Illinois didn’t start this game off on the right foot. They got down 5-0 within the first two minutes. They did manage to tie the game up at 6-6, but then a scoring drought happened for the Illini. Iowa started to put the ball in the hoop as well. That is not a good combination.
The next time Illinois would score was a Trent Frazier layup at the 10:39 mark in the first half. This brought the score back to 18-8 in favor of Iowa. Illinois tried to fight the entire first half, but the Hawkeyes continued to keep their distance.