The No. 3 Fighting Illini Football team (1-0) started off their season with a blowout win against Fairleigh Dickinson University (0-1), 120-45 Monday night. The program record: 19 threes made and 51 threes attempted.
Back like they never left
As fans stood cheering for the former Final Four team, the Illini started off on a 19-point scoring run. It took four minutes for FDU to get a point on the scoreboard, as Illinois ‘ intense defense held firm. After a dunk by freshman guard Quentin Coleman that sent State Farm Center into a frenzy, FDU had to take their first timeout.
But just as things were going so smoothly for Illinois, they were hit with another setback as senior forward Jake Davis headed to the locker room holding his left shoulder. Davis collided with FDU in a screen that sent him out of the play and straight to the sideline. The Illini have already been hit with multiple injuries, including sophomore forward David Mirkovic, who needed an emergency appendix removal prior to the season opener.
As the game continued, FDU would continue to struggle to stop Illinois’ offense as they would be trailing 38 to 12 halfway through the first half. Even with a 26-point lead, the Illini would not give FDU any breathing room as they engaged in a full-court press to not let the Knights get a run going.
As the game progressed, Illinois’ lead began to grow, scoring another 24 points in a row. The Illini would go into halftime up by nearly 50 points with eight players on the scoreboard. As for FDU, they headed into the locker room trying to figure out how to improve their shooting performance as they shot 6% from the 3-point range on 17 shot attempts.
As the second half began, Coleman took over, adding eight points to the score. Illinois would eventually go up by 70 points. Colemon would end with 13 points and 10 rebounds in his first game as an Illini.
Senior guard Andrej Sojakovic and sophomore guard Stefan Vaaks led Illinois in scoring with 20 points each. Illinois would also have six different players in double digits.
Key Stat
Illinois lit up the scoreboard, but they made their presence known on the glass. The Illini had more rebounds than FDU had points. Illinois would haul in 65 rebounds compared to FDU’s 21.
22 of them came on the offensive side, which allowed them to score 31 points on second-chance points.
Up Next
The Illini take the court at State Farm Center once again this week for an NCAA Round 1 rematch against Penn on Thursday at 7:30 PM.