OHIOST

ILL

Liddell, No. 21 Ohio St power past No. 14 Illinois 87-81

AP
Jan 17, 2021

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. (AP) E.J. Liddell scored 26 points and No. 21 Ohio State Buckeyes beat No. 14 Illinois Fighting Illini 87-81 in a brutal Big Ten matchup on Saturday.

The game was especially physical in the second half. One technical was called, on Ohio State's Duane Washington Jr., and the officials had to step in many times to avoid fights.

Illinois, often mentioned as a possible Final Four team, sustained back-to-back losses for the first time this season.

''We had tremendous respect for this Illinois team and came in knowing they were coming off a tough loss (to unranked Maryland),'' Ohio State coach Chris Holtmann said. ''It's obviously a win we feel proud of and are excited about.''

Washington, Justin Ahrens and Seth Towns each added 11 for Ohio State (11-3, 5-3). The Buckeyes were missing injured guards C.J. Walker and Jimmy Sotos.

Ayo Dosunmu led Illinois (9-5, 5-3) with 22 points. Kofi Cockburn scored 15 and freshman Adam Miller added 14 points for the Illini.

Illinois closed to 83-81 with 15.5 seconds left on a long 3-pointer by Miller.

On the Buckeyes' inbound pass, replays showed Washington clearly stepped out of bounds with the ball. But a foul was called on Trent Frazier and Washington sank both free throws to make it 85-81.

''I didn't get a chance to look at it,'' Illinois coach Brad Underwood said. ''It's not a reviewable play anyway.''

Ohio State scored 10 straight points for a 10-2 lead. In a first half marked by runs and inconsistent play, the Buckeyes led 43-28 at the break.

GETTING PHYSICAL

Liddell and Cockburn jostled and shoved each other all game. Several times they exchanged heated words.

''Kofi needs to get used to that,'' a clearly frustrated Underwood said. ''I have to give (Ohio State) credit. They came in here and smacked us in the mouth.''

Liddell sang Cockburn's praises after the game.

''Kofi is a fast dude. He gets position really well. He's really good,'' Liddell said of the 7-footer from Jamaica. ''Our focus was the defensive end. We did everything on defense, got stops, so that helped our momentum on offense.''

BIG PICTURE

Liddell and Ohio State managed to confound Illinois big man Cockburn for most of the game. It was arguably the worst half for Illinois this season, other than perhaps the Jan. 7 Northwestern game, when Illinois also trailed by 15 before rallying to win.

''There will be some rough meetings this week,'' Underwood said. ''We can't have anymore of these flat, lifeless, noncompetitive games. We're one of the best teams in the country and we need to start showing it.''

POLL IMPLICATIONS

Ohio State: After a tough win on the road, expect the Buckeyes to move up in the rankings.

Illinois: Will likely fall several slots after another conference loss and a 66-63 defeat at unranked Maryland last Sunday.

UP NEXT

Ohio State: Hosts Purdue on Tuesday. The Boilermakers beat Ohio State 67-60 at Purdue on Dec. 16.

Illinois: Hosts Penn State on Tuesday. The Illini defeated Penn State 98-81 on Dec. 23.

---

More AP college basketball: https://apnews.com/hub/college-basketball and https://twitter.com/AP-Top25

