Illinois Looked Anything But Rusty In Win Over Minnesota

Kofi Cockburn led the Illini in Minneapolis, securing his eigth double-double of the season with 29 points and 10 rebounds. Illinois shot 46% from the field as Jacob Grandison added 11 points and Alfonso Plummer added 10. Cockburn also had four blocks and two steals against Minnesota.

Despite the extended break, the Illini offense came out balanced in the first half. While Minnesota started the game off with a three-pointer, it didn't take long for Illinois to take over. Jacob Grandison picked off right where he left off and nailed a three before Cockburn hit a short jumper.

An and-1 for Cockburn followed by Alfonso Plummer's first score kept the Illini rolling before Grandison drained another trey to cap off a quick 8-0 run. The Gophers made a free throw and a three in between a jumper for Plummer before the Illini went on another run.

Da'Monte Williams got involved early on Tuesday knocking down a deep shot before Plummer and Cockburn each added layups to go up 22-9. A steal from

Cockburn led to a fastbreak and-1 from Grandison then Cockburn added another layup and the following offensive sequence.

Williams hit his second three of the day, but the Gophers hit consecutive jumpers to get within 12 points. Coleman Hawkins made a layup shortly after then grabbed an offensive rebound just a minute later and hit the putback.

Both teams went scoreless for four minutes before the Gophers went on a 7-0 run, shutting down the Illini for another couple minutes. After several turnovers near the end of the half, the Illini got back on track with a pair of free throws from Plummer then a hook shot from Cockburn.

Minnesota hit one more jumper before the half ended with Illinois up 41-30. But after a sluggish end to the first half, the Illini came out of the break recharged.

Cockburn dominated the second half, starting out with another hook shot then forcing a turnover on the other end which led to a layup from Grandison. A couple minutes later, Cockburn grabbed his own offensive rebound and made the putback and a free throw.

Trent Frazier capped off the Illini run with a layup after Cockburn blocked a Minnesota shot. The Gophers made a couple jumpers after three and a half scoreless minutes, but Frazier countered it with a three. Cockburn went on a small run with a dunk, and and-1 and a lone free throw to give Illinois its biggest lead of the night at 59-34.

While the Illini failed to score for a few minutes, the Gophers made just one jumper before Hawkins scored a layup and Williams hit another three off a

Minnesota turnover. After consecutive shots by Minnesota, Cockburn got physical in the paint, drawing back-to-back fouls and making all four free throws.

With a little over four minutes left in the game, Cockburn sealed the game with a big slam assisted by Williams. Head coach Brad Underwood brought in the bench, leading to scores from Luke Goode, Brandin Podziemski and RJ Melendez.

Illinois has a quick turnaround as it hosts Maryland at State Farm Center on Thursday at 6 p.m. The Illini will also honor former star and current Chicago Bull Ayo Dosunmu by hanging his jersey in the rafters on Thursday.

Illinois moved to 10-3 overall and 3-0 in the Big Ten.

• Illinois is 3-0 in the Big Ten for the first time since the 2010-11 season. 

• Illinois has won its last five Big Ten road games, and 10 of its last 11.

• Illinois has won four straight games against Minnesota and leads the all-time series 127-68.

• Brad Underwood improved to 5-2 against Minnesota. 

• Illinois outrebounded Minnesota, 52-28. Illinois has outrebounded 11 of 13 opponents and ranks second in the NCAA in rebound margin at +14.0 rpg. 

• Illinois outscored Minnesota in the paint, 42-18.

• Illinois is shooting 44.4% from 3-point range over the last eight games, averaging 11.8 makes (106-239). 

• Illinois moved up to ninth nationally in 3-point percentage (.399). The Illini rank 20th in made 3-pointers per game (10.2 avg.). 

• Illinois is averaging 87.3 points over the last eight games (698), leading to a 7-1 record. The Illini rank 26th nationally in scoring offense for the season, averaging 80.8 points. 

• Preseason All-American/Big Ten Player of the Year Kofi Cockburn had 29 points and 10 rebounds, his eighth double-double of the season and 36th of his career. Cockburn is one of just two players averaging at least 20 points and 10 rebounds (Jamal Cain, Oakland).

• Cockburn moved up to second in the nation in scoring at 22.5 ppg. He is the NCAA's third-leading rebounder at 11.9 rpg. 

• Cockburn was 9-for-11 from the free throw line to tie his career high for free throws made and set a career high 82% from the line in a single game (min. 7 attempts). He is shooting 70.4% from the free throw line this season (57-81).

• Cockburn has averaged 28.0 points per game in his last three games against Minnesota (84 points). In those three games, Illinois has won by an average of 27.0 points per game (81).

• Alfonso Plummer is averaging 21.4 points over the last nine games (193), shooting 46.8% from 3-point range (37-79) while averaging 4.1 made threes. Plummer snapped a streak of nine straight games with a made three.

• Jacob Grandison had 11 points on 4-of-5 shooting, including two three pointers. Grandison is averaging 14.8 points over the last six games (89) and making an average of 3.2 threes (19).