Hill Leads Illinois To Win Over Rutgers

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Published on February 17 2016 6:19 am
Last Updated on February 17 2016 6:19 am

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. (AP) -- Malcolm Hill looked like he was in pain warming up before Tuesday night's game following a hamstring injury in practice on Monday. But after putting up 22 points and 10 rebounds against Rutgers, his teammates joked that he was faking it.

The Illini junior guard led Illinois to an 82-66 win over Rutgers with his sixth double-double of the season.

''(My hamstring) was really tight and sore,'' Hill said. ''Whenever the ball tips, I tell myself I'm 100 percent because that just makes me not think about it.''

Illinois (12-14, 4-9 Big Ten) cruised out to a 47-25 lead over Rutgers (6-20, 0-13 Big Ten) at the half and never looked back.

And in the second, Hill looked relaxed, throwing down a flashy dunk and even hitting a half-court basket to beat the shot clock midway through the half.

''Malcolm showed some courage today,'' Illinois coach John Groce said, mentioning that his leading scorer wasn't 100 percent healthy Tuesday. Groce said he had a ''gut feeling'' Hill would be ready to go Tuesday.

The Illini used a 13-0 run to jump out to an early 13-4 lead and Rutgers never recovered, committing 10 turnovers in the first half. Illinois had 21 points off 16 Scarlet Knight turnovers in the game.

''We took really bad shots,'' Rutgers coach Eddie Jordan said. ''We just lost our minds, in a sense.''

The Scarlet Knights were playing without leading-scorer Corey Sanders, who was dealt a two-week suspension Monday for violating team rules.

After the game, Jordan said Sanders' ''absence is felt.''

Illinois went on a 15-2 run later in the half to jump out to a 47-25 lead that effectively put the game out of reach.

The Scarlet Knights have lost 13-straight games, all in conference play.

Illini forward Maverick Morgan had 17 points, while guard Kendrick Nunn added 16.

Jonathan Laurent led Rutgers with 18 points and 10 rebounds, but the Scarlet Knights shot 29 percent from the 3-point range and struggled to get anything going offensively. Mike Williams and Bishop Daniels added 15 points apiece.