Live Blog: Follow Indiana's Game Against Illinois in Real Time

Welcome to our live blog for Saturday's game between Indiana and No. 10 Illinois at 3 p.m. ET at the State Farm Center in Champaign, Ill., where we'll share live updates, highlights and thoughts on the game.

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. – Indiana returns from a week-long break to face No. 10 Illinois on Saturday for a 3 p.m. ET tipoff at the State Farm Center.

Coach Mike Woodson and the Hoosiers are coming off a 91-79 loss at Wisconsin on Jan. 19 and enter Saturday's game with a 12-7 overall record and a 4-4 mark in Big Ten play. On the other side, Illinois is 14-5 overall and tied for third in the Big Ten with a 5-3 conference record after a 96-91 overtime loss at Northwestern on Wednesday.

Welcome to our live blog, where we'll share updates, highlights and thoughts on the game live from press row at the State Farm Center.

4:20 p.m. – Final: Illinois 70, Indiana 62. Indiana had its chances, but 12-for-22 at the free throw line and 0-for-9 from 3-point range won't cut it. Indiana is 12-8 overall and 4-5 in the Big Ten. At home against Iowa on Tuesday.

4:16 p.m. – Mgbako gets a good look at a three on an out of bounds play but missed. IU fouls Shannon, and he puts Illinois ahead 68-62 with 19.7 left.

4:14 p.m. – Harmon takes Leal to the basket and finishes the layup. Woodson calls timeout as IU trails 66-62 with 27.6 left. Indiana still hasn't made a 3-pointer today, and it's 12-22 at the free throw line.

4:12 p.m. – Shannon hits both free throws, but Johnson drives and draws a foul on Shannon on the other end. That's Shannon's fourth. Johnson goes 0-for-2 at the line, Illinois leads 64-62 with 58.1 left.

4:09 p.m. – Domask makes a tough turnaround jumper, but Indiana responds with a nice pass from Mgbako to Walker for a layup. After a stop, Mgbako ties the game 62-62 with 1:29 left.

4:08 p.m. – That's the Xavier Johnson Indiana needs. A burst of speed gets Johnson to the basket and draws a foul on Hawkins, his fourth. He missed the free throw, though. Indiana trails 60-58.

4:04 p.m. – Hawkins draws a foul on Reneau, his fifth. That's a killer foul for Indiana, who will have to play the final 3:02 without its leading scorer. Illinois leads 58-56.

4:03 p.m. – Leal makes a strong cut to the basket, and Reneau finds him with a nice pass for a layup. Illinois leads by two with 3:30 left.

4:01 p.m. – Johnson goes 2-for-2 at the free throw line, cutting Illinois' lead to 57-54 with 4:29 left. Walker checks in for Reneau, who I would assume checks back in at the under-4 timeout. Indiana can't afford to go long without him. 

3:57 p.m. – Goode knocks down his third 3-pointer of the game, and he's up to 11 points on the afternoon. After a missed jumper from Johnson, Shannon drives strong to the basket and draws a foul on Mgbako, his fourth. Reneau also has four fouls. Shannon goes 1-for-2 at the line, so Illinois leads 57-52.

3:52 p.m. – Hawkins called for an offensive foul as he backed Walker down and sent him flying with a firm shoulder. Walker may have exaggerated the contact, as well. That's Hawkins' second foul. Illinois leads 53-50 at the under-8.

3:51 p.m. – Both teams struggling from the free throw line today. Indiana is 10-for-17, and Illinois is 7-for-14. Reneau splits the pair that time, so Indiana still trails by a point. Walker checks in to give him a breather with 8:20 left.

3:48 p.m. – Really impressive athleticism from Coleman Hawkins, who came darting in from the perimeter for a put-back layup off a missed three from Harmon. He was fouled in the process, but missed the free throw. Illinois leads 51-49.

3:47 p.m. – Goode beat Mgbako off the dribble and drew a foul while making the layup. He missed the free throw, so the game is tied 49-49 with 9:37 left.

3:43 p.m. – Indiana now 0-for-5 from 3-point range after Galloway and Cupps missed good looks on back-to-back possessions. Johnson and Shannon will check in after the timeout with IU leading by two.

