Illini Feast on Chicago State in 97-38 in Thanksgiving Rout

The dynamic duo of Ayo Dosunmu and Kofi Cockburn leads No. 8 Illinois to easy 97-38 victory over an overmatched Chicago State squad.

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. -- Without much monitoring of records being set, Illinois cruised to a dominating win over an overmatched Chicago State squad.

Illinois, ranked No. 8 in the latest Associated Press Top 25 poll, didn’t need to rely on the 3-point shot in its second game the way it did in its 62-point victory the previous day over North Carolina A&T. In this Thanksgiving in-state matchup, Illinois (2-0) got eight of its first nine baskets via layup or dunk before Illini head coach Brad Underwood demanded the team run through its zone offense before attempting a shot.

22 points for Ayo Dosunmu and @IlliniMBB cruises to an easy win on Thanksgiving.

Highlights vs. Chicago State: pic.twitter.com/9fbUhY1HjE

— Illinois on BTN (@IllinoisOnBTN) November 26, 2020

After connecting on 17 shots from beyond the 3-point arc the day before, Illinois found itself being able to get to the rim early and often on Thursday.

A smaller and less athletic frontcourt of Chicago State (0-2), which lost 84-61 to Ohio the previous day in this Illini multi-team event, found it nearly impossible to stop Illinois from driving to the basket and surrendered 52 points in the paint.

Illinois Fighting Illini guard Ayo Dosunmu (11) drives against Chicago State Cougars forward Aaris-Monte Bonds (13) as center Kofi Cockburn (21) defends during the first half at the State Farm Center :: Patrick Gorski/USA TODAY Sports

Ayo Dosunmu, who was named an AP preseason All-America selection, led his team in scoring for the second consecutive game by posting 22 points, six rebounds and seven assists. The Chicago native, who will want to highlight his next-level skills in this junior season to NBA evaluators, spent most of this holiday running point guard responsibilities both in transition and in the halfcourt situations.

Kofi Cockburn, who along with Dosunmu spurned the NBA draft process this summer for another year of college basketball, picked up his second double-double of this 2020-21 season with 14 points and 11 rebounds. Cockburn managed to outrebound the entire Chicago State roster by a 11-10 margin.

Illinois Fighting Illini center Kofi Cockburn (21) goes up for a shot as Chicago State Cougars forward Kalil Whitehead (11) commits a fouls during the first half at the State Farm Center. Illinois won 97-38 in this Thanksgiving game.  :: Patrick Gorski/USA TODAY Sports

The 121-points victory margin across the two games is the largest in school history and easily surpassed Bill Self’s final year in Champaign of 2002-03, when the Illini defeated Leigh and Arkansas Pine Bluff by a combined 87 points. Illinois was just three points off reaching the 100-point mark in consecutive games against Division I competition for the first time since 2015.

According to ESPN, Illinois is the first ranked team since the 1989-90 Oklahoma squad to win its first two games by at least 55 points. The last top-10 team to accomplish this feat was 1972-73 NC State, which finished undefeated that season.

Via @ESPNStatsInfo: Illinois is the first ranked team since 1989-90 Oklahoma to win its first two games by at least 55 points each. And the last top-10 team to do it was 1972-73 NC State, which finished undefeated that season.

— Jeff Borzello (@jeffborzello) November 26, 2020

After breaking the school’s freshman debut record for points scored, Adam Miller managed to drop 15 points in his second career collegiate game but another member of the Illini’s nationally-ranked freshman class shined on this holiday. Former four-star prospect Andre Curbelo had 18 points, seven rebounds and the classic first-year statistic of five turnovers in 20 minutes off the bench.

Chicago State men’s basketball head coach Lance Irvin did not coach today and will not coach in person at all this season after informing the university administration nearly one week ago that he was not comfortable coaching this season due to medical concerns after being a two-time cancer survivor. Chicago State was led by

Illinois will try to finish this multi-team event undefeated in its three games when it takes on Ohio for a noon tip on Big Ten Network.