Road Warriors! No. 11 Arizona Basketball outlasts Illinois

CHAMPAIGN, IL – Overcoming travel issues, inclement weather, and a raucous environment, No. 11 Arizona Basketball (9-0, 1-0) outlasted Illinois 83-79. 

Road Warriors! No. 11 Arizona Basketball traveled over 1,500 miles to Champaign, IL, dealt with their plane rerouting, faced charter delays into Champaign due to a tornado warning, and even withstood a 19-0 run by Illinois to come away with a gutsy, 83-79 win.

We knew this is a good Arizona team, but seldom tested, we didn’t know how good this group is. That is until this past Saturday when the Wildcats had all that they could handle and then some against a talented Illinois team.

Arizona started out strong, leading 12-5 after the first four minutes of play, and even maintained a decent lead at 24-18 with 10:21 to play in the first half. However, that is when Illinois came alive, responding with a 19-0 run over the next three minutes of gameplay to lead the Cats by 13 with 7:01 to play in the first half.

Luckily for us, the Cats wouldn’t go quietly, ending the first half on a 14-5 run to pull within four points at the half, preventing this one from being blown wide open.

Going back and forth in the second half, Arizona Basketball would show their resilience, escaping Illinois with a gutsy, 83-79 win to remain unbeaten.

The second-half would be one hell of a competitive half for Arizona Basketball as the Wildcats would open the half on a 5-0 run to take the lead at 43-42. However, Illinois would not let up.

Hitting three after three, the Illini would pull back in front at 47-42 and then maintained their lead at 50-45. But three straight three by the Cats a few minutes later would put Arizona in front 57-50.

Illinois would respond a few more times, taking the lead at 64-61, 68-67, and again at 76-75, but for every punch the Illini had, the Wildcats had a counter punch, taking the lead for good at 77-76 as they ended the game on a 6-3 run to score the four-point win.

It was a big day for virtually every Wildcat playing but no one had a bigger performance than sophomore wing Ben Mathurin. Ben finished his day with 30 points and seven rebounds on 10-17 shooting, while Kerr Kriisa finished with 19 points, eight rebounds, and five assists.

Where do the Wildcats go from here?

Following their win, Arizona improves to 9-0 (1-0) and will have a brief break before returning to action on Wednesday at home against Northern Colorado, followed by their Saturday game against Cal Baptist, which is also at home.

Watch the highlights of the Wildcats’ win!