HOUSTON — While analysis of how Houston and its fourth-rated defense would counter Illinois’ second-ranked offense anchored pregame chatter, the Cougars and Fighting Illini were aware of the vital role rebounding would play in their South Regional semifinal of the NCAA Tournament.
Freshmen David Mirkovic and Keaton Wagler produced point-rebound double-doubles, Andrej Stojakovic scored 13 points off the bench and third-seeded Illinois parlayed a 17-0 second-half run into a 65-55 victory over second-seeded Houston on Thursday for its second Elite Eight berth in three seasons.
The Fighting Illini (27-8) will face a Big Ten rival, ninth-seeded Iowa (24-12), on Saturday with the winner advancing to the Final Four in Indianapolis.
Mirkovic paired 14 points with 10 rebounds for his ninth double-double of the season. Wagler, a standout guard, posted 13 points and a career-high 12 boards. The Illini produced a plus-9 rebounding margin thanks in large part to Wagler, who paced Illinois in scoring this season.
“We knew that (Houston’s Chris) Cenac (Jr.) and (Joseph) Tugler, they back-tap a lot of balls. They’re elite at it,” Illinois coach Brad Underwood said. “So our bigs were going to have to hit bodies, but our guards were going to have to come clean it up. So we needed a big, big rebounding game from our guards.
“I thought Keaton just takes everything to heart. He’s had some big rebounding games this year, but to do this in this moment — you guys got to understand what a joy it is to coach him, and he doesn’t worry about needing to score points.”
Wagler responded to a driving layup from Tugler that pulled the Cougars (30-7) to within 27-26 by sinking a second-chance layup at the 17:37 mark of the second half. That ignited the decisive rally for Illinois, with Jake Davis and Mirkovic adding layups off dribble penetration before Davis knocked down a second-chance 3-pointer that extended the lead to 36-26.
Mirkovic and Ben Humrichous later added 3-pointers as the Illini extended their lead to 44-26. The Cougars went six-plus minutes without scoring before Milos Uzan hit a trey with 11:20 left.
Emanuel Sharp led the Cougars with 17 points and spearheaded a furious rally that closed the deficit to seven in the waning moments. Kingston Flemings added 11 points, six rebounds and four assists for Houston, which shot 34.4% from the floor.
“We have used our size and length to our advantage all year long, and I think that was one of those games where when you have a team with good shooters and good inside presence as well, you kind of have to use all your tools to win the game,” Stojakovic said.
“Our presence down there really affected their want to drive throughout the game. I thought the perimeter guys did a great job of keeping their guys in front and limiting that.”
Only Stojakovic appeared able to play through the first-half slog.
Houston missed its first seven shots yet pulled even at 3-3 when Sharp drilled a 3-pointer at the 15:12 mark, thanks in part to Illinois’ 1-for-10 start. Mirkovic lifted the Illini to a 14-10 lead when he followed his trey with a layup, only for Tugler to tie it with consecutive hook shots.
Stojakovic sank a difficult turnaround jumper that beat the shot-clock buzzer, giving Illinois a 21-14 lead. Wagler pushed the Illini to their largest advantage of the first half at 24-16 with a 3-pointer at the 3:23 mark.
The Cougars cut that deficit to 24-22 entering the break when Flemings beat the buzzer with a 3-pointer. Houston shot 27.3% in the first half, but the Illini countered with 35.7% shooting and scored only two points from seven offensive rebounds.
“You can tell we had a week to prepare for each other,” Houston coach Kelvin Sampson said. “We knew what they were going to do, and they knew what we were going to do. But they got some good looks and missed, and we got some really good looks, too, and missed.
“Sometimes making shots can be contagious. Sometimes missing shots can be contagious, too.”
–MK Bower, Field Level Media
