Jan. 24--MINNEAPOLIS -- Illinois hung in with Minnesota for the first half, but when the Illini unraveled, they came apart quickly.
The Illini (13-8, 3-5 Big Ten) fell at Minnesota 79-71 on Saturday afternoon.
Minnesota (13-8, 2-6) ramped up the pressure and went on an 18-3 run for a 56-44 lead in a game that had 22 lead changes prior to the Gophers' surge. Illinois went five minutes without scoring in the costly drought.
Illinois made 11 3-pointers, but struggled everywhere else on the court, shooting only 37.7 percent from the field.
Guards Malcolm Hill and Kendrick Nunn led the Illini with 18 points apiece. Jaylon Tate added 11 points with nine assists.
Minnesota was led by four double-digit scorers: Andre Hollins (28), Carlos Morris (16), Mo Walker (12 with 13 rebounds) and Nate Mason (10 points).
The Gophers crushed Illinois on the boards, 38-30.
It appeared the Illini's thin bench eventually caught up with them. They are without three starters, having lost point guard Tracy Abrams (knee) in the preseason and more recently leading scorer Rayvonte Rice (hand) and guard Aaron Cosby (retinal tear).
They added student manager Ryan Schmidt to the roster as a walk-on to help with depth. He didn't see action in the game.
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