How to Watch Illinois at Ohio State
Game Time: 6:30 p.m. Tuesday
TV Channel: N/A
Online Streaming: Peacock
Odds: N/A (Illinois 46.9% Chance To Win – ESPN Matchup Predictor)
Quick Hits:
Illinois Fighting Illini (7-2, 0-0 Big Ten)
Head Coach: Brad Underwood (9th season)
Last Game: Illinois 75, Tennessee
62
Gameday Reading:
Ohio State Buckeyes (7-1, 1-0 Big Ten)
Head Coach: Jake Diebler (3rd season)
Last Game: Ohio State 86, Northwestern 82
What Happened the Last Time These Two Teams Played?
- Illinois leads all-time series 113-82.
Feb. 2, 2025: Illinois 87, Ohio State 79
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — The Illini were finally whole again, and they got back in the win column.
Tomislav Ivisic’s return, a starting lineup shakeup and another big second half from Will Riley propelled Illinois past Ohio State, 87-79, despite trailing most of the afternoon.
It wasn’t smooth sailing for the Illini in their quest to avoid dropping their fourth game in the last five. Many of the same issues that have plagued Illinois — poor three-point shooting and untimely turnovers — allowed the Buckeyes to build a lead as large as 11.
But Illinois (15-7, 7-5 Big Ten) flipped what was trending towards another disappointing effort into a needed bounce-back victory with a furious 15-0 surge that turned a five-point deficit into a 10-point lead with 2:45 remaining, sparked by 20 second half points from Will Riley, his second consecutive game with a sizable scoring spurt.
“Sometimes the ball’s not going to come to me as much and sometimes it needs to come to me,” Riley said. “I’ll take that opportunity, whatever one it is, and I’m happy to just help this team get wins.”
Ohio State (13-9, 5-6 Big Ten) gave Illinois all it could handle for much of the day, led by its duo of Devin Royal of Bruce Thornton, who combined for 51 points on seven made threes. Royal surged the Buckeyes out in front with 19 first half points, while Thornton knocked down numerous timely second half threes to hold off the Illini for as long as he could.
Illinois, however, was able to force Ohio State into some poor shots down the stretch, in total holding the Buckeyes to an abysmal 2-for-32 on non-rim two-point shots, a big culprit for their second half stumble.
“I felt like we kind of wore them down late in the second half, just going over the top, just continually chasing them, forcing them into twos,” Brad Underwood said.
