Preview: Michigan vs. Illinois

[March 12, 2015]  Few rivalries have produced the dramatic finishes that Michigan and Illinois have since the end of last season. The ninth-seeded Wolverines and eighth-seeded Illini renew acquaintances for the fourth time in less than a year on Thursday when they square off in a second-round Big Ten tournament game in Chicago. Michigan blew a 13-point second-half lead in last season’s second-round matchup with the Illini, but recovered just in time to pull out a 64-63 win en route to runner-up finish.

Each of the teams’ meetings this season went into overtime, with the Wolverines rallying from a 13-point deficit for a 73-65 victory on Dec. 30 and the Illini digging out of a seven-point hole with less than three minutes left to secure a 64-52 win on Feb. 12. Michigan won for only the second time in nine games last weekend, riding a season-high 31 points from freshman Aubrey Dawkins to a 79-69 home victory over last-place Rutgers. The Illini saw their tenuous NCAA Tournament hopes take a hit following Saturday’s 63-58 setback at Purdue and likely need to make a deep run at this event after going 5-11 against the RPI Top 100.

TV: Noon ET, Big Ten Network

ABOUT MICHIGAN (15-15): Dawkins (6.6 points) earned Big Ten Freshman of the Week honors after scoring 52 points on 65.3 percent shooting in two games last week, including 12-of-18 beyond the arc. The 6-6 swingman joined the injured Caris LeVert as the only Wolverines to score 30 points in a game this season and became the first Michigan freshman to reach that mark since Trey Burke scored 30 versus Minnesota on March 9, 2012. Zak Irvin has been one of the few constants in a lineup that has been without LeVert (season-ending foot injury) and Derrick Walton Jr. (toe) since the end of January, averaging 14.9 points in the 10 games during their absence.

ABOUT ILLINOIS (19-12): Three Illini players received conference honors as Nnanna Egwu (1.9 blocks) landed on the league’s all-defensive team while Rayvonte Rice (17 points, 6.4 rebounds) and Malcolm Hill (14.2 points) were honorable mention All-Big Ten picks. Rice, who missed nine games with a hand injury before coming off the bench in the team’s February victory over Michigan, is averaging 22.3 points on 53.8 percent shooting since returning to the starting lineup three games ago. Strong defense played a role in the team’s 6-4 finish to the regular season as the Illini held opponents to 59.4 points and 28.5 percent shooting beyond the arc over that stretch.

TIP-INS

1. The winner of this contest will meet top-seeded Wisconsin in Friday’s quarterfinals.

2. Michigan has won its opening game in the Big Ten tournament in eight straight seasons.

3. Illinois is 35-13 all-time at the United Center, including 16-6 in the Big Ten tournament.

PREDICTION: Illinois 65, Michigan 61

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