1st Half
OSU
Buckeyes
43
ILL
Fighting Illini
28

Time		Play	Score
20:00		E.J. Liddell vs. Kofi Cockburn (Fighting Illini gains possession)
19:43	+2	Kofi Cockburn makes two point layup (Ayo Dosunmu assists)	0-2
19:23		E.J. Liddell misses two point jump shot
19:21		Kyle Young offensive rebound
19:14	+3	Duane Washington Jr. makes three point jump shot (Kyle Young assists)	3-2
19:06		Da'Monte Williams turnover (bad pass) (Justice Sueing steals)
19:01	+2	Justice Sueing makes two point layup	5-2
18:43		Da'Monte Williams misses two point jump shot
18:41		Justin Ahrens defensive rebound
18:30	+2	E.J. Liddell makes two point jump shot	7-2
18:09		Kyle Young personal foul (Kofi Cockburn draws the foul)
17:50		Ayo Dosunmu misses two point jump shot
17:48		E.J. Liddell defensive rebound
17:37	+3	E.J. Liddell makes three point jump shot (Kyle Young assists)	10-2
17:08	+2	Trent Frazier makes two point jump shot	10-4
16:48		E.J. Liddell misses three point jump shot
16:46		Ayo Dosunmu defensive rebound
16:39	+2	Kofi Cockburn makes two point layup (Trent Frazier assists)	10-6
16:14		Justice Sueing misses two point jump shot
16:12		Adam Miller defensive rebound
16:01	+2	Ayo Dosunmu makes two point layup	10-8
15:39		E.J. Liddell misses two point jump shot
15:37		Kofi Cockburn defensive rebound
15:31		Trent Frazier misses two point jump shot
15:29		Kofi Cockburn offensive rebound
15:21		Kofi Cockburn turnover (lost ball) (Justice Sueing steals)
15:08		Duane Washington Jr. offensive foul
15:08		Duane Washington Jr. turnover
15:08		TV timeout
14:46	+2	Giorgi Bezhanishvili makes two point hook shot	10-10
14:21	+2	Zed Key makes two point layup (Justice Sueing assists)	12-10
14:04	+2	Giorgi Bezhanishvili makes two point hook shot	12-12
13:34	+3	Seth Towns makes three point jump shot	15-12
13:10		Giorgi Bezhanishvili misses two point hook shot
13:08		Seth Towns defensive rebound
13:00		Duane Washington Jr. misses two point layup
12:58		Andre Curbelo defensive rebound
12:53	+3	Jacob Grandison makes three point jump shot (Andre Curbelo assists)	15-15
12:28		Jacob Grandison shooting foul (Justice Sueing draws the foul)
12:28	+1	Justice Sueing makes regular free throw 1 of 2	16-15
12:28	+1	Justice Sueing makes regular free throw 2 of 2	17-15
12:22		Coleman Hawkins offensive foul
12:22		Coleman Hawkins turnover
11:56	+2	Seth Towns makes two point jump shot	19-15
11:40		Jacob Grandison misses two point jump shot
11:38		Seth Towns defensive rebound
11:32		Jacob Grandison blocks Meechie Johnson Jr.'s two point layup
11:30		Buckeyes offensive rebound
11:32		TV timeout
11:24	+3	Meechie Johnson Jr. makes three point jump shot (E.J. Liddell assists)	22-15
11:08		Adam Miller misses three point jump shot
11:06		Kofi Cockburn offensive rebound
10:49		Giorgi Bezhanishvili misses three point jump shot
10:47		Kyle Young defensive rebound
10:32	+2	E.J. Liddell makes two point jump shot	24-15
10:21		Andre Curbelo turnover (bad pass)
10:13	+3	E.J. Liddell makes three point jump shot (Meechie Johnson Jr. assists)	27-15
10:11		Fighting Illini 30 second timeout
9:52		Ayo Dosunmu misses two point jump shot
9:50		E.J. Liddell defensive rebound
9:23	+3	E.J. Liddell makes three point jump shot (Meechie Johnson Jr. assists)	30-15
