It was a flat day at the office for Rutgers men’s basketball who were unable to build off their thrilling win over Nebraska. The Scarlet Knights took an Illinois and had no answer defensively in an 86-63 loss. From the start, the Fighting Illini were in complete control.
As Illinois built a lead early on, they were nearly unstoppable close to the basket. The Fighting Illini scored 50 points in the paint and only allowed 32. They also dominated on the boards with 46 rebounds.
While Illinois’ success was a team effort, they were led by Justin Harmon. The Chicago native added 18 points to his resume and hauled in eight rebounds. He got some help from Terrence Shannon Jr., who scored 16 points.
Although Rutgers didn’t get the result they wanted, Clifford Omoruyi had his best game in weeks, scoring 22 points. It marked the first time in over a month that the talented center reached the 16-point mark. Aundre Hyatt and Noah Fernandes also scored double digits.
All of the sudden, @RutgersMBB has made it a 5-point game. 👀
📺: Big Ten Network pic.twitter.com/GGirXS8EBl
— Big Ten Network (@BigTenNetwork) January 21, 2024
Illinois took advantage of their opportunities in this matchup, shooting 50.8 percent from the field. Rutgers wasn’t able to match their success, only shooting 37.7 percent from the field.
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With their 19th game of the season in the books, Rutgers will shift its focus to finishing the month strong. They will face Purdue and Penn State before the calendar flips to February.