The top spot in the Big Ten will be on the line Wednesday when No. 18 Illinois hosts No. 11 Wisconsin in Champaign, Ill., the only regular-season matchup between the two.
Wisconsin (17-3, 8-2 Big Ten), coming off a 66-60 home victory over Minnesota on Sunday, will be playing its third game in seven days.
Illinois (15-5, 8-2) rallied for a 59-56 victory at Northwestern on Saturday, overcoming a 51-46 deficit over the final 5:36. The Illini were bolstered by the return of 7-foot junior center Kofi Cockburn, who had 22 points and nine rebounds. Cockburn had missed the two previous games due to concussion protocol.
“He’s a competitor, he’s a winner, he’s a guy that’s going to fight you,” Illinois coach Brad Underwood said. “And to be honest, we ran some actions that we haven’t ran in a while because we haven’t had him.”
A second-team All-American last season and the preseason pick as Big Ten player of the year, Cockburn is averaging 21.1 points and 11.6 rebounds per game. He is joined by Oakland’s Jamal Cain as the nation’s only players averaging at least 20 points and 10 rebounds.
Cockburn presents a challenge for Wisconsin’s 7-foot tandem of Steven Crowl and Chris Vogt.
Cockburn had 42 points and 21 rebounds in the Ilini’s two-game sweep of Wisconsin last season.
Illinois, which averages 77.2 points, has four other players averaging in double figures — Alfonso Plummer (15.8 points per game), Trent Frazier (13.1), Jacob Grandison (10.7) and Andre Curbelo (10.2).
Freshman RJ Melendez contributed six points and three rebounds in 16 minutes against Northwestern, and freshman Brandin Podziemski — the 2021 Wisconsin Mr. Basketball — had five points in six minutes.
The Badgers, who have won nine of their past 10, turned back Minnesota when Johnny Davis scored the final six points after the game was tied 60-60 with 2 1/2 minutes remaining. Davis finished with 16 points and 15 rebounds, including a crucial offensive board with just over a minute left.
“In that situation, Johnny’s a really good player — stating the obvious there — but to put the ball in his hands and let him make a play, it’s what you try to do,” Wisconsin coach Greg Gard said. “It’s not rocket science. He’s a really good player and you give him the ball.”
Davis is putting up 21.4 points and 7.9 rebounds per game. Brad Davison contributes 15.7 points for the Badgers, and Tyler Wahl averages 10.8 points and 5.8 rebounds. Davison, who became Wisconsin’s all-time leader in 3-pointers made in a 73-65 win at Nebraska on Thursday, is 15 of 27 from beyond the arc over the past three games.
Crowl has scored at least nine points in seven straight games. Freshman guard Chucky Hepburn has just 25 turnovers while playing 31 minutes per game.
The Badgers have shot 42.7 percent (47 of 110) from 3-point range over the past five conference games after shooting 24.5 percent (27 of 110) in the first five.
Wisconsin is 10-1 in games decided by six points or fewer.
“They understand the importance of every possession,” Gard said of his players. “They don’t panic. They listen and execute coming out of timeouts really well. And obviously you have to have good players.”
Illinois has won its past three meetings against Wisconsin — after the Badgers had won 15 straight in the series.
–Field Level Media