8:57		E.J. Liddell personal foul (Kofi Cockburn draws the foul)
8:45		Adam Miller misses three point jump shot
8:43		Zed Key defensive rebound
8:30		Duane Washington Jr. misses three point jump shot
8:28		Da'Monte Williams defensive rebound
8:28		Kyle Young personal foul (Da'Monte Williams draws the foul)
8:12	+2	Adam Miller makes two point layup (Ayo Dosunmu assists)	30-17
7:42	+2	Zed Key makes two point hook shot	32-17
7:30	+2	Ayo Dosunmu makes two point driving layup	32-19
7:06	+2	Zed Key makes two point hook shot	34-19
6:44		Ayo Dosunmu misses two point jump shot
6:42		Kofi Cockburn offensive rebound
6:41		Musa Jallow personal foul (Kofi Cockburn draws the foul)
6:41		TV timeout
6:34		Ayo Dosunmu misses three point jump shot
6:32		Zed Key defensive rebound
6:11		Ayo Dosunmu personal foul (Justin Ahrens draws the foul)
5:54		Duane Washington Jr. misses two point jump shot
5:52		Zed Key offensive rebound
5:39		Musa Jallow misses two point dunk
5:39		Adam Miller defensive rebound
5:39		Giorgi Bezhanishvili turnover (lost ball) (Zed Key steals)
5:08		Andre Curbelo turnover (back court violation)
4:54		Zed Key misses two point layup
4:52		Justice Sueing offensive rebound
4:47		Justice Sueing misses two point layup
4:45		Andre Curbelo defensive rebound
4:46		Justin Ahrens personal foul (Andre Curbelo draws the foul)
4:46		Andre Curbelo misses regular free throw 1 of 1
4:46		Zed Key defensive rebound
4:17		Duane Washington Jr. misses three point jump shot
4:15		Buckeyes turnover (shot clock violation)
3:52	+3	Trent Frazier makes three point jump shot (Jacob Grandison assists)	37-22
3:31		Justice Sueing turnover (traveling)
3:17		Jacob Grandison misses three point jump shot
3:17		Jacob Grandison misses three point jump shot
3:15		Duane Washington Jr. defensive rebound
3:07	+2	Justin Ahrens makes two point jump shot	39-22
2:58		Adam Miller misses three point jump shot
2:56		E.J. Liddell defensive rebound
2:45		Duane Washington Jr. misses two point layup
2:43		Seth Towns offensive rebound
2:40		Seth Towns misses two point tip shot
2:38		Adam Miller defensive rebound
2:32	+3	Adam Miller makes three point jump shot (Trent Frazier assists)	39-25
2:07		Seth Towns turnover (lost ball) (Adam Miller steals)
1:54		E.J. Liddell personal foul (Kofi Cockburn draws the foul)
1:54		Kofi Cockburn misses regular free throw 1 of 1
1:54		Justice Sueing defensive rebound
1:36		Justin Ahrens turnover (bad pass) (Ayo Dosunmu steals)
1:29		Ayo Dosunmu misses two point layup
1:27		Meechie Johnson Jr. defensive rebound
1:22		Jacob Grandison personal foul (Kyle Young draws the foul)
1:22		Buckeyes turnover (5-second violation)
1:08		Trent Frazier misses two point jump shot
1:06		Justice Sueing defensive rebound
0:51		Justin Ahrens misses three point jump shot
0:49		Justice Sueing offensive rebound
0:48	+2	Justice Sueing makes two point putback layup	41-25
0:34		Justin Ahrens shooting foul (Adam Miller draws the foul)
0:34	+1	Adam Miller makes regular free throw 1 of 3	41-26
0:34	+1	Adam Miller makes regular free throw 2 of 3	41-27
0:34	+1	Adam Miller makes regular free throw 3 of 3	41-28
0:06	+2	Duane Washington Jr. makes two point driving layup	43-28
0:01		Trent Frazier misses three point jump shot
0:00		End of period

