No. 5 Illinois — without Ayo Dosunmu — almost blows late double-digit lead but hangs on for 74-69 win against No. 23 Wisconsin
Illinois wasn’t perfect but got the job done in its second game without star guard Ayo Dosunmu.
Dosunmu, who suffered a facial injury Tuesday at Michigan State, sat on the sideline and watched the No. 5 Illini hang on to beat No. 23 Wisconsin, 74-69, on Saturday in Madison.
Illinois (18-6, 14-4) struggled with 20 turnovers, which the Badgers (16-9, 10-8) converted into 19 points.
Kofi Cockburn and Andre Curbelo led the way again, as they did Thursday in an 86-70 victory against Nebraska. Cockburn had 19 points and seven rebounds Saturday, while freshman Curbelo scored 17 points and grabbed seven rebounds.
Curbelo’s six turnovers were costly, and he delivered only one assist.
Wisconsin trailed by 14 points with 5 minutes, 55 seconds left, but D’Mitrik Trice made three key 3-pointers in the final 36 seconds to give the Badgers a shot.
Officials reviewed the range of his shot and determined Trice made his third straight 3 to bring Wisconsin within 70-69 with 7 seconds left. He had hit a 3-pointer to cut it to 68-66 with 12.8 seconds and another to cut Illinois’ lead to 66-63 with 35.7 seconds left.
The Badgers made 7 of 7 shots during a closing stretch.
Curbelo and Trent Frazier made key free throws to seal the win. Frazier made two with five seconds left for a 72-69 Illini lead.
Da’Monte Williams and the Wisconsin bench were assessed technical fouls with 1.9 seconds left. Williams appeared to jaw at Badgers assistant coach Alando Tucker during a Badgers timeout.
Trevor Anderson missed both free-throw attempts for the Badgers, while Jacob Grandison made both to give Illinois a four-point lead with 1.2 seconds left.