3:42 p.m. – Hawkins swiped the ball from Reneau in the post, and it leads to a Domask layup the other way. Indiana's lead is down to 49-47.

3:38 p.m. – Freshman Dra Gibbs-Lawhorn hits a three from the left wing, then Reneau is called for carrying the ball. Indiana leads 49-45 at the under-12 timeout.

3:36 p.m. – Illinois is really struggling to find its shooting stroke today. They're shooting just 34.1% from the field and 5-for-18 from three. Indiana hasn't made a three today (0-for-3), but the Hoosiers lead by seven.

3:30 p.m. – Indiana is on a 13-0 run now to take a 49-42 lead. Illinois can't stop Reneau inside, and Mgbako continues to be aggressive. Underwood calls timeout.

3:22 p.m. – Mgbako has come out firing in the second half with six quick points. Indiana trailed by six after Domask hit the technical foul free throws, but Indiana has done well to respond.

3:04 p.m. – Officials are saying now that Xavier Johnson received a technical foul for throwing the ball at Coleman Hawkins after making a layup just before halftime. Johnson previously received a Flagrant 2 and was ejected at Rutgers, plus a Flagrant 1 against Purdue. 

3:00 p.m. – Halftime: Illinois 38, Indiana 34 Some chirping and "hold me back" antics from both teams heading into the locker rooms. Indiana led by eight at the 8:13 mark, but Illinois finished the half making its last three 3-point attempts.

2:55 p.m. – Goode hits a three, followed by another three from Justin Harmon. All of a sudden Illinois has a six-point lead after trailing for most of the half. The Harmon three came after a bad turnover from Anthony Walker. 

2:53 p.m – Illinois is having a really tough time defending Malik Reneau, who's got 14 points already. It could be even more, but he's just 2-for-5 at the free throw line. Due to Illinois' roster construction, I'm not sure it has one individual player who can consistently stop Reneau down low, so I wouldn't be surprised if they double-team him more the rest of the game. Tied 30-30 with 2:27 left.

2:51 p.m. – Luke Goode ties the game for the first time since 0-0, then Ty Rodgers gives the Illini their first lead with an and-one layup. The crowd is getting into this one more than it has all game. Illinois leads 29-28.

2:47 p.m. – Indiana caught a big break there. Walker's pass sailed way over Reneau's head, but the Illinois defender caught the errant pass with his foot on the baseline. It'll be Indiana ball after the under-4 timeout, leading 26-23.

2:44 p.m. – Illinois doesn't have anyone that can consistently guard Malik Reneau. He just made a nice move on Hawkins for another layup. Hawkins responds with a three, though, and Indiana's lead is down to 24-23.

2:43 p.m. – Impressive finish by Domask, who backed Leal into the lane, spun and finished off the glass through a foul, Leal's second. Walker checks in for Leal, so Indiana is going big again with Johnson, Galloway, Mgbako, Walker and Reneau. Domask's free throw makes it a 22-20 Indiana lead.

2:42 p.m. – Looked like Cupps and Galloway had different ideas on that possession, as Cupps' pass was stolen by Guerrier, who drew a foul on Cupps going the other way. Galloway answers with a strong layup. IU leads 22-17.

2:39 p.m. – Two early fouls on Terrence Shannon could have a big impact on this game. He leads the Illini in scoring and is one of the best guards in the country.

2:33 p.m. – I can't say for sure, but this might be the first time all year Indiana has used a lineup of Cupps, Leal, Galloway, Mgbako and Sparks. On the first possession, Galloway missed a good look at a three, but Mgbako snatched the offensive rebound. He got fouled then made both free throws. IU leads 20-12.

2:32 p.m. – Cupps tipped away a pass from Domask, then throws an alley-oop to Reneau in transition. IU's defense looks much improved from last Friday at Wisconsin, when it allowed 91 points. That's impressive, especially given the absence of Ware down low. IU leads 18-11.

2:31 p.m. – Good ball movement from Illinois to free up Domask for a corner three, really got the Indiana defense moving on that possession. Payton Sparks checks in for Indiana now, leading 14-11. 

2:29 p.m. – Gabe Cupps checking in for Indiana now, replacing Xavier Johnson, who leads the Hoosiers with six points on 3-for-3 shooting and two turnovers.

