IOWA CITY, Iowa (AP) — John Groce spent the off-week with his team focused on toughness and togetherness. It’s already paying off.
Malcom Hill scored 21 points and hauled down eight rebounds and Illinois held on for a 70-66 win over Iowa on Saturday.
The Illini took the lead in the final minutes on a Hill layup and fended off several Iowa chances late to win their second true road game of the season.
“We gave great effort,” Groce said. “It took every ounce of that effort to come out of here with a win. They showed great mental and physical toughness. That’s what I’m most proud of.”
Michael Finke, Jalen Coleman-Lands and Te’Jon Lucas each scored 12 points for the Illini (15-12, 5-9 Big Ten).
Lucas blocked Jordan Bohannon’s go-ahead layup attempt in the final two minutes to protect Illinois’ 62-61 lead, and then Coleman-Lands knocked down a corner 3-pointer with 1:32 left.
Peter Jok had 16 points and 10 rebounds to lead Iowa (14-13, 6-8).
The Hawkeyes have lost three straight.
Iowa had plenty of chances late. The Hawkeyes missed five of their six shots in the final 1:45 and had a nearly seven-minute stretch without a field goal earlier in the second half.
“It usually comes down to a mistake or two,” Iowa coach Fran McCaffery said.
“We did so many good things, and we did some things that obviously weren’t as good, and they capitalized on those.”
Tyler Cook had 14 points and Bohannon added 11 for Iowa.
Big Picture
Illinois: The Illini seems to have turned around their road struggles.
Illinois dropped its first five true road games before wins over Iowa and Northwestern this month.
Groce said nothing has really changed — it's more of a sign of his team staying the course.
Iowa: The inconsistencies continue for the young Hawkeyes.
Iowa’s last nine games have produced two three-game losing streaks and a three-game winning streak.
The Hawkeyes shot only 39 percent from the floor against Illinois.