MADISON, Wis. – It was the Marcus Domask show at the Kohl Center on Saturday afternoon, as the Waupun, Wis., native marked his return to his home state with a 31-point performance in No. 13 Illinois' 91-83 victory over Wisconsin.
The victory marked the Fighting Illini's fourth consecutive road win over the Badgers, making the Orange and Blue the first Big Ten program to ever achieve that feat. The eight-point road win also secured a double-bye for the Fighting Illini in the 2024 Big Ten Tournament.
Over the final 5:44 of play, the Illini outscored the Badgers, 23-15, while the team's 91 points were their most against Wisconsin in 35 years.
Playing in the same arena in which he won a state title in high school, Domask finished his afternoon with a team-high 31 points, his third outing this season with 30+ points. Scoring in double figures for the 19th time in his last 20 games, Domask knocked down a season-high four 3-pointers, and he made six of his final seven field-goal attempts. He also amassed eight rebounds and three assists, both of which were team-best marks, and he made one block.
Terrence Shannon Jr. followed up his 29-point effort on Wednesday night with a 23-point showing against the Badgers. Shannon made three 3-pointers, all of which came in the first half, and he went 8-for-9 from the free-throw line. He also grabbed five boards, dished out two assists, and was credited with a team-high two steals.
Coleman Hawkins totaled 13 points, nine of which came in the second half, en route to his third straight double-digit scoring outing. Going 4-for-4 from the stripe, Hawkins hauled in seven rebounds, including two on the offensive glass, and he made two blocks, his eighth game with multiple swats. He also tacked on one assist.
Justin Harmon scored eight of his 10 points in the final 11 minutes of action, bringing him into double figures for the ninth time this season. Harmon was a perfect 4-for-4 from the free-throw line down the stretch, and he tallied two rebounds and one block.
Quincy Guerrier added seven points, and three of his four boards came on the offensive glass. Dain Dainja ended the afternoon with four points.
The Badgers scored the first points of the day, but the Illini did not trail for long. A 5-0 run, which began on Domask's 3-pointer, gave the visitors an early 5-2 edge. Wisconsin responded with a lengthy run of its own, though, jumping ahead by nine after piecing together a 12-0 scoring stretch of a three-minute span.
Domask ended Illinois' drought with a floater off the glass before Shannon accounted for the Orange and Blue's next six points, but the Badgers never saw their lead drop below five during that time. Domask and Shannon both connected from beyond the arc over the next two minutes, which fueled a 6-2 Illini run to cut Wisconsin's advantage to 22-19.
Holding the Badgers without a field goal for nearly five minutes of play, the Illini took advantage of their defensive stops by going on a 12-0 run of their own to take their first lead since the opening three minutes. Both Shannon and Domask moved into double figures during that span, while 10 of the team's 12 points came in the paint. A Rodgers layup following a behind-the-back no-look pass from Domask highlighted the scoring stretch, which saw Illinois take a 31-25 lead.
Domask's third trey of the day about two minutes later brought the Illini advantage up to seven points before Wisconsin used a 5-0 run to cut its deficit to two. Illinois responded with a 5-0 run of its own to retake a seven-point advantage, which included Shannon's third 3-pointer. The Badgers ultimately tallied the final five points of the frame, and the Illini took a 39-37 lead into the break.
Shannon and Domask combined for 27 of the Illini's 39 first-half points, taking advantage of sharp shooting from 3-point range to knock down six triples through the first 20 minutes. Illinois also capitalized on forced turnovers, scoring 14 points on seven first-half takeaways.
The Orange and Blue opened the second half on a 5-0 run, which saw Guerrier convert on his 3-point attempt, to bring the away side's advantage back up to seven points within the opening 60 seconds of the frame.
The Badgers clawed their way back, though, using an 8-1 scoring stretch to even the game at 47 with 14 minutes remaining in the contest. Wisconsin eventually took a two-point lead, but a 3-pointer from Hawkins, his first of the day, put Illinois quickly back in front, 50-49.
Three-and-a-half minutes and two lead changes later, the Illini turned a 59-59 scoreline into a seven-point edge. Shannon began that stretch with a running jumper before Domask made his fourth 3-pointer of the day to move above 20 points. Harmon's layup capped off Illinois' 7-0 run in the span of just 51 seconds to force the Badgers to take a timeout with 8:22 to play.
Wisconsin battled back to even the contest at 68 with just under six minutes remaining, but Illinois strung together a 4-0 run to go back in front, a lead the Illini never gave up. Domask continued his standout performance with a layup, while Shannon secured his second 20-point game in a row during that stretch.
The Badgers cut their deficit to three via a free throw, but the Illini built onto their advantage via free throws from Guerrier and a Domask layup. A fading jumper from Domask 34 seconds later and an and-1 layup from Shannon gave the Orange and Blue a 10-point edge, their largest lead of the afternoon. After the game was tied at 68 with 5:44 to play, the Illini's run totaled a 13-3 advantage for the visitors.
