March Madness: Illinois fends off Iowa State in the second half to advance to Elite Eight

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Illinois is in the Elite Eight for the first time since 2005 after beating Iowa State on Thursday night. (AP Photo/Michael Dwyer)

No. 2 Illinois kept multiple Iowa State comeback attempts at bay in a 72-69 win over the No. 2 Cyclones Thursday night to advance to the Elite Eight.

Illinois had a 10-point halftime lead that Iowa State quickly cut into at the start of the second half. But Illinois stretched the lead back out to multiple possessions.

That cycle repeated itself for much of the second half, even as Illinois star Terrence Shannon Jr. spent nearly five minutes on the bench with four fouls. Not long after Shannon went to the bench with 11:17 to go after getting his fourth foul, Iowa State twice cut Illinois’ lead to two. But the Cyclones never got the game tied.

Shannon finished the game with 29 points and had a game-sealing dunk with 25 seconds left after he intercepted a pass with Illinois leading by four.

Illinois is a win away from the Final Four

Illinois will play defending national champion UConn on Saturday for the chance to advance to the Final Four out of the East region.

Illinois hasn’t been back to the Final Four since 2005 when it lost to North Carolina in the national title game. Heck, the Illini haven’t even been to the Elite Eight since then. In the 18 years since that Final Four appearance, Illinois has lost in the second round five times and been eliminated in the first round three times.

Thursday night’s Sweet 16 appearance was in danger of being a disappointment thanks to Illinois’ struggles at the free throw line. The Illini were just 15 of 29 at the stripe. That 10-point lead could have been 15 at halftime. Illinois missed nine free throws in the first half.

But as Illinois struggled at the line, it always came up with the big play when Iowa State got close in the second half. Coleman Hawkins had 12 points and hit a big 3-pointer early in the second half as Iowa State was threatening.

And with just over four minutes to go, it was Lance Goode’s…

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Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/march-madness-illinois-fends-off-iowa-state-in-the-second-half-to-advance-to-elite-eight-043648369.html

Author : Yahoo Sports

Publish date : 2024-03-29 04:36:48

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