Illinois wipes out Nebraska’s double-digit lead in Big Ten semifinal game

LINCOLN, Neb. (KLKN) – Nebraska basketball fell to No. 2 seed Illinois 98-87 on Saturday in the Big Ten tournament.

Nebraska was dominant in the first half in Minneapolis, shooting 58% from the field and 38% from 3-point range.

But the offense sputtered in the second half, with just 36% overall shooting and 18% behind the arc.

The Illini also won the battle of the boards, out-rebounding the Huskers 42-36.

The game stayed close until about the six-minute mark in the first half, when Jamarques Lawrence hit a 3-pointer, then a free throw.

Brice Williams added another 3-pointer seconds later.

The Huskers took a 51-40 lead into halftime.

Their lead grew as large as 15 early in the second half before the Fighting Illini began to fight back.

Illinois went on a 10-0 run, with half of those points coming off free throws from Terrence Shannon Jr.

Keisei Tominaga broke Nebraska’s scoring slump with a driving layup.

The Illini took a 71-70 lead with 8½ minutes left on a Luke Goode 3-pointer.

And they steadily widened that lead. The Illini were up by 15 points with two minutes left.

Williams led Nebraska with 23 points, Tominaga scored 18, and Rienk Mast had 15.

The Huskers will find out where they stand in the NCAA tournament on Sunday.