#19 Illinois Drops Top-20 Battle at #12 Michigan State Emergency USA

EAST LANSING, Mich. – No. 19 Illinois fell to No. 12 Michigan State, 80-78, at Breslin Center on Sunday afternoon.

Will Riley made six of his first eight shots before finishing with 19 points, his ninth-career outing in double figures. Totaling a game-high 16 first-half points to help the Illlini build an early advantage in the contest, Riley also registered six rebounds, two assists, and a block.

Tomislav Ivisic amassed 13 points, five assists, and four rebounds, while Morez Johnson Jr. ended the day with 11 points and six rebounds.

Kylan Boswell nearly posted a double-double, logging 13 points, nine rebounds, four assists, and a steal.

Drab Gibbs-Lawhorn added seven points and tied a career high with four rebounds, all coming on the offensive glass.

Illinois is set for a two-game home swing next week, which begins on Thursday at 8 p.m. CT against Maryland on FS1. A limited number of tickets are still available for the contest at State Farm Center, which are available at FightingIllini.com.

HIGHLIGHTS

PRESS CONFERENCE

POSTGAME NOTES

Player Notes:

• Will Riley scored a game-high 19 points while adding six rebounds and two assists.
  

  • Scored in double-figures for the ninth time this season, and his first since Dec. 29 vs. Chicago State. 
    

    • Poured in a game-high 16 points in the first half, going 6-for-12 from the floor, including 2-for-2 from beyond the arc.

  • Knocked down multiple 3-pointers for the sixth time this season, but only the second time since doing so in six of the team’s first seven games. 

• Tomislav Ivisic scored 13 points to go along with four rebounds and five assists.

  • Reached double-figures in back-to-back games and 12th time this season.

    • Fourth game this season scoring in double figures while also tallying at least four rebounds and four assists.

• Kylan Boswell poured in 13 points and added nine rebounds and four assists.

  • Scored in double-figures for the third consecutive game and the 12th time this season.
  • Secured at least nine boards for the third time this season.
  • Ninth game this season dishing out at least four assists.

• Morez Johnson Jr. came off the bench to score 11 points and grab six rebounds.

  • Reached double-figures scoring for the fourth time this season, his second in Big Ten play

• Dra Gibbs-Lawhorn came off the bench to score seven points and secure four rebounds.

  • Tied his career high in total rebounds, all coming on the offensive glass

• Ben Humrichous scored six points to go along with four rebounds.

  • Has recorded a 3-pointer in every game this season (1 of 2 players in the Big Ten).

Team Notes:

• Starting lineup: Kylan Boswell, Ben Humrichous, Tomislav Ivisic, Kasparas Jakucionis, Tre White
• Illinois moves to 3-3 vs. top-25 opponents this season
• The loss snaps Illinois’ three-game Big Ten road winning streak
• The Illini are 5-3 away from State Farm Center, and 3-2 in true road games
• Illinois outrebounded the Spartans 41-40 and moves to 13-3 on the season when winning the battle of the boards

  • The Illini also had a 15-13 advantage on the offensive glass, scoring 12 second-chance points

• The Illini bench out-scored their Spartan counterparts 40-34
• Illinois shot just 5-for-24 from 3-point range, the team’s second-fewest makes and attempts from beyond the arc this season.