Mayer leads Illinois against Minnesota after 21-point outing

Published Feb. 6, 2023 3:42 a.m. ET

Associated Press

Minnesota Golden Gophers (7-15, 1-11 Big Ten) at Illinois Fighting Illini (16-7, 7-5 Big Ten)

Champaign, Illinois; Tuesday, 8:30 p.m. EST

BOTTOM LINE: Illinois hosts the Minnesota Golden Gophers after Matthew Mayer scored 21 points in Illinois' 81-79 loss to the Iowa Hawkeyes.

The Fighting Illini have gone 11-2 at home. Illinois ranks third in the Big Ten with 25.8 defensive rebounds per game led by Coleman Hawkins averaging 4.4.

The Golden Gophers have gone 1-11 against Big Ten opponents. Minnesota ranks seventh in the Big Ten with 13.6 assists per game led by Ta'Lon Cooper averaging 5.6.

TOP PERFORMERS: