Illini Comeback Falls Short in Finale at No. 5 Purdue

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WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. — Illinois overcame a 24-point second-half deficit to tie the game with just over a minute to play, but the Illini ultimately fell to No. 5 Purdue, 76-71, in their regular-season finale at Mackey Arena on Sunday afternoon.

The Illini outscored the Boilermakers, 45-29, in the second half and held the hosts without a 3-pointer for the final 21 minutes of play, but they could not pull off the comeback road win.

The Illinois bench changed the game, including an 11-point effort from Sencire Harris. Harris provided a spark in the first half, scoring seven of the team’s first 13 points, while he finished with five rebounds, including three on the offensive glass, and one steal.

Luke Goode came to play in the second half, registering a career-high 10 points and making both of his 3-point attempts. Goode also grabbed three rebounds and tallied one block and one steal.

Coleman Hawkins played a big role in holding Purdue’s Zach Edey to 17 points on 6-for-13 shooting. Hawkins ended his day with a team-high +12, and he also recorded four rebounds, a team-high six assists, two blocks, amd one steal.

Matthew Mayer finished with a team-high 16 points and six rebounds, while he also notched two steals.

RJ Melendez continued his recent resurgence with seven points, four rebounds, two assists, two blocks, and two steals.

Terrence Shannon Jr. knocked down two 3-pointers and finished with 13 points, two assists, and one block.

Illinois (20-11, 11-9) now awaits its seeding for the Big Ten Men’s Basketball Tournament, which gets underway with the first round on Wednesday at United Center in Chicago.

HIGHLIGHTS

POSTGAME NOTES

TEAM NOTES

• Illinois closes the regular season at 20-11 (11-9 B1G)
• The Illini have posted four straight seasons with 20 regular-season wins under head coach Brad Underwood
• Illinois moves to 2-1 on the season against top-10 opponents with wins over No. 2 Texas and No. 8 UCLA
• The Illini are now 12-6 in their last 18 games versus top-10 opponents
• The Illini close the regular season with a 5-4 mark against top-25 ranked opponents
• Illinois, the Big Ten’s winningest team in league play over the last four years, closes the 2022-23 regular season with 55 total wins and 23 road wins.
• Illinois trailed by 21 at halftime and 24 at the 18:44 mark of the…