Illini miss an opportunity
By Jeff Mayfield

[February 25, 2022]   The Illinois Fighting Illini came out flat to start the second half and never fully recovered as they fell to the Ohio State Buckeyes 86-83 last night at the State Farm Center.

The loss really hampers the Illini’s hopes of capturing the Big Ten title outright and may prevent them from even getting a share of the crown.

To make matters worse Coach Brad Underwood was kicked out of the game midway through the second half after some suspiciously confusing calls. Lincoln’s own Geoff Alexander coached the Illini the rest of the game and did a remarkably good job!

3 Stars

Alfonso Plummer-had 26 points on incredible 8 of 10 3-point shooting. It was one of the best long range shooting performances this reporter has ever seen.
Jacob Grandison-continued his resurgence from a mid-season scoring slump with 14 points.

Geoff Alexander-we we’re going to give the 3rd star to Trent Frazier who continues to do everything but sell nachos, but we’re giving it to Illini assistant coach and Lincoln native, Geoff Alexander. The Illini trailed by as many as 16 points late in the game and Alexander guided an amazing comeback attempt that saw Illinois come all the way back with a chance to tie or even win the contest.

Geoff was composed and poised, the situation was never too big for him, and his offensive plays picked OSU a part. The Illini simply ran out of time!

Next up for the Fighting Illini is a road contest at Michigan on Sunday.

[By JEFF MAYFIELD]

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