The Champaign Room · Feb 17, 2022
Illinois falls flat, Rutgers wins fourth straight
Illinois tried to do something that No. 5 Purdue, No. 18 Ohio State and No. 19 Michigan State couldn’t do: beat Rutgers on the road.
Illinois has the reputation of one of the best road teams in the Big Ten, with wins in 12 of its last 16 road league games — but they could not get it done at the RAC. Rutgers (16-9, 10-5 BIG) never trailed in the game, topping No. 12 Illinois 70-59 on Wednesday night in New Jersey.
The Illini (18-7, 11-4 BIG) had trouble with Rutgers’ physical defense and were dominated on the glass. Aside from Kofi Cockburn, who scored the first seven Illini points of the game and finished with 20, the offense was limited.