Ayo Dosunmu's 'Takeover Badge' Carries No. 6 Illini to Overtime Win at Nebraska

Illinois junior guard Ayo Dosunmu dropped 31 points, six assists and four steals in a 42-minute effort to lead No. 6 Illini to an overtime win.

The equation for Illinois to pull off its fifth straight win and avoid a monumental upset loss at Nebraska wasn’t very complicated at all.

Over the last four minutes of regulation and a five-minute overtime period, Illinois’ roster consisted of Ayo Dosunmu and Nebraska’s roster did not.

The No. 6 Illini rode the instantly hot hand of its junior star player to a 77-72 overtime victory in what was just another example of Dosunmu deciding that winning time needed to involve his offensive takeover ability. The preseason All-America candidate continued his ongoing case for National Player of the Year by dropping 31 points, six assists and four steals in a 42-minute effort to be the reason Illinois was able to seal what he and his teammates call a “road kill” Friday night in Lincoln’s Pinnacle Bank Arena.

Illinois Fighting Illini guard Ayo Dosunmu (11) scores against Nebraska Cornhuskers center Eduardo Andre (35) and guard Thorir Thorbjarnarson (34) in the second half at Pinnacle Bank Arena :: Steven Branscombe/USA TODAY Sports

“It’s like a takeover badge that kicks in down the stretch that allows you to do whatever it takes to get a win,” Dosunmu said. “That’s why I was so emotional in the overtime because I knew at that moment we had found a way to get five more minutes to get us this win.”

Illinois head coach Brad Underwood, who is well on the way to his most successful season in his eighth year leading a Division I program, knew to just get out of the way in this contest and not overcomplicate his star simply willing his team to another road victory.

“I don't know what the last chapters are going to look like but the middle ones are damn hellacious,” Underwood said when asked about Friday night about the story of Dosunmu’s college career.

Nebraska, which jumped out to a 9-0 lead and led for 29 of the 45 minutes of action Friday night, simply had no answer for Dosunmu having the basketball from the final media timeout to the final horn.

“They can have all the years on the bench they want to have, they still have to get their players to stop it." - Illinois head coach Brad Underwood on Ayo Dosunmu's final stretch at Nebraska

“They can have all the years on the bench they want to have, they still have to get their players to stop it,” Underwood said. “You put the ball in playmakers hands in order to make plays and sometimes it’s about just going and getting it yourself.”

Once Dosunmu hit a jump shot to bring the Illini (14-5, 10-3 in Big Ten Conference) within three with three minutes and 21 seconds left in regulation, the junior guard had a stretch of 17 points. During that 8-minute period, Dosunmu outscored Nebraska on his own by six points and sent the Cornhuskers (4-12, 0-9) home with its 26th straight loss in Big Ten Conference play.

“We were down two and I missed the front end of a one-and-one and then they came down and hit a three. Now we’re down five with three minutes to go, (Underwood) called a timeout and I thought to myself all right, it’s time to lock in and we’ll be good because trust myself and try to will my team to a victory,” Dosunmu said. “My teammates believe in me to make the right plays. I just go out there and trust in my instincts. It’s easy when your teammates allow you to do what you do best.”

Dosunmu’s late-game heroics matched what he accomplished last year at Wisconsin, at Michigan, at Penn State and came just six days after accomplishing the program’s third ever triple-double effort. Since 1971, when the program began statistically tracking such accomplishments, Illinois has had five players record more than 30 points in a game at least four times in a season and Dosunmu is now part of an elite group of scorers that includes Nick Witherspoon (1973), Andy Kaufmann (1991), Malcolm Hill (2016) and Rick Schmidt (1975).

Illinois Fighting Illini guard Ayo Dosunmu (11) dribbles the ball against Nebraska Cornhuskers guard Trey McGowens (2) in the first half at Pinnacle Bank Arena :: Steven Branscombe/USA TODAY Sports

Illinois’ 10-3 Big Ten record is its best through 13 games since the 2005 Big Ten regular season championship team started 13-0 en route to a 15-1 league record. The Illini have won four straight Big Ten road games, its longest streak since setting a school record with 13 straight Big Ten road wins from Feb. 3, 2004 through Feb. 19, 2005.

Nebraska had a 64-58 lead with three minutes and 21 seconds left in regulation after Lat Mayen hit a contested three-pointer to give the home team thoughts of ending a 403-day drought between Big Ten Conference victories. Mayen’s triple was one of two Nebraska field goals over the final eight and a half minutes of the game. The TCU and junior college transfer from Australia led Nebraska with 16 points including three three-point shots.

Illinois sophomore center Kofi Cockburn had his 14th double-double of the season, finishing with 21 points and 13 rebounds while tying his season high with four blocks. Cockburn’s 14 double-doubles ranks second in the NCAA, behind only Austin Peay’s Terry Taylor with 15. Cockburn has posted double-doubles in 11 of 13 Big Ten games, averaging 18.9 points and 11.4 rebounds during league play while shooting 69 percent from the field.

This game was originally scheduled for Jan. 13 when Nebraska’s program was on pause because of positive COVID-19 cases. Illinois was slated to face current Big Ten leader Michigan Thursday, but the Wolverines' pause created a scheduling window for this matchup. Illinois will be favored to make it six wins in a row when they host Northwestern on Tuesday night for a 8 p.m. tip.