KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Freshman Kasparas Jakucionis scored a season-high 23 points, Tomislav Ivisic had 21 points and 10 rebounds and Illinois beat No. 19 Arkansas 90-77 on Thursday in the Thanksgiving Hoops Showcase.
Jakucionis hit two free throws to give Illinois a double-digit lead with 3 minutes, 49 seconds remaining. Arkansas had a turnover and a missed jumper on its next two possessions, and Jakucionis hit an open 3-pointer to make it 85-71 at the 2:42 mark.
Kylan Boswell added 18 points for Illinois (6-1). Coach Brad Underwood broke a tie with J. Craig Ruby (1922-36) for fifth place in program history with 149 wins.
Adou Thiero scored 26 points for Arkansas (5-2) but went 12 of 21 from the line. Zvonimir Ivisic — Tomislav’s twin brother — had 13 points, six rebounds and two blocks for the Razorbacks.
Takeaways
Tomislav Ivisic won the battle against his twin. Along with his double-double, he made 6 of 9 3-pointers and blocked three shots. The 7-foot-1 center, playing his first college season, had 13 points and seven rebounds in the first half.
Key moment
Illinois started the game on a 21-6 run and maintained at least a nine-point lead the rest of the way. Ben Humrichous made the Illini’s fifth 3-pointer with 12:36 left in the first half, while Arkansas was 3 of 9 from the field.
Key stat
Illinois made 55% of its shots in the first half, including 9 of 16 from 3-point range, while Arkansas was 0-for-7 from long distance and shot 44% overall. The Illini finished 15 of 31 from distance. Arkansas shot 5 of 17 beyond the arc.
Up next
Arkansas plays at Miami in the second SEC/ACC Challenge on Tuesday. Illinois plays at Northwestern on Dec. 6 to begin Big Ten play.
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