2nd Half
OSU
Buckeyes
44
ILL
Fighting Illini
53

Time		Play	Score
19:34	+3	E.J. Liddell makes three point step back jump shot	46-28
19:15		Trent Frazier misses three point jump shot
19:13		Justice Sueing defensive rebound
19:05		Justice Sueing misses two point turnaround jump shot
19:03		Kofi Cockburn defensive rebound
18:53	+3	Da'Monte Williams makes three point jump shot (Ayo Dosunmu assists)	46-31
18:34		Justice Sueing turnover (lost ball)
18:27	+2	Ayo Dosunmu makes two point layup	46-33
17:58		E.J. Liddell misses three point jump shot
17:57		Buckeyes turnover (shot clock violation)
16:09	+1	Ayo Dosunmu makes regular free throw 2 of 2	50-39
15:12		Duane Washington Jr. misses three point jump shot
15:10		Kofi Cockburn defensive rebound
14:42	+2	Andre Curbelo makes two point driving layup	50-43
14:22	+2	Kyle Young makes two point driving layup	52-43
14:15		Kofi Cockburn offensive foul (E.J. Liddell draws the foul)
14:15		Kofi Cockburn turnover
14:06		Duane Washington Jr. misses two point layup
14:04		Fighting Illini defensive rebound
13:54	+2	Giorgi Bezhanishvili makes two point layup (Andre Curbelo assists)	52-45
13:54		Justin Ahrens shooting foul (Giorgi Bezhanishvili draws the foul)
13:54	+1	Giorgi Bezhanishvili makes regular free throw 1 of 1	52-46
13:33	+2	E.J. Liddell makes two point jump shot (Justice Sueing assists)	54-46
13:20		Andre Curbelo misses three point jump shot
13:18		Ayo Dosunmu offensive rebound
13:12		Da'Monte Williams misses three point jump shot
13:10		E.J. Liddell defensive rebound
13:05		Andre Curbelo personal foul (Justice Sueing draws the foul)
12:59	+2	E.J. Liddell makes two point jump shot (Duane Washington Jr. assists)	56-46
12:52		Meechie Johnson Jr. personal foul (Giorgi Bezhanishvili draws the foul)
12:32	+2	Ayo Dosunmu makes two point pullup jump shot	56-48
12:12		Duane Washington Jr. turnover (traveling)
12:02		Ayo Dosunmu misses two point jump shot
12:00		Kofi Cockburn offensive rebound
11:58		Duane Washington Jr. flagrant 1 (Kofi Cockburn draws the foul)
11:58		TV timeout
11:58		Kofi Cockburn misses flagrant free throw 1 of 2
11:58		Kofi Cockburn misses flagrant free throw 2 of 2
11:53		Kofi Cockburn offensive foul (Zed Key draws the foul)
11:53		Kofi Cockburn turnover
11:38	+3	Justin Ahrens makes three point jump shot (Justice Sueing assists)	59-48
11:22		Andre Curbelo misses three point jump shot
11:20		Adam Miller offensive rebound
11:14		Zed Key personal foul (Kofi Cockburn draws the foul)
10:58		Zed Key personal foul (Kofi Cockburn draws the foul)
10:51		Kofi Cockburn turnover (bad pass) (Justin Ahrens steals)
10:40		Seth Towns misses three point jump shot
10:38		Adam Miller defensive rebound
10:32		Trent Frazier turnover (bad pass) (Seth Towns steals)
10:28	+2	Seth Towns makes two point driving layup	61-48
10:28		Adam Miller shooting foul (Seth Towns draws the foul)
10:28	+1	Seth Towns makes regular free throw 1 of 1	62-48
10:13	+2	Giorgi Bezhanishvili makes two point hook shot	62-50
10:06		Official timeout
9:41		Justice Sueing misses two point jump shot
9:39		E.J. Liddell offensive rebound
9:34	+2	E.J. Liddell makes two point putback layup	64-50
9:13		Ayo Dosunmu misses two point jump shot
9:11		TV timeout
8:53		Justin Ahrens misses three point jump shot
8:51		Trent Frazier defensive rebound
8:22		Trent Frazier misses two point jump shot
8:20		Ayo Dosunmu offensive rebound
8:19		Kyle Young personal foul (Ayo Dosunmu draws the foul)
8:19	+1	Ayo Dosunmu makes regular free throw 1 of 2	64-51
8:19	+1	Ayo Dosunmu makes regular free throw 2 of 2	64-52
7:50		Kyle Young misses three point jump shot
7:48		Ayo Dosunmu defensive rebound
7:24	+3	Trent Frazier makes three point jump shot	64-55
7:13	+3	Justin Ahrens makes three point jump shot (Kyle Young assists)	67-55
7:01	+2	Kofi Cockburn makes two point layup (Da'Monte Williams assists)	67-57
6:37		Kofi Cockburn shooting foul (Zed Key draws the foul)
6:37		TV timeout
6:37	+1	Zed Key makes regular free throw 1 of 2	68-57
6:37	+1	Zed Key makes regular free throw 2 of 2	69-57
6:21		Trent Frazier misses three point jump shot
6:19		Kofi Cockburn offensive rebound
6:16	+2	Kofi Cockburn makes two point putback layup	69-59
5:47	+2	Kyle Young makes two point driving layup	71-59
