Tag: Illinois

Vols sweep Illinois for 15th consecutive win

Tennessee baseball sweeps Illinois and extends win streak to 15 games.

No. 8 Tennessee (16-1) defeated Illinois (5-9), 8-3, on Sunday at Lindsey Nelson Stadium.

Rankings reflect the USA TODAY Sports baseball coaches poll.

Sunday’s win completed a three-game series sweep for Tennessee. The Vols also extended its win streak to 15 games.

Aaron Combs started and pitched three innings for Tennessee. He recorded two strikeouts and totaled 57 pitches (39 strikes).

Nate Snead (4-0) pitched six innings in relief for the Vols, earning his fourth win of the season. Snead recorded five strikeouts and totaled 89 pitches (56 strikes).

Tennessee totaled six hits against Illinois, including three home runs (Blake Burke, Hunter Ensley, Robin Villeneuve).

The Vols recorded six two-out RBIs in the series finale.

Photo by Dan Harralson, Vols Wire

Tony Vitello recaps Vols’ 24-1 win against Illinois

Tony Vitello recaps Tennessee’s 24-1 win against Illinois on Saturday.

No. 8 Tennessee (15-1) defeated Illinois (5-8), 24-1, on Saturday at Lindsey Nelson Stadium. Rankings reflect the USA TODAY Sports baseball coaches poll.

Tennessee totaled 20 hits on Saturday, including home runs by Dalton Bargo, Blake Burke, Reese Chapman, Dylan Dreiling and Christian Moore.

13 different Tennessee players recorded a hit, while the Vols also totaled four two-out RBIs.

Drew Beam (3-0) started for Tennessee and pitched five innings, recording five strikeouts. He totaled 65 pitches, including 44 strikes, against 20 batters.

Following the Vols’ series win against Illinois on Saturday at Lindsey Nelson Stadium, seventh-year head coach Tony Vitello met with media. Vitello’s postgame press conference can be watched below.

Tennessee baseball extends win streak to 14 games

Tennessee baseball wins series against Illinois and records 14th consecutive victory.

No. 8 Tennessee (15-1) defeated Illinois (5-8), 24-1, on Saturday at Lindsey Nelson Stadium.

Rankings reflect the USA TODAY Sports baseball coaches poll.

Saturday’s win is Tennessee’s 14th consecutive. The Vols also clinched a series win against Illinois.

Drew Beam started for Tennessee and pitched five innings, recording five strikeouts. He totaled 65 pitches, including 44 strikes, against 20 batters.

Tennessee totaled 20 hits on Saturday. Dalton Bargo, Blake Burke, Reese Chapman, Dylan Dreiling and Christian Moore hit home runs.

First pitch for the series finale between the Vols and Fighting Illini is slated for 1 p.m. EDT on Sunday. The contest can be watched on SEC Network+.

Tennessee won the series opener, 6-3, on Friday.

Tony Vitello recaps series opening win against Illinois

Tennessee head coach Tony Vitello recaps series opening win against Illinois.

No. 8 Tennessee (14-1) defeated Illinois (5-7), 6-3, on Friday at Lindsey Nelson Stadium.

Rankings reflect the USA TODAY Sports baseball coaches poll.

Tennessee extended its winning streak to 13 games.

Friday’s contest was the first of a three-game series between the Vols and Fighting Illini.

Game No. 2 will take place on Saturday at 1 p.m. EST and can be watched on SEC Network+. Sunday’s series finale is slated for 1 p.m. EDT and can also be watched on SEC Network+.

PHOTOS: Tony Vitello through the years

Following Tennessee’s win against Illinois on Friday, seventh-year head coach Tony Vitello met with media. Vitello’s postgame press conference can be watched below.

AJ Causey recaps 12-strikeout performance against Illinois

Tennessee pitcher AJ Causey recaps 12-strikeout performance against Illinois.

No. 8 Tennessee (14-1) defeated Illinois (5-7), 6-3, on Friday at Lindsey Nelson Stadium.

Rankings reflect the USA TODAY Sports baseball coaches poll.

AJ Causey started for Tennessee and pitched six innings. He recorded 12 strikeouts and allowed six hits, one earned run and one walk. Causey totaled 104 pitches, including 66 strikes, against 25 batters.

Friday’s contest was the first of a three-game series between the Vols and Fighting Illini.

Game No. 2 will take place on Saturday at 1 p.m. EST and can be watched on SEC Network+. Sunday’s series finale is slated for 1 p.m. EDT (SEC Network+).

Causey met with media after Tennessee’s win against Illinois. His media availability can be watched below.

Tennessee defeats Illinois, wins 13th consecutive game

Tennessee baseball defeats Illinois and wins 13th consecutive game.

No. 8 Tennessee (14-1) defeated Illinois (5-7), 6-3, on Friday at Lindsey Nelson Stadium.

Rankings reflect the USA TODAY Sports baseball coaches poll.

Friday’s contest was the first of a three-game series between the Vols and Fighting Illini.

