State rivals: illinois takes down northwestern
CHAMPAIGN, IL - Northwestern traveled south to the great town of Champaign IL, where they looked to yet again upset No. 17 Illinois. Illinois being one of the top teams in the country over the past few years, has seemed to struggle over the crosstown rivalry between Northwestern and Illinois. Earlier this year we saw Northwestern take down Illinois in shocking fashion. The Illini were cruising and then everything halted when they were taken down. That wasn’t it for Illinois though, they knew down the line they face off again later down in the season.
Let’s take it down to a sold-out State Farm Center this past Sunday afternoon. The Illini held the ball for nearly 38 minutes of play and snapped their two game losing streak with a win over Northwestern.
Morez Johnson Jr, 2024 IL Mr. Basketball has been a very solid piece on the offensive side for the Illini this season. The freshman who originally was not expected to play as much, has been dominant when he gets in the game. This was the fifth game where we saw Johnson tally up into double figure points this season. Not to mention, grabbing nine rebounds and tying his personal best 3 blocks vs the Wildcats.
The player of the year for the Illini has clearly been Kasparas Kakucionis, who has just dominated in every game he’s been in. Whether it is on the defensive side getting steals, rebounds, or passing the ball around and nailing assists; the freshman guard is averaging nearly 16 points per game and playing spectacular ball.
With that being said, the two young talented freshmen paved the way for a much needed victory over rival Northwestern. Illinois beat Northwestern 83-74. It was a close-knit game, as expected, but in this one the Illini prevailed and were ecstatic to recapture the bragging rights over Northwestern.
Illinois’s schedule does not get any easier, as the is creeping up on March, their schedule stays jam packed and doesn’t seem to be getting any easier.
Cameron Williams
DiSportsPhotoAgency
Senior Writer
