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Big Ten Daily (Feb. 5): Illinois' Coleman Hawkins Already Prepared for Rematch vs. Purdue

There's still one moth left in the Big Ten regular season, but Illinois Fighting Illini star Coleman Hawkins is already prepared for a rematch with the Purdue Boilermakers. Could the conference title come down to their rematch in Champaign in March?

Dustin Schutte

Big Ten Daily (Feb. 5): Illinois' Coleman Hawkins Already Prepared for Rematch vs. Purdue
Big Ten Daily (Feb. 5): Illinois' Coleman Hawkins Already Prepared for Rematch vs. Purdue /
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Coleman Hawkins isn't quite putting the cart before the horse, but to say he's ready for Illinois' March 5 rematch with Purdue would be an understatement. It sounds like he's already got the game circled on his calendar.

Hawkins scored 20 points, grabbed seven rebounds and dished out five assists in Illinois' 87-84 overtime over Nebraska on Sunday in Champaign. It was a pivotal victory for the Fighting Illini, keeping them within 1.5 games of Purdue in the Big Ten standings.

Illinois now sits at 8-3 in the conference, tied with Wisconsin for second place. Purdue improved to 10-2 in league play following a 75-69 win over the Badgers in the Kohl Center. 

One month still remains in the college basketball season. Illinois has seven games to play before its rematch with Purdue, hoping to avenge an 83-78 loss to the Boilermakers in Mackey Arena on Jan. 5. 

Hawkins said the Illini are still taking it "one game at a time," but he knows Sunday's win over the Huskers kept his team in the race for a Big Ten title.

"This is very important. One game out," Hawkins said of Illinois' win Sunday. "We got people who are in first place — they gotta come play us at home. So, we're in control of our destiny. Like we talk about, it's one game at a time. We can only control what we can control. 

"So, to go out and win tonight, it's just one step closer to what we're trying to accomplish."

Illinois has a tough stretch upcoming, playing three of its next four games on the road, the Illini travel to Michigan State on Saturday before returning home to play Michigan next Tuesday. That's followed by an East Coast trip to Maryland and Penn State.

Hawkins is correct, the Fighting Illini need to focus on one game at a time. Road wins have been difficult to come by in the Big Ten. But it's pretty clear the veteran big man is ready for that second crack at Purdue.

We could have a late-season showdown with the Big Ten title at stake.

Zach Edey hits another milestone

Zach Edey has reached the point where he's hitting a new milestone every game. The Purdue big man made more college basketball history in Sunday's 75-69 victory over Wisconsin in Madison.

Edey finished Sunday's game with 18 points, 13 rebounds, three blocks and two assists. It marked the 55th time in his career that he's recorded a double-double, setting a new Purdue record.

The 7-foot-4 center also hit a double-digit scoring total for the 100th time in his career. He became just the second player in Boilermakers history to reach the mark, joining former guard E'Twaun Moore.

Finally, Edey became just the third player in the history of college basketball to register 2,000 points, 1,000 rebounds and 200 blocks while shooting 60% from the floor. The other two? Ralph Sampson (Virginia) and Patrick Ewing (Georgetown).

That's pretty strong company.

Edey is well on his way to collecting National Player of the Year honors in back-to-back seasons. 

Best week of Big Ten hoops?

Let's be honest, this hasn't been the best season in the history of Big Ten basketball. But this past week might've been the most entertaining one of the season.

Seven games were decided by eight points or less or in overtime this past week. New milestones were reached and thrilling upsets unfolded, resulting in plenty of fireworks. Here's just a brief rundown of everything we saw last week on the hardwood:

  • Tom Izzo earned career win No. 700 at Michigan State (vs. Michigan)
  • No. 2 Purdue defeated Northwestern 105-96 in OT
  • Nebraska erased a 19-point deficit, upset No. 6 Wisconsin 80-72 in OT
  • Iowa held off Ohio State 79-77
  • Minnesota upset Northwestern 75-66 in OT
  • No. 2 Purdue defeated No. 6 Wisconsin 75-69
  • Illinois avoided an upset, defeating Nebraska 87-84 in OT

We've got one month remaining in the regular season. Can we please get more of this?

Related Big Ten stories

  • FLAT AS HELL: Indiana had no answers defensively for Penn State on Saturday and got embarrassed at home in an 85-71 loss. Penn State, which ranks No. 309 in three-point shooting, made 12 longballs in the rout, erasing an early 11-point deficit and handing Indiana a devastating loss. CLICK HERE
  • BIG TEN TEAMS UP WITH SEC: The Big Ten and SEC have formed a joint advisory group of university presidents to "address the significant changes facing college athletics." CLICK HERE
  • PENN STATE A TOUGH TEAM: After losing their first four road games in the Big Ten, the Penn State Nittany Lions have responded with back-to-back wins over the Rutgers Scarlet Knights and Indiana Hoosiers. It's prove that coach Mike Rhoades is building a tough team in State College. CLICK HERE
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Dustin Schutte
DUSTIN SCHUTTE

Dustin Schutte is a writer for Sports Illustrated/HoosiersNow.com. He has a more than a decade of experience covering the Big Ten Conference.

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