AJ Causey started for Tennessee and pitched six innings. He recorded 12 strikeouts and allowed six hits, one earned run and one walk. Causey totaled 104 pitches, including 66 strikes, against 25 batters.

Tennessee totaled nine hits against Illinois. Billy Amick, Dylan Dreiling and Cal Stark hit home runs for the Vols.

Game No. 2 will take place on Saturday at 1 p.m. EST and can be watched on SEC Network+.

PHOTOS: Tony Vitello through the years

Purdue tops Illinois, clinches outright Big Ten title

This season became a huge missed opportunity for Wisconsin

The No. 3 Purdue Boilermakers (27-3, 16-3 Big Ten) edged No. 12 Illinois (22-8, 13-6 Big Ten) 77-71 Tuesday night, clinching the outright Big Ten regular season title for the second consecutive season.

Standout guard Braden Smith drilled the late dagger, pulling up and hitting a three-pointer to make it a two-possession game with 18 seconds remaining.

Though Illinois controlled the contest throughout, a dominant late surge by the Boilermakers proved too much for the Fighting Illini. The win yet again crowns Purdue as the Big Ten’s best, again setting the program up for a No. 1 seed in the upcoming NCAA Tournament.

Related: Wisconsin faithful, college basketball world react to Howard Moore’s emotional return to Kohl Center

The Wisconsin-related story here: what a gigantic missed opportunity this season is becoming.

The Badgers entered February ranked No. 6 in the AP Poll and leading the Big Ten standings with an 8-1 record. Since that point, the team is 2-7 with losses to everyone from Purdue to last-place Michigan. The team has crashed down to earth after appearing to be a Final Four contender just five weeks ago.

Could Wisconsin have outlasted Purdue all season? Who knows. But the Badgers were setting the pace just 33 days ago. Now, Greg Gard’s team is down to fifth in the conference standings and no longer a double-bye team in the Big Ten Tournament.

Wisconsin led the Big Ten entering February. It will finish more than six games behind Purdue in the final standings. That’s startling context for Wisconsin’s fall.

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Contact/Follow @TheBadgersWire on X (formerly Twitter), and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Wisconsin Badgers news, notes, and opinion. Follow Ben Kenney on X.

Illinois basketball made history with win over Wisconsin Saturday

Wisconsin’s loss to Illinois was historic:

Wisconsin basketball has been finding itself on the wrong side of history since the start of February.

This time it comes at the hands of the No. 13 Illinois Fighting Illini, who triumphed over the Badgers 91-83 on Saturday afternoon. The game marked Illinois’ fourth consecutive win at the Kohl Center (2020, 2021, 2022, 2023), making it the only program to accomplish that feat.

Related: Wisconsin faithful, college basketball world reacts to Howard Moore’s emotional return to Kohl Center

Wisconsin’s last win over Illinois came on February 18, 2019 when sophomore Brad Davison’s 18 points led the Badgers to a 64-58 victory. Illinois has dominated the series since then, winning seven straight games overall and four straight on the road.

The Kohl Center on January 17, 1998, so there have been plenty of programs to step onto its court. It’s startling to see that Illinois is now the only program to win four straight games on that floor.

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Contact/Follow @TheBadgersWire on X (formerly Twitter), and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Wisconsin Badgers news, notes, and opinion. Follow Ben Kenney on X.

Wisconsin faithful, college basketball world react to Howard Moore’s emotional return to Kohl Center

The college basketball joined together to react to Howard Moore’s emotional return to Kohl Center:

Wisconsin basketball fell 91-83 to the No. 13 Illinois Fighting Illini on Saturday afternoon.

The game was a subscript to the pregame and halftime ceremonies, as former Wisconsin player and assistant coach Howard Moore made an emotional return to the Kohl Center for the first time since the tragic car accident nearly five years ago.

Related: Takeaways from Wisconsin’s crushing loss to No. 13 Illinois

Moore was accompanied by Rashard Griffith, his longtime friend and Wisconsin teammate. Griffith brought him onto the court after Wisconsin aired a video tribute on the scoreboard, where he was met with a nearly three-minute standing ovation. It was a powerful moment that nobody will soon forget:

The college basketball world joined together to express support and love for Moore on Saturday afternoon. Here are some of those responses:

Takeaways from Wisconsin’s crushing loss to No. 13 Illinois

What are your takeaways from the loss to Illinois?

Wisconsin basketball continued its slide Saturday afternoon with a 91-83 loss to No. 13 Illinois.

Reciting the Badgers’ struggles since the start of February is like a broken record at this point. The team has lost seven of its last nine, with each loss feeling more crushing than the last.

Related: Wisconsin basketball social media despondent after Badgers loss to Illinois

The road will not get much easier for Greg Gard’s team. Up next is a home matchup with Rutgers, before a season-ending trip to West Lafayette, Indiana, to face No. 3 Purdue. Then comes the Big Ten and NCAA Tournaments. It doesn’t take a genius to know Wisconsin needs to step up its game to have any hope at a deep run.

Before we get to that, here are our takeaways from the loss to Illinois: