Field Level Media
Feb 20, 2021
Ayo Dosunmu recorded his second career triple-double, collecting 19 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists, to lead No. 5 Illinois to a 94-63 rout of Minnesota in a Big Ten contest in Minneapolis on Saturday.
Kofi Cockburn scored 22 points and Trent Frazier had 15 points and six steals for Illinois (16-5, 12-3 Big Ten), which won its seventh straight game.
Illinois shot 56.1 percent from the field (37 of 66) and outrebounded the Golden Gophers 37-27.
Jamal Mashburn scored 16 points and Marcus Carr and Brandon Johnson each scored 12 points in defeat for Minnesota (13-10, 6-10), which has lost three in a row and six of its last eight.
It was only the second loss in 15 home games this season for the Golden Gophers, who shot 40.7 percent from the field.
Leading 34-29 with 3:57 remaining in the first half, Illinois went on a 14-4 run to take a 48-33 lead at halftime.
The most backbreaking of those points for Minnesota came when Frazier stole an inbounds with over a second left, and then heaved a half-court shot that went in just before the buzzer sounded.
Illinois continued to extend its lead after halftime, opening the second half with an 8-0 run over the first 1:37 of the half to take a 56-33 lead.
It didn't get much better for Minnesota, as Illinois then took a 75-46 lead with 11:33 remaining after an alley-oop dunk from Dosunmu to Giorgi Bezhanishvili and a tip-in by Bezhanishvili.
Illinois ended up stretching its lead to as many as 36 points at 88-52 with seven minutes left.
Minnesota got off to a decent start, taking a 16-11 lead with 13:13 left in the first half, but Illinois started to assert itself from there, going on an 8-0 run to take a 19-16 lead.
The Fighting Illini then went up 30-23 with 8:04 to go in the first half after a 3-pointer by Frazier.
--Field Level Media