Illini Come Back Against Maryland for Fourth Conference Win

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After trailing at halftime, the Illini played a dominant second half, fueled by Trent Frazier's threes and Kofi Cockburn's paint presence, to secure a 76-64 victory over Maryland Thursday night. On Ayo Night, where Dosunmu returned to State Farm Center for his honored jersey unveiling, the Illini secured their fourth conference win of the season. Illinois is now tied for first with Michigan State as the only two teams to be undefeated in the Big Ten.

For a second conference game in a row, Cockburn led Illinois with 23 points and a career-tying 18 rebounds. The Illini big notched his ninth double-double of the season, ranking in the top 10 for the most double-doubles in the country.

Frazier's scored 16 against the Terrapins, but his 14 second-half points were critical in Illinois' comeback in the final period. Illinois' rebounding also played a large role in the win, as the team outrebounded Maryland 45-27 with 19 of those on the offensive end. Cockburn led with seven offensive rebounds while Coleman Hawkins had six, contributing to 26 second chance points. 

Illinois came out strong with Alfonso Plummer hitting a long jumper on the first possession followed by a three from Jacob Grandison 30 seconds after. Maryland's top scorer Eric Ayala scored first for the Terrapins, making a three-pointer.

Kofi Cockburn got going early with a layup, then grabbed an offensive rebound for an and-1, sinking the free throw. Between Cockburn's makes, Plummer drilled a three to put Illinois up 10-3. The Terrapins split a pair of free throws, but their defense was quickly met with an Omar Payne dunk.

After two scoreless minutes for Maryland, Donta Scott made a short jumper, then the Terappins made another free throw to get within eight points. After Illinois failed to score for over two minutes, Coleman Hawkins scored back-to-back layups while Maryland went on another scoreless run.

Before the Terrapins made a pair of free throws, Cockburn scored another and-1. Maryland's offense slowly started to warm up as Julian Reese made a putback then Ayala hit an and-1 jumper to pull within five.

With just under seven minutes in the half, Williams drilled a three, but his shot would be Illinois' last made field goal before halftime. Maryland's offense took over, as Scott put up eight points in the final minutes to give the Terrapins a 34-30 halftime lead.

Illinois went 3-15 from three in the first half, a rarity for the second-best three-point team in the Big Ten.

After Hakim Hart scored first out of the break for Maryland on a jumper, Cockburn made a layup then Plummer hit a corner three to get back within one. The team traded shots, each making all three of their next field goal attempts.

Scott and Ayala scored a layup then a three to extend Maryland's lead to 47-42. But, the Illini quickly regained momentum.

Williams grabbed an offensive rebound which led to a Cockburn layup. On the other end, Illinois' defense forced a shot clock violation, resulting in a Williams layup. On the next offensive possession, Frazier started his heater off with an and-1.

Frazier scored Illinois' next nine points, all off threes, giving Illinois a 57-50 lead while the Illini defense forced a four-minute Maryland scoring drought with four turnovers. Ayala knocked down a three for the Terrapins, but the Illini offense stayed hot.

A Cockburn dunk then back-to-back layups from Plummer and Cockburn put Illinois up 64-53 as Maryland failed to score for another three minutes.

Cockburn sealed the conference win with three free throws then consecutive dunks in the final few minutes and Frazier capped off the game with his fourth three of the night.

While Frazier and Cockburn put Illinois up in the second half with their scoring, Williams' defensive intensity against Scott in the second half was just as key. Scott's 15 first-half points played the largest role in Maryland's halftime lead, but Williams allowed Scott to score just one basket in the final 20 minutes. 

Illinois will head back on the road in a few days to take on Nebraska next Tuesday night before hosting Michigan on Jan. 14.

POSTGAME NOTES

• Illinois is 4-0 in Big Ten play for the first time since the 2009-10 season. 
• Illinois is on an eight-game Big Ten winning streak, claiming its final four games last season along with this year's 4-0 start.
• Illinois' eight-game Big Ten winning streak is its longest since it set a school record with 25 consecutive Big Ten victories spanning the 2004 (10) and 2005 (15) seasons (Jan. 31, 2004-March 3, 2005).
• Illinois outrebounded Maryland, 45-27. The Illini have outrebounded 12 of 14 opponents and rank second in the NCAA in rebound margin at +14.3 rpg, behind only Kentucky's 15.7.
• Illinois is outrebounding its opponents 196-109 (49.0-27.3 rpg) in its four Big Ten games. Even excluding Kofi's 61 Big Ten rebounds, the Illini have still outrebounded their opponents 135-106 in Big Ten games.
• Illinois outscored Maryland 26-4 in second chance points, while holding Maryland to only four offensive rebounds. 
• Illinois is averaging 86.0 points over the last nine games (774), leading to an 8-1 record. The Illini rank 27th nationally in scoring offense for the season, averaging 80.4 points. 
• Maryland started 0-3 in the Big Ten for the first time since joining the conference in 2014. 
• Wooden Award Midseason Top 25 honoree Kofi Cockburn had 23 points on 9-of-12 shooting and a career-high-tying 18 rebounds for his ninth double-double of the season, tied for the fourth-most in the nation. He has posted double-doubles in seven straight games, including all four Big Ten contests.
• Cockburn is one of just two players in the NCAA this season averaging at least 20 points and 10 rebounds (Jamal Cain, Oakland). The last Illini to average 20 & 10 was Nick Weatherspoon in 1973 (25.0 ppg, 12.3 rpg).
• Cockburn is the nation's second-leading scorer at 22.5 ppg and ranks third in the NCAA in rebounding at 12.5 rpg. 
• After playing only eight minutes in the first half due to foul trouble, Cockburn went for 16 points and 15 rebounds in the second half. 
• Cockburn posted a +28 plus-minus in 28 minutes.
• Former Illini star and Chicago Bulls rookie Ayo Dosunmu attended the game and participated in a halftime banner raising ceremony joining the Illinois Basketball Honored Jerseys program.