Illinois 91, Rutgers 60

What happened

CHAMPAIGN — Illinois basketball hasn’t had many great moments since Deron Williams entered the NBA Draft. But in attendance for his first game since leaving Illinois in 2005, the Illini great’s presence inspired the Illini into some old-school Big Ten domination.

Tuesday’s 31-point victory was the largest margin of victory against a Big Ten opponent for Illinois since 2008 (70-37 vs. Northwestern). Illinois beat Indiana by 31 points in 2009 as well.

Williams also got a glimpse of another promising point guard. Trent Frazier (17 points, four assists) sank five straight 3-pointers during a 3:54 stretch in the first half — while Rutgers went 10:16 between field goals during one stretch — to lead a 19-2 Illinois run and open up a double-digit lead it never relented.

Making his second career start and first start of the season, Kipper Nichols led Illinois with 19 points and six rebounds.

All five starters scored in double figures with Leron Black (14 points), Mark Alstork (12 points) and Michael Finke (11 points) also reaching double digits.

With the win, the Illini (12-10, 2-8 Big Ten) move out of last place in the Big Ten and ahead of Rutgers (12-12, 2-9 Big Ten) in Big Ten Tournament seeding.

Illinois shot a season-high 56.9 percent from the field (including 11-for-27 from three) and scored 37 points off 25 Rutgers turnovers and shot

Rutgers had a 6:34 scoring drought in the first half, allowing an Illini 8-0 run, but Illinois didn’t score for 4:38 so it's lead only extended to 13-8. After Rutgers made four free throws to trim the deficit to one, the Illini then scored 10 points over the next 72 seconds to take a 23-12 lead. In taking a 41-22 halftime lead, the Illini held Rutgers to 7-for-21 from the field and forced 13 turnovers — though Illinois turned it over 12 times — holding the Scarlet Knights to a paltry 0.629 points per possession.

The Illini simply dominated in the second half, making 20 of its first 26 shots, claiming a 43-point lead with 8:35 remaining.

Geo Baker led Rutgers with 19 points. Deshawn Freeman scored 10 but fouled out in just 18 minutes, and Corey Sanders scored 10 points on 3-for-12 shooting.

What it means

Rutgers is proof that it can get worse in the Big Ten. Steve Pikiell’s teams may play hard, but it is a brutal team to watch. The Scarlet Knights may have forced overtime against Michigan State, but they have now lost six of its 11 Big Ten games by double digits. Both teams may only have two Big Ten wins, but the Illini — who have lost three conference overtime games and one at the buzzer, and no games by — are much closer to Big Ten relevancy and NCAA Tournament discussions. As for this season, Illinois has some confidence and maybe some momentum. The next road game (Ohio State) will be tough, but the Illini then have three very winnable home games (Wisconsin, Penn State and Nebraska) with a road trip to Indiana mixed in. Illinois has a chance to build something heading into Year Two.

What's next

The Illini head to No. 17 Ohio State for an 11 a.m. Sunday tipoff (FS1). The Buckeyes (19-5, 10-1 Big Ten) are the surprise of the Big Ten (along with Nebraska). Under first-year head coach Chris Holtmann, the Buckeyes are in Big Ten title contention led by likely Big Ten Player of the Year Keita Bates-Diop, a Normal (Ill.) native, who is averaging 19.0 points and 8.6 rebounds. The Buckeyes are equally as great on offense (No. 1 among Big Ten teams in offensive efficiency) and defense (No. 2 in the Big Ten in defensive efficiency.

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