In the Big Ten tournament title game on Sunday, Illinois, ranked 13th, defeated Wisconsin 93-87 thanks to 34 points by Terrence Shannon Jr. on 15-for-17 shooting from the free throw line.
The Illini (26–8), who shot 16 of 26 from the field in the second half, won their fourth conference title and their second in four years. Marcus Domask contributed 26 points, 8 assists, and 7 rebounds, and Dain Dainja had nine points and seven rebounds.
In each of Illinois’s three tournament games, they fell down by ten points or more.
“It was a little bit different every night,” head coach Brad Underwood remarked. “I love that.”
The Badgers (22–13) were led by AJ Storr with 24 points and Chucky Hepburn with 20 points. They shot 7–20 from 3-point range after going 33–79 in their first three tournament games.
Shannon was selected the Most Outstanding Player after scoring only one point less than the Big Ten tournament scoring record in three games this past weekend. Iowa’s Keegan Murray scored 103 points in 2022, however the Hawkeyes only played four games that season before winning the conference.
The Illini hurried to a side room for the NCAA Tournament selection presentation, where they learned they were the No. 3 seed in the East Region, with a first-round matchup against Morehead State on Friday, after cutting down the nets and rejoicing in a spray of orange-and-blue confetti at Target Center.
Wisconsin’s first round opponent will be James Madison after securing the fifth seed in the South Region.
Shannon, who scored 40 points in the semifinal victory over Nebraska to shatter the Big Ten tournament single-game record, is currently being investigated for rape in Kansas following an alleged incident from the previous year. After six games, a federal judge overturned the punishment imposed by the institution.
He was frequently harassed by the Wisconsin supporters, but he is not the kind of player easily shaken. With 31 seconds remaining before halftime, he calmly and casually pulled up for a 3-pointer off the break to give Illinois a 41-40 lead. He then blew a kiss at the predominantly red-clad Badgers supporters in the stadium.
Less than an hour after the game, both teams’ NCAA tournament fates were known for sure, but momentum and confidence were still in play even though their seeds were probably already set.
Wisconsin led the game by a score of 61–51 after Hepburn’s three-pointer, but the margin was hardly sustained. For the next six minutes, Illinois went on a 21-5 run that guaranteed the game would remain close the entire time.
With 3:53 remaining, Max Klesmit made a 3-pointer to lead 82-81, and with 1:57 remaining, he made another to level the score. However, Shannon countered that shot from long range with 88 seconds remaining, making the final score 88-85. Next, he took advantage of a thoughtless dribble by Storr on the opposite end, drove the other way to force a foul, and made both free throws to give the team a five-point advantage.
Coleman Hawkins, who finished with seven points, six rebounds, and two blocks, stated, “Sometimes in my career there’s been moments where those 3s would have just destroyed everything,” “We made some mistakes, but we were able to keep playing.”
Hepburn, who made the game-winning layup at the clock in regulation and drew a crucial charging call to set up Max Klesmit’s winning basket, was one of the heroes of Wisconsin’s thrilling overtime victory over top-seeded Purdue on Saturday.
In this game, the junior guard scored his 1,000th point of the career and made numerous contributions, especially when it came to defensively containing Shannon and making strong drives to the basket, which is something his adversary excels at. Due to a knee ailment, Hepburn was unable to participate in the quarterfinal victory over Northwestern.
“I feel like he’s one of the best players in our league,” Hawkins stated. “When he’s aggressive, I feel like they’re a really good team.”
With more wins than any other Big Ten team since a 26-win squad in 2005–06, Illinois is the most successful club during the last five seasons.
Two weeks ago, Illinois defeated this club in their lone regular-season game, 91-83, highlighted by 31 points from Waupun native Domask, who was playing in his first game back in Wisconsin since high school. In this game, the Southern Illinois graduate transfer, who was selected along with Shannon for the first team All-Big Ten, shot 8 of 11 from the field.
“To come here and get the ring, this is the conversations, the visions I had with Coach during the recruiting process,” Domask stated, “and we came here and got the job done.”
The conference title game was held for the 26th time, with the Badgers and the Illini participating for the eighth time each—a total surpassed only by Ohio State’s nine. With seven Big Ten tournament titles, Michigan State leads the field.