Boiler Down
By Jeff Mayfield

[January 22, 2015]  The University of Illinois Fighting Illini dumped the Purdue Boilermakers 66-57 last night in Champaign. The Illini had two great runs including a 10-5 run to end the game that sent the Boilers packing.

Four Illini players cracked double figures with Malcolm Hill leading the way with 18. Leron Black had a monster double-double game with 15 points and 13 rebounds. Kendrick Nunn added 14 points and Nnanna Egwu tossed in 11. Davis and Octeus led Purdue with 14 points each.

Speaking of Egwu…hats off to the Illini all-time leader in blocked shots! With 5 crucial blocks last night Egwu pushed up his total to 179, passing Deon Thomas’ career mark of 177.

The Illini were down by as much as 8 points in the first half before making a furious run and actually taking a 32-30 lead at halftime, despite hitting just 29% from the field. The team moved its record to 13-7 and 3-4 and helped their chances a little in the process, but they still have a long ways to go. The Illini take to the road and will tackle Minnesota on Saturday.

[By JEFF MAYFIELD]

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