9-8).
• Illinois' 71 points were the second-most by an opponent against Wisconsin this season. Rutgers beat the Badgers, 72-65, 12/11/2019.
• Illinois' 49.1% shooting was the best against Wisconsin this season.
• Illinois is just the third Big Ten team to shoot 49%+ overall and 43%+ from three at Kohl Center in the last five years (Michigan 2/11/2018, Ohio State 12/2/2017).
• Illinois out-shot Wisconsin, 49.1%-43.4%. The Illini are 11-1 this season, and 31-3 in the Underwood era, when shooting better than the opponent.
• Wisconsin led for 31:36 of the game, but Illinois led for the final 1:25.
