Illinois guard Ayo Dosunmu said Wednesday night's game against Baylor could be a "legacy game" for the Illini, a chance to establish themselves among the nation's elite.
It will be memorable for the Illini, certainly. But perhaps more haunting as they let a potentially program-defining win slip away.
The fifth-ranked Illini (3-1) lost 82-69 to No. 2 Baylor (3-0) in a tight defensive battle in the Jimmy V Classic in Indianapolis.
The good news for Illinois? It gets another crack at a signature win when the Illini travel to No. 6 Duke on Tuesday.
Illinois didn't get its usual dynamic game from Dosunmu, who scored most of his 18 points late in the second half. He scored only three first-half points on 1-of-6 shooting as Baylor smothered him.
Center Kofi Cockburn was too quiet, too, plagued with early foul trouble. He sat out nine minutes of the first half with two fouls and picked up his third a little more than a minute into the second half. He finished with seven points on 3-of-4 shooting.
The Illini were kept afloat early by junior forward Giorgi Bezhanishvili, whose 15 points were his most since he scored 16 against The Citadel in November 2019.
The score was tied at 43 with 13:16 left before Baylor went on a 14-3 run to pull away.
Baylor was led by guard Adam Flager's 18 points and received nine points and nine rebounds from forward Jonathan Tchamwa Tchatchoua.
No fans were inside Bankers Life Fieldhouse because of COVID-19 precautions. The Illini were at the arena last season for the Big Ten Tournament but didn't get to compete for the conference title or in the NCAA Tournament after the college basketball season abruptly ended as the pandemic spread across the nation.
While the arena was empty and quiet Wednesday night, the benches were rowdy, cheering on their teammates.
Illinois had not played in a top-five matchup since 2005, when it lost to North Carolina in the NCAA championship game.