Domask scored the team's next four points, moving him above 30 points for the third time this season. Hawkins and Harmon went perfect from the stripe down the stretch, helping the Illini secure the road win.
No. 13 Illinois (22-7, 13-5 B1G) prepares for a rematch with No. 2 Purdue in the team's final home game of the season. The Illini will host the Boilermakers for Senior Day on Tuesday night at 6 p.m. CT at sold-out State Farm Center, while the game will be available for streaming on Peacock.
HIGHLIGHTS
PRESS CONFERENCE
POSTGAME NOTES
PLAYER NOTES
- Marcus Domask marked the return to his home state with 31 points, eight rebounds, and three assists, all of which were team-best marks.
- Domask's 31 points are the most by an Illini at Wisconsin since at least 2010-11, and the most by an Illini vs. UW overall since Kofi Cockburn scored 37 vs. the Badgers at State Farm Center on Feb. 2, 2022.
- His 31 points are the most by an opposing player against Wisconsin this season, and the most by a Big Ten player at Kohl Center since Purdue's Carson Edwards scored 36 on Jan. 11, 2019.
- Scored in double figures for the 22nd time this season and the 19th time in his last 20 games.
- Reached the 30-point mark for the third time this season.
- Scored 20+ in back-to-back games and the eighth time overall this season.
- Eclipsed 700 career rebounds in Saturday's game and is now one of only three active NCAA Division I players nationally with 2,000+ points and 700+ rebounds for his career.
- Knocked down a season-high four 3-pointers (4-6) after going 3-for-4 from beyond the arc in the first half.
- Recorded his first block in his last eight games since tallying two at Michigan State (2/10/24).
- Grabbed eight rebounds, his fourth-most this season and his second-best mark in a road game.
- Domask, a native of Waupun, Wis., led Waupun High School to a Wisconsin state championship at Kohl Center in 2016, earning MVP honors of the championship game as a freshman.
- Terrence Shannon Jr. finished with 23 points, his second straight game above the 20-point mark, along with five rebounds, two assists, and two steals.
- Reached the double-digit scoring mark for the 33rd game in a row.
- It marks Shannon's team-leading 14th game of the season with 20+ points.
- Finished with three makes from 3-point land, all of which came in the first half.
- Has 2+ steals in seven games this season, and now has 140 steals across his five-year collegiate career.
- Went 8-for-9 from the free-throw line, the most makes by a Badgers opponent this season.
- Coleman Hawkins tallied 13 points for his third straight game scoring in double figures, and he added seven rebounds and two blocks.
- Has 18 double-digit scoring efforts this season.
- Recorded two blocks, his eighth game this season with multiple rejections, and the second time he's done it in a road game this season (2 at Northwestern).
- Grabbed seven rebounds, including two on the offensive glass, his ninth game this season with multiple offensive boards.
- Justin Harmon poured in 10 points off the bench while going a perfect 4-for-4 from the stripe.
- Harmon has scored in double figures on nine occasions this season, including two of the Illini's last three games overall, and two of the team's last three road games.
- Went 4-for-4 from the free-throw line to secure the win, and is now 17-for-17 from the stripe over the last 10 games.
- Quincy Guerrier totaled seven points and four rebounds.
- Has made at least one 3-pointer in nine consecutive games and in 14 of his last 15 outings.
- Grabbed three of his four rebounds on the offensive glass, his second straight game and 11th overall this season with at least three offensive boards.
TEAM NOTES
- Illinois improves to 22-7 (13-5 B1G) to remain alone in second place in the Big Ten standings.
- Today's win secures a double-bye for the Fighting Illini in the 2024 Big Ten Tournament.
- The win marks Illinois' 1,900th all-time victory, as the Fighting Illini become the 13th NCAA Division I program in the 1,900-win club.
- llinois is the Big Ten's winningest team in conference play since the start of 2019-20 with an overall record of 68-30 (.694) in league games over the last five seasons.
- The Illini also have a Big Ten-leading 28 road wins (28-21, .571) in conference play over the last five seasons, which includes a 5-4 road mark this season.
- Illinois becomes first program to ever win four consecutive games at Kohl Center (2020, 2021, 2023, 2024).
- The Illini have won seven consecutive games against the Badgers, the longest streak since winning 16 straight from 1981-1989.
- Illinois' 91 points are the most allowed by Wisconsin in a Big Ten game since Purdue also scored 91 vs. the Badgers on March 6, 2016.
- Illinois scored more than 80 points for the ninth consecutive game, the program's longest streak since the 1988-89 Flyin' Illini did so 12 times.
- Illinois scored 91 points, the team's most against the Badgers since scoring 103 on Jan. 12, 1989.
- The team's 91 points are their most in Madison since March 11, 1967, when the Illini recorded 92.
- Illinois shot 56.3% from beyond the arc, its best 3-point percentage in a game this season.
- The Illini's 51.8% field-goal percentage (29-for-56) was the team's best mark in a true road game this season.
- Illinois' 24 makes from the free-throw line tied its second-best tally this season, with the team's top three marks all coming in road games.
