Washington was unable to mount a nearly miraculous comeback in the second half against Illinois.
It was the same story on a different day for coach Danny Sprinkle and the Washington Huskies, who fell 81-77 to the No. 22 Illinois Fighting Illini inside Alaska Airlines Arena on Sunday afternoon. For the first 10 minutes of the contest, the Huskies couldn’t buy a bucket, falling behind by as many as 17 points.
The Illini were led by standout freshman Kasparas Jakucionis, who finished the day with 18 points, 5 rebounds, and 6 assists, and were nearly insurmountable, never trailing in the game.
“I liked the flow of our offense in the game even though it was 27-10,” Sprinkle said after the game. “We’re getting what we wanted to get, it’s just that shots weren’t falling.
Despite a poor night from the floor, shooting just 43.1 percent for the game, Huskies were able to knot the score at 75-75 in the game’s final minute thanks to an errant inbounds pass that Luis Kortright took to the basket. But just like they had all afternoon, Illinois had an answer, with Jakucionis banking in the eventual game-winning layup on the next possession.
Hec Edmunson Pavilion was the loudest it had been all season, but it didn’t phase coach Bret Underwood’s team, which came up clutch at several different moments in the game’s final five minutes to pad the lead and keep Washington out of striking distance for the majority of the second half.
Senior DJ Davis did everything he could to keep the Huskies in the game. After coming in off the bench, the Butler transfer was unconscious from three-point range, going 7-14 from deep and finishing with a game-high 30 points.
“Whenever my number is called, I’m ready to do what’s best for the team,” Davis said.
The Illini held senior Great Osobor to just one rebound in the first half. He had a very quiet game, finishing with a meager 9 points and 4 rebounds, but he held his own on the defensive end, showing great hustle with 4 steals and a block in the contest.
Despite the loss, Sprinkle’s team showed guts against the NCAA’s No. 5 NET-ranked team, an important factor in determining March Madness seeding. With four of their next five games coming against ranked opponents, if the Huskies can find a way to get over their slow starts and early shooting woes, they may have a chance to make some noise in the Big Ten.