5:30	+3	Adam Miller makes three point jump shot (Trent Frazier assists)	71-62
5:00		E.J. Liddell misses two point jump shot
4:58		Da'Monte Williams defensive rebound
4:51		Da'Monte Williams misses three point jump shot
4:50		Kofi Cockburn offensive rebound
4:50		E.J. Liddell shooting foul (Kofi Cockburn draws the foul)
4:50		Kofi Cockburn misses regular free throw 1 of 2
4:50	+1	Kofi Cockburn makes regular free throw 2 of 2	71-63
4:42	+3	Justin Ahrens makes three point jump shot (Justice Sueing assists)	74-63
4:12	+2	Ayo Dosunmu makes two point driving jump shot	74-65
3:44		Duane Washington Jr. turnover (bad pass) (Trent Frazier steals)
3:39		E.J. Liddell personal foul (Ayo Dosunmu draws the foul)
3:39		TV timeout
3:39	+1	Ayo Dosunmu makes regular free throw 1 of 2	74-66
3:39	+1	Ayo Dosunmu makes regular free throw 2 of 2	74-67
3:19	+2	E.J. Liddell makes two point jump shot	76-67
3:00		Ayo Dosunmu misses three point jump shot
2:58		Adam Miller offensive rebound
2:52		Adam Miller misses three point jump shot
2:50		Justice Sueing defensive rebound
2:45		Justice Sueing turnover (lost ball) (Da'Monte Williams steals)
2:36		Ayo Dosunmu misses two point layup
2:34		E.J. Liddell defensive rebound
2:30		Ayo Dosunmu personal foul (E.J. Liddell draws the foul)
2:30	+1	E.J. Liddell makes regular free throw 1 of 2	77-67
2:30		E.J. Liddell misses regular free throw 2 of 2
2:30		Adam Miller defensive rebound
2:17	+2	Kofi Cockburn makes two point dunk (Jacob Grandison assists)	77-69
1:53		E.J. Liddell misses three point jump shot
1:51		Jacob Grandison defensive rebound
1:43		Musa Jallow blocks Adam Miller's three point jump shot
1:41		E.J. Liddell defensive rebound
1:41		Jacob Grandison shooting foul (Musa Jallow draws the foul)
1:41		Musa Jallow misses regular free throw 1 of 2
1:41		Musa Jallow misses regular free throw 2 of 2
1:41		Kofi Cockburn defensive rebound
1:33	+3	Jacob Grandison makes three point jump shot (Ayo Dosunmu assists)	77-72
0:50	+2	Kofi Cockburn makes two point layup (Jacob Grandison assists)	78-74
1:12		Justice Sueing turnover (bad pass)
1:02		Jacob Grandison misses three point jump shot
1:00		Justice Sueing defensive rebound
1:00		Trent Frazier personal foul (Justice Sueing draws the foul)
1:00	+1	Justice Sueing makes regular free throw 1 of 2	78-72
1:00		Justice Sueing misses regular free throw 2 of 2
1:00		Kofi Cockburn defensive rebound
0:50	+2	Kofi Cockburn makes two point layup (Jacob Grandison assists)	78-74
0:32	+1	Justice Sueing makes regular free throw 1 of 2	80-76
0:48		Giorgi Bezhanishvili personal foul (E.J. Liddell draws the foul)
0:48		E.J. Liddell misses regular free throw 1 of 2
0:27	+1	Ayo Dosunmu makes regular free throw 1 of 2	81-77
0:48	+1	E.J. Liddell makes regular free throw 2 of 2	79-74
0:24		Trent Frazier personal foul (Duane Washington Jr. draws the foul)
0:33		Justice Sueing personal foul (Ayo Dosunmu draws the foul)
0:33	+1	Ayo Dosunmu makes regular free throw 1 of 2	79-75
0:33	+1	Ayo Dosunmu makes regular free throw 2 of 2	79-76
0:32		Adam Miller personal foul (Justice Sueing draws the foul)
0:32		Official timeout
0:32	+1	Justice Sueing makes regular free throw 1 of 2	80-76
0:32	+1	Justice Sueing makes regular free throw 2 of 2	81-76
0:27		Justin Ahrens shooting foul (Ayo Dosunmu draws the foul)
0:27	+1	Ayo Dosunmu makes regular free throw 1 of 2	81-77
0:27	+1	Ayo Dosunmu makes regular free throw 2 of 2	81-78
0:24		Trent Frazier personal foul (Duane Washington Jr. draws the foul)
0:24	+1	Duane Washington Jr. makes regular free throw 1 of 2	82-78
0:24	+1	Duane Washington Jr. makes regular free throw 2 of 2	83-78
0:16	+3	Adam Miller makes three point jump shot (Ayo Dosunmu assists)	83-81
0:14		Trent Frazier personal foul (Duane Washington Jr. draws the foul)
0:14	+1	Duane Washington Jr. makes regular free throw 1 of 2	84-81
0:14	+1	Duane Washington Jr. makes regular free throw 2 of 2	85-81
0:07		Ayo Dosunmu misses two point jump shot
0:05		Musa Jallow defensive rebound
0:02		Ayo Dosunmu personal foul (Musa Jallow draws the foul)
0:02	+1	Musa Jallow makes regular free throw 1 of 2	86-81
0:02	+1	Musa Jallow makes regular free throw 2 of 2	87-81
0:00		End of period

+ 1

Musa Jallow makes regular free throw 2 of 2