Illinois Advances to Sweet 16 with VCU Win

0:00On March 22nd, Illinois punched its ticket to the Sweet 16, with a convincing 76-55 win over VCU on Saturday night at Bons Accords. Wellness Arena in Greenville, South Carolina. Third-seated Andrej Stojakowicz led the way with 21 points, while Keaton Wagler and Thomas Labai-Vizik added 14 apiece for the Illinois. This marks the second-sweet 16-trip in the Brad Underwood era. The game started with Illinois jumping out to an early lead, going up 9-2 in the opening minutes. VCU hung tough and trailed just 7 at half-time, 35-28, but the Alene dominated the second half with a big scoring run to. Pull away comfortably. Fans packed the arena with a mix of orange and black from Illinois supporters, and plenty of Rams-backers making noise, especially early on. The crowd buzzed as Illinois built its advantage, and by the final minutes, Illinois fans were celebrating the blowout victory. Coming off an easy win against Penn earlier in the week, Illinois showed its tournament form against a VCU squad that had pulled off a dramatic, over-time upset over North Carolina.

1:08No lay drama here, though, as the Illinois controlled the tempo throughout. Next up, Illinois heads to Houston to face the second-seated cougars in the sweet 16. With momentum on their side, the Alene look poised for a deep run.