Ohio State faces Illinois in Big Ten men’s finals

Illinois players celebrate a win in a Big Ten Men's Basketball Tournament semifinal game against Iowa on Saturday, March 13 at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis. (IBJ photo/Mickey Shuey)

Ohio State (21-8, 15-8) vs. Illinois (22-6, 18-4)

Big Ten Conference Men’s Basketball Tournament Championship, Lucas Oil Stadium, Indianapolis; Sunday, 2:30 p.m.

BOTTOM LINE: Ohio State University is set to take on the University of Illinois in the championship of the Big Ten tourney. The teams split the regular season series at one win apiece. The teams last played each other on March 6, when the Fighting Illini shot 51.9% from the field while holding Ohio State to just 40% en route to a 73-68 victory.

SUPER SENIORS: Ohio State’s Justice Sueing, Kyle Young and CJ Walker have combined to score 34% of the team’s points this season, including 45% of all Buckeyes scoring over the last five games.

OFFENSIVE THREAT: Ayo Dosunmu has either made or assisted on 44% of all Illinois field goals over the last three games. The junior guard has 22 field goals and 18 assists in those games.

ASSIST DISTRIBUTION: The Buckeyes have recently gotten baskets via assists more often than the Illini. Illinois has 50 assists on 91 field goals (54.9%) across its past three contests while Ohio State has assists on 51 of 82 field goals (62.2%) during its past three games.

DID YOU KNOW: The Ohio State offense has recorded a turnover on only 15.7% of its possessions, which is the 20th-lowest rate in the nation. The Illinois defense has forced opposing teams to turn the ball over on just 16.4% of all possessions (ranked 315th among Division I teams).

SATURDAY’S GAMES

No. 3 Illinois gets past No. 5 Iowa, into Big Ten title game

Illinois center Kofi Cockburn learned some hard lessons dueling with Luka Garza as a freshman.

On Saturday, he stood up to Iowa’s career scoring leader—and won.

Cockburn scored 18 of his 26 points in the first half, fought through foul trouble in the second half and challenged Garza physically while leading No. 3 Illinois past No. 5 Iowa 82-71 on Saturday. The victory sends the Illini to the Big Ten Tournament championship game.

“I thought Kofi was just great,” coach Brad Underwood said. “I thought the job he did in the first half, he was just dominant and not just because he had 18 points but because of his defense.”

Illinois (22-6) has won six straight, with three coming against top-10 foes. If Illinois wins one more, against No. 9 Ohio State on Sunday, it would claim its first tourney title since 2005.

But it was the matchup between Cockburn and Garza that was one of the prime reasons why Illinois’ boisterous fans made the short trek across the state line to Indianapolis. They made themselves at home, cheering loudly each time Cockburn made a play, while booing the foul calls against Illinois.

And Cockburn made sure Garza worked for everything he got. Garza finished with 21 points and 12 rebounds for Iowa (21-7). The Big Ten Player of the Year went 8 for 21 from the field and dealt with his own foul trouble in the second half.

Cockburn, meanwhile, made 11 of 21 shots.

“It’s tough,” Garza said. “You know he’s a tremendous big man. We’re both being physical with each other. It’s just it’s what I’m going to have to deal with and I’ve been dealing with in the Big Ten for a while now.”

The difference was Cockburn’s supporting cast.

Ayo Dosunmu had 18 points, seven rebounds and nine assists. Freshman guard Andre Curbelo added 12 points, seven rebounds, three assists and three steals.

A 9-0 run midway through the first half gave Illinois a 22-14 lead that it never surrendered. The Illini led 45-37 at the break and then opened the second half on an 8-2 spurt that featured two big baskets from Jacob Grandison.

Iowa couldn’t get closer than five rest of the way.

“I wanted to make him score through me, always putting my body on him,” Cockburn said before turning his attention on some unfinished business. “It’s that Mamba mentality, that Kobe [Bryant] mentality that we’re not through. We’ve got a long way to go.”

No. 9 Buckeyes edge No. 4 Michigan, make Big Ten title game

Ohio State guard Duane Washington Jr. just wanted a second chance at his home-state team.

On Saturday, the former Michigan prep star made sure it counted.

Washington had 24 points, six rebounds and four assists, helping the No. 9 Buckeyes fend off the fourth-ranked Wolverines for a 68-67 victory and a trip to the Big Ten Tournament title game.

“This rivalry means a lot to a lot of our guys, a lot of our Ohio guys,” Buckeyes coach Chris Holtmann said. “Even guys like E.J. [Liddell], who has seen what it means to our fans. Duane feels that, he knows what this game means to our fans. It’s not football, we understand that. But Duane understands it.”

It sure wasn’t easy. For the third straight day, the Buckeyes nearly blew a double-digit lead in the second half.

Michigan (20-4) scored the final seven points and Mike Smith even had a chance to win it with a long jumper with 2 seconds left. Instead, it bounced off the back of the rim and time expired in a scramble for the ball.

The Buckeyes (21-8) advance to play No. 3 Illinois on Sunday, seeking their first title since 2013.

For Washington, it was pure joy. After scoring a career-high 30 points in a 92-87 loss to Michigan on Feb. 21, Washington immediately started talking about a rematch. And he didn’t disappoint, making 5 of 10 3-pointers.

“Today we needed him big, huge and he produced,” Liddell said after scoring 18 points. “That’s why he’s a big-time player.”

Michigan played without starter Isaiah Livers, who is out indefinitely because of a stress fracture in his right foot. Livers was scoreless in 15 minutes in Friday’s victory over Maryland.

Forward Kyle Young, who missed most of the second half Friday for Ohio State after getting hit in the head with an inadvertent elbow, also sat out.

Like most games in this bitter rivalry, it was physical and close.

Ohio State started pulling away when Washington made two 3s and Liddell and C.J. Walker each completed three-point plays during a 14-2 run that made it 56-45 with 8:17 left. The Buckeyes still led 63-50 with 4:19 to go.

Then the Wolverines, behind 21 points and eight rebounds from Hunter Dickinson, charged back. They scored four straight to make it 67-60 and took advantage of one missed free throw, a missed dunk and back-to-back turnovers to make it 68-67. When the Buckeyes turned it over again with 28.7 seconds left, the Wolverines had a shot. But Smith’s jumper was long.

“We got exactly what we wanted—Mike for a ball screen, a switch and we got a good look at it,” coach Juwan Howard said. “I’d take that shot every time.”