The start of the game was a little worrisome. The Wildcats hung tough with the Illini and even had an 8-6 lead over five minutes into the game. But knowing how bad this Northwestern program is and how good the Illini are, I knew this game wasn’t going to be too stressful for the fans.
By the 10-minute mark in the first half, Illinois had managed to take the lead back at 16-13. That lead would increase to double-digits by the 7:06 mark. The Wildcats were able to cut the deficit down to six points with under a minute to go, but Trent Frazier increased the Illinois lead to eight by halftime.