2:28 p.m. – Reneau and Dainja were really banging in the paint, and it leads to Reneau drawing a foul on a layup he nearly converted. He goes 1-for-2 from the line, pushing Indiana's lead to 14-6.

2:27 p.m. – Indiana is on a 6-0 run, and Illinois hasn't scored in the last 3:03. Anthony Leal checks in for the Hoosiers now.

2:23 p.m. – Johnson with another tough finish, this time falling away and banking it in from the middle of the lane. Indiana leads 13-6 at the under-12.

2:22 p.m. – Johnson turned it over trying to thread a long pass to Reneau in transition, but Shannon mishandled the ball and turned it right back over. It's been a bit sloppy from both sides early, with Indiana leading 11-6 with 12:15 left.

2:21 p.m. – A bad pass from Hawkins is stolen by Galloway, who passes it ahead to Mgbako to draw a foul on Moretti. Mgbako missed an easy look on the baseline out of bounds play. Underwood digging deep into his bench early, already playing Moretti and Dainja.

2:19 p.m. – Xavier Johnson finishes a layup while being fouled by Shannon, his first. But he missed the free throw. That was a nice set by Indiana, creating a dribble handoff to Johnson, who was able to turn the corner with a head of steam and make a tough layup. Galloway makes a layup on the next possession, extending Indiana's lead to 11-6. 

2:13 p.m. – Illinois' first basket, a Hawkins layup, was completely avoidable for Indiana. Walker got the rebound, but threw it aimlessly back into play as he was falling out of bounds. It went right to Illinois instead. Shannon makes a fast break layup the next possession, followed by layups by Johnson and Domask. Indiana leads 7-6 at the under-16 timeout.

2:12 p.m. – Indiana identifies a mismatch with the 6-foot-4 Justin Harmon switch onto Reneau, who draws the foul. Reneau goes 1-for-2 at the free throw line, so Indiana leads 5-0 with 16:42 left.

2:11 p.m.– Illinois can't buy a basket early. They're 0-for-6 from the field, and Galloway extends IU's lead to 4-0 with a layup. Indiana's defense now gets a shot-clock violation, so Underwood goes to his bench, replacing Rodgers and Guerrier with Goode and Harmon.

2:09 p.m. – Reneau took a highly contested layup on the first possession and didn't come close, but Johnson hit him with a perfect pass on a pick-and-roll for an easy layup. IU leads 2-0 early.

2:08 p.m. – Illinois wins the tip and we're under way. Domask misses a three on the first possession.

2:02 p.m. – Tipoff will be delayed a bit, as the national anthem just wrapped up. It should be a tough road environment for Indiana today. The State Farm Center is nearly full, with only a pocket of open seats at the top of a couple sections.

1:50 p.m. – Indiana is changing up its starting lineup. Today, it'll be Xavier Johnson, Trey Galloway, Mackenzie Mgbako, Anthony Walker and Malik Reneau. That means Gabe Cupps will come off the bench, as will Payton Sparks, who started the previous two games when Ware was out. For Illinois, it's Terrence Shannon Jr., Ty Rodgers, Marcus Domask, Quincy Guerrier and Coleman Hawkins.

1:08 p.m. – Can confirm Kel'el Ware (ankle) is out for today's game. If you're looking for a positive sign, he's not wearing a walking boot like last game. Here's a picture of him and freshman Jakai Newton, who has not played this season due a knee injury, before game. Anthony Leal is available today after missing the last few games with a calf strain.

Indiana sophomore center Kel'el Ware (ankle) remains out for today's game against Illinois, along with freshman guard Jakai Newton

12:15 p.m. – We've made it to Champaign, where Indiana is set to take on No. 10 Illinois at 3 p.m. ET. Indiana center Kel'el Ware is listed as questionable with an ankle injury, but Jeff Goodman of The Messenger reported he's not expected to play for the second consecutive game. The 7-foot Ware is averaging 14.2 points and 9.4 rebounds this year. Payton Sparks started in his place against Wisconsin.

Indiana faces No. 10 Illinois on Saturday at 3 p.m. ET at the State Farm Center in Champaign, Ill

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