John Tonje scored 31 points and No. 11 Wisconsin beat Illinois 95-74 on Tuesday night to earn its fifth straight victory and end its recent run of futility in this series.
Wisconsin (21-5, 11-4 Big Ten) had lost its last nine matchups with the Fighting Illini, including an 86-80 defeat Dec. 10 at Illinois. Wisconsin had won 15 straight meetings immediately before that stretch.
Tonje’s big performance came three nights after he had 32 points in a 94-84 win at No. 13 Purdue, which was ranked seventh at the time. He’s the fourth player in school history to score at least 30 points in consecutive games.
Wisconsin’s Steven Crowl added a season-high 20 points to go along with seven rebounds and five assists. John Blackwell had 16 points.
Dra Gibbs-Lawhorn had 17 points, Ben Humrichous 13 and Will Riley 11 for Illinois (17-10, 9-8).
Illinois Fighting Illini vs. No. 11 Wisconsin Badgers Highlights | FOX College Hoops
Takeaways
Illinois: The Illini didn’t have second-leading rebounder Morez Johnson Jr. due to a broken wrist. Tomislav Ivisic, Illinois’ top rebounder and second-leading scorer, had seven points and three rebounds while playing through an illness.
Wisconsin: The Badgers are scoring 82 points per game and are on pace for their highest average since 1970-71, when they had a school-record 86.3 points per game. This was their 15th game with at least 80 points.
Key moment
Blackwell made three straight baskets to turn a 13-all tie into a 19-13 Badgers lead. Wisconsin stayed ahead the rest of the way.
Key stat
Wisconsin had a 39-30 rebounding edge. Illinois came in with a plus-9.7 rebound margin that ranked second among all Division I teams — behind only Milwaukee. Illinois outrebounded Wisconsin 40-29 on Dec. 10.
Up next
Illinois faces No. 3 Duke in New York on Saturday on FOX, while Wisconsin hosts Oregon.
Reporting by The Associated Press.
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