Trent Frazier can still get buckets. Once Illinois basketball’s go-to scorer for parts of his freshman season, Trent Frazier evolved into a different player as the Illini program grew into a winner.
But Frazier during the last two games has elevated his offense to freshman-type levels. After scoring a season-high 24 points in Friday’s win over No. 8 Iowa, the senior guard scored 14 of the Illini’s 19 points to lead No. 12 Illinois to a 75-71 overtime win at Indiana. In a game that lasted 2 hours and 44 minutes, the Illini (12-5, 8-3 Big Ten) snapped a seven-game losing streak at Assembly Hall dating back to 2010.
After Frazier scored 10 straight points to force overtime, Illinois outscored Indiana 7-3 in the extra period as Indiana (9-8, 4-6 Big Ten) shot 0-for-4 from the field with two turnovers in overtime. Andre Curbelo fed Kofi Cockburn for an emphatic slam with 17 seconds left to seal the win.
Frazier led Illinois with a team-high 19 points, making 4 of 9 from three. Kofi Cockburn had his NCAA-leading 12th double-double to lead Illinois with 16 points and 10 rebounds.
Freshman guard Andre Curbelo added 12 points, five rebounds and four assists off the bench. Illini star guard Ayo Dosunmu was limited to 10 points on 2-for-11 shooting as he struggled to finish at the rim, and he fouled out on a questionable charge call with 2:40 remaining.
Indiana forward Trayce Jackson-Davis led Indiana with 19 points and 14 rebounds but shot just 6-for-18 from the field. Race Thompson had a strong game for the Hoosiers, filling the box score with 18 points, eight rebounds, three steals, two assists and two blocks.
Illinois took an early 8-5 lead, but Trent Frazier was called for a technical foul for saying something to the Indiana bench after a made three — a call the ESPN broadcast criticized. The Hoosiers responded with a 7-0 run to take the lead. The first half featured six lead changes and six ties before Indiana ended the half on a 13-3 run to take a 41-34 halftime lead as the Hoosiers outscored the Illini 20-12 in the paint.
But Illinois’ defense clamped down in the second half, going on a 16-6 run to start the half including a 7-0 run to take a 50-47 lead. But Illinois’ foul trouble and struggles finishing at the rim cost them during an Indiana 7-0 to reclaim a 54-50 lead.
But Frazier went on a personal 8-0 run with under five minutes remaining to erase a six-point Indiana lead. With Ayo Dosunmu and Girogi Bezhanishvili on the bench after fouling out, Frazier then made the go-ahead free throws with 42 seconds remaining.
Both teams struggled to score in overtime, but Illinois played lock-down defense, Cockburn’s dunk gave them boost and they made just enough free throws (including two from Da’Monte Williams with 2.9 seconds remaining) to pick up a big road victory.
Stats of the game: After allowing Indiana scored 1.242 points per possession in the first half, Illinois limited the Hoosiers to 0.844 points per possession in the second half and 0.429 points per possession in the overtime period.
The teams combined for 54 fouls in a tightly officiated game that included 66 free throws.
Illinois and Indiana both struggled at the rim: Illinois 9-for-23 on layups and Indiana 8-for-20 on layups.
What it means: What a gutsy win — and one that should be remembered later on — in a game that had to be tough to play in due to quick-whistle officials. With its star on the bench for the final eight minutes, Illinois found a way to lock down defensively and outscore a team fighting for its NCAA Tournament life. Illinois needs to stack wins to have a chance to win a Big Ten championship, and it followed up a marquee win with a less-marquee but just-as-important Quad 1 road win against a desperate Indiana team. The Illini have followed two home losses last month with three straight wins and have now won seven of their last nine during conference play. The Illini are keeping pace with Michigan, which is on pause, and who hosts Illinois in their first game back from their program’s precautionary shutdown on Feb. 11. If Illinois keeps this up, that lone matchup between Big Ten contenders could be the regular-season game of the year.
Star of the game: Kofi Cockburn didn’t lead the team in scoring, but he impacted the game in a big way at the rim, both offensively and defensively. Jackson-Davis needed 18 shots to score 19 points, and Cockburn’s ability to alter shots at the rim was significant as Indiana shot 8-for-20 at the rim.
Don’t overlook: The Illini’s personnel at the four hurt them. Jacob Grandison started again but was pulled because he didn’t add much on defense or the glass. Da’Monte Williams again struggled because he gave up a lot of size to Thompson and Jackson-Davis.
What’s next: Illinois plays another marquee game on Saturday as it hosts Wisconsin, another Big Ten title contender, for a 1:30 p.m. Saturday tipoff (FOX). After starting the season 10-2, Wisconsin (14-5, 8-4) has lost three of its last seven games but are still ranked highly in the metrics: No. 11 KenPom and No. 17 NET. During conference play, Wisconsin has the No. 3 defensive efficiency but is shooting just 33.2 percent from the field. As always, the Badgers — the most experienced team in the Big Ten — play the slowest pace in the Big Ten, which forces teams to be disciplined because the Badgers have the lowest turnover rate in the Big Ten. Five Badgers average 9.0 or more points: D’Mitrik Trice (14.1), Micah Potter (12.3) Aleem Ford (9.6), Nate Reuvers (9.5) and Brad Davison (9.1).
