NCAA Men's Basketball

Illinois Fighting Illini (20-13)


Sun. 2/26 Thu. 3/2 Sun. 3/5 Thu. 3/9 Thu. 3/16
@ OhioSt 
L 60-72
Box | Recap
vs. Mich 
W 91-87
Box | Recap
@ Purdue 
L 71-76
Box | Recap
vs. PSU 
L 76-79
Box | Recap
@ Ark 
L 63-73
Box | Recap

Arkansas holds off Illinois 73-63 with big defensive effort

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) Ricky Council IV scored 18 points and Arkansas survived some anxious moments in the second half against an Illinois team that wouldn't go away, holding on to beat the Illini 73-63 in the first round of the NCAA Tournament on Thursday.

Devo Davis had 16 points for the eighth-seeded Razorbacks, who used relentless defense and rebounding to build big leads but couldn't get comfortable until the final minute. Arkansas (21-13) faces top-seeded Kansas on Saturday in the second round of the West Region.

Terrence Shannon Jr., held scoreless the first 16 minutes, finished with 20 points to lead the Illini (20-13). It was the first time in five tournament appearances since 2011 that Illinois didn't make it out of the first round.

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Leaders
Points: T. Shannon Jr.17.2
Rebounds: C. Hawkins6.3
Assists: C. Hawkins3.0
FG%: No qualifiers
FT%: T. Shannon Jr.79.0%
3P%: M. Mayer33.0%
Steals: T. Shannon Jr.1.3
Blocks: D. Dainja1.2
AP Rankings
Rank School Rec
1 Alabama31-6
2 Houston33-4
3 Purdue29-6
4 Kansas28-8
5 Texas29-9
6 Marquette29-7
7 UCLA31-6
8 Arizona28-7
9 Gonzaga31-6
10 UConn31-8
View Complete Poll
Coaches Rankings
Rank School Rec
1 UConn31-8
2 San Diego State32-7
3 Miami (FL)29-8
4 Alabama31-6
5 Florida Atlantic35-4
6 Houston33-4
7 Texas29-9
8 UCLA31-6
9 Kansas State26-10
10 Gonzaga31-6
View Complete Poll
Big Ten Standings
 ConferenceOverall
  W-L W-L
Purdue 15-5 29-6
Indiana 12-8 23-12
Northwestern 12-8 22-12
Michigan State 11-8 21-13
Maryland 11-9 22-13
Illinois 11-9 20-13
Iowa 11-9 19-14
Michigan 11-9 18-16
Penn State 10-10 23-14
Rutgers 10-10 19-15
Wisconsin 9-11 20-15
Nebraska 9-11 16-16
Ohio State 5-15 16-19
Minnesota 2-17 9-22
View Full Standings
Offense (Rank)
Points: 74.3 (115)
Rebounds: 11.1 (91)
Assists: 12.4 (237)
FG%: 44.9% (165)
FT%: 67.9% (310)
3P%: 30.8% (341)
Defense (Rank)
Points: 67.2 (91)
Rebounds: 26.7 (43)
Assists: 10.7 (35)
FG%: 41.6% (57)
FT%: 70.5% (127)
3P%: 33.4% (152)