March 01--CHAMPAIGN -- Illinois could use a Northwestern-like win streak right now.
The Illini (17-11, 7-8 Big Ten) are hoping to stop a three-game losing streak at State Farm Center against the Wildcats. Northwestern (14-14, 5-10) is inexplicably on a four-game win streak, making it one of the hottest teams in the conference.
That was hard to tell on Saturday night.
The Illini took a 45-23 halftime lead against the Wildcats, shooting 48.3 percent and hitting 9 of 16 3-pointers.
A game after going 1 of 10 from the field, Malcolm Hill led the Illini with 11 points on 3 of 5 3-point shooting.
Northwestern suffered through a 10 1/2 minute drought withtout a field goal in the first half. The Wildcats shot only 33.3 percent and turned the ball over seven times. The Illini outscored Northwestern 14-0 in points off turnovers and 4-0 on fast break points.
Tre Demps and Vic Law, the Wildcats hottest two scorers lately, were held to a combined 1 of 7 shooting.
Illinois can't afford many more losses, especially one to Northwestern, if it hopes to make the NCAA tournament. The Illini, according to college basketball experts, are delicately balancing on the fence with only three regular season games remaining.
Northwestern has won the last two games in Champaign between the in-state rivals, most recently a 68-54 win on Jan. 17, 2013.
The Wildcats redshirt junior Demps has boosted the Wildcats' run, averaging 17.2 points per game, while shooting 55 percent. Freshman forward Law averaged 13 points with 7.5 rebounds in wins against Minnesota and Penn State.
Illinois won the first meeting in Evanston 72-67 in January, when Kendrick Nunn scored a career-high 25 points. Nunn hasn't scored in double digits in the last three games.
sryan@tribpub.com
sryan@tribpub.com
Twitter @sryantribune
