No. 22 Illinois comes west, wipes out No. 9 Oregon
Jan 2, 2025; Eugene, Oregon, USA; Illinois Fighting Illini forward Morez Johnson Jr. (21) dunks against the Oregon Ducks during the second half at Matthew Knight Arena. Mandatory Credit: Craig Strobeck-Imagn Images Ben Humrichous scored 14 of his 18 points in the second half Thursday night and No. 22 Illinois opened its first West Coast swing in the Big Ten Conference with a 109-77 beatdown of ninth-ranked Oregon in Eugene.
Humrichous, an Evansville transfer, sank four of the Fighting Illini's 16 3-pointers. Teammate Tre White stuffed the stat sheet with 20 points, 11 rebounds, four assists and two steals, while freshman Kasparas Jakucionis hit for 16 points and Arizona transfer Kylan Boswell added 15.
Illinois (10-3, 2-1 Big Ten) also got help in the first half from reserves Jake Davis (12 points) and Dra Gibbs-Lawhorn (11). In bagging their third straight impressive win since a two-point loss last month against No. 1 Tennessee, the Illini sank 57.5 percent of their field goals and earned a 43-31 advantage on the boards.
Four players scored in double figures for the Ducks (12-2, 1-2), led by 20 points off the bench from Supreme Cook. Nate Bittle added 13, while Kwame Evans scored 11 points in a reserve role and TJ Bamba hit for 10.
Oregon wasn't bad offensively, committing just 10 turnovers, but simply couldn't keep up with Illinois' blistering shooting.
The Illini wasted no time expanding their seven-point halftime lead, converting 24 of 34 field goals in the second half and reaching the 100-point mark via two foul shots by Jakucionis with 3:37 remaining.
In the night's only matchup of Top 25 teams, it took Illinois a few minutes to get going. It didn't score until Humrichous hit a short jumper at the 16:45 mark and trailed 7-2 before hitting Oregon with a 12-0 run. Gibbs-Lawhorn capped that burst with a driving layup with 13:10 left.
Davis drained a 3-pointer with 7:17 left in the half to put the Illini up by 29-18, their first double-figure lead of the night. The margin reached 11 on two occasions later in the half before the Ducks cut the deficit to 45-38 at the break.
--Field Level Media
Sunday November 16th Top NBA Betting Picks, Predictions
These Are the NBA's Worst Three-Point Shooters Right Now
College Football Week 12 Best Betting Picks, Predictions
- Commanders vs. Dolphins Week 11 Spain Game Top Betting Picks, Predictions
- UFC 322 Betting Preview: Two Plus-Money Plays to Target Saturday Night
- College Football Week 12 Best Betting Picks, Predictions
- Islanders vs. Mammoth Betting Preview and Prediction: November 14 Top NHL Bet
- Thursday Nov. 13 NBA Picks: Cavaliers, Jazz, and Pacers Top Bets
- Jets vs. Patriots Week 11 Thursday Night Football Top Betting Picks, Predictions
- College Basketball Best Bets Wednesday November 12: Top CBB Picks Today

