Zach Edey, Trevion Williams Get the Better of Kofi Cockburn in Purdue Win Over Illinois
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — A wave of boos rained down from the fans inside the State Farm Center as Illinois junior center Kofi Cockburn was called for his fourth foul just three minutes into the second half.
Purdue basketball came into its road matchup wanting to challenge Cockburn early, and it was the Boilermakers that got the better of the All-Conference player. With a steady rotation of Zach Edey and Trevion Williams, the Fighting Illini star could only muster 10 points and five rebounds, ending a streak of nine straight double-doubles.
After being pushed around at Mackey Arena during a loss to Wisconsin, Edey didn’t back down in a physical matchup against one of the Big Ten’s best centers. The 7-foot-4 sophomore ended the game with 20 points and was one of three players with eight rebounds as Purdue defeated Illinois 96-88 in double overtime.
“I knew what this matchup was built as. I knew what this game meant for me,” Edey said. “I knew I had to take it to him early. I wanted to set the tone early to show the rest of our team that we had a good shot at this, that we really should win this.”
Edey scored the opening bucket for the Boilermakers, en route to a team-high 14 points in the first half. He, alongside Williams, held Cockburn to just eight points on 2-of-5 shooting in the first 20 minutes of play.
Cockburn is unlike any center Edey has faced so far this season. He’s a 7-foot, 285-pound athlete that’s difficult to move in the paint. But Edey remained poised with the ball in his hands and utilized his technique to make moves under the basket.
“He’s really strong,” Edey said of Cockburn. “I kind of started to see what it is like guarding people like me. Just really strong, long, quick — it’s tough. I feel bad for other people now, but it’s hard to move him for sure. Hard to get post position, hard to do a lot of things that I normally do. But I just had to learn on the fly and adapt as the game went on.”
Even when he’d use a dribble and find himself in an unscorable position, Edey darted his eyes toward his teammates looking to pass. Edey finished the game with one assist and didn’t turn the ball over, something he’s now done in back-to-back games.
The physical nature of the game didn’t faze Edey either. He and Williams both finished the first half with two fouls, but so did Cockburn. To the naked eye, it seemed like more could have been called, but the referees decided to let the two teams battle on the block.
“He should’ve been more comfortable than everyone else. He’s a hockey player, and it was a hockey game,” Painter said of Edey. “They fouled every play, we probably fouled every play. Obviously you look at it from your perspective, but I thought he handled it well. Sometimes getting into that second dribble for him, that’s hard. Trying to get into a position where you don’t need more than a dribble, or no dribbles at all. I thought he embraced the physicality of the game. He didn’t turn the ball over, and he was ready to play.”
And when Cockburn took his seat on the bench with just over 17 minutes to play in regulation, it seemed as good a time as ever for Edey and Williams to take over the game. Cockburn was in and out of the lineup for the Fighting Illini at the end of the second half and in overtime before fouling out.
However, Purdue’s senior leader struggled to get going against Illinois.
In regulation, Williams was just 4-15 from the floor and committed three turnovers. He misfired on some flashy passes from the post while searching for an impactful play. But even in a game where Edey was dominating, the Boilermakers kept trusting Williams to show up.
And he did, coming away with six points, three rebounds and two assists across both overtime periods. His presence in the post opened up a pair of easy passes to Eric Hunter Jr. to keep Purdue ahead for good.
Williams ended the game by scoring 14 points and coming away with seven rebounds while adding a team-high five assists.
“He’s kind of the heart and soul of our team,” senior guard Sasha Stefanovic said of Williams. “He gives us a lot of energy, he’s so talented, he draws so much attention. Just because his shots weren’t falling tonight, he was doing a lot of different things that really helped us.”
Everyone knows how good Williams can be, but for Edey to step up on an afternoon that his counterpart often struggled provided a huge boost to the team. Going head-to-head with a Player of the Year candidate in Cockburn will only help strengthen Edey moving forward, making him and Williams an even more formidable duo in the Big Ten.
“It shows me that the stuff I’m doing in practice, stuff I’m working on, translates to the game,” Edey said. “Compared to one year ago, where I didn’t really feel comfortable in a game like this — even without fans — it shows me that a lot of the stuff I'm doing is working.”
Stories Related to Purdue Basketball
- PURDUE HANDS ILLINOIS FIRST BIG TEN LOSS: Senior guard Sasha Stefanovic scored made five 3-pointers and scored 22 points while leading Purdue to a double-overtime victory over Illinois on the road. Sophomore center Zach Edey notched 20 points and didn't turn the ball over in the win. CLICK HERE
- PURDUE, ILLINOIS LIVE BLOG: Purdue basketball looked to earn its first victory over Illinois in the last four matchups when the two teams tipped off Monday at the State Farm Center in Champaign, Illinois. CLICK HERE
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D.J. Fezler is a staff writer for BoilermakersCountry.com. Hailing from The Region, he is from Cedar Lake in Northwest Indiana and has spent the last two years covering Purdue football and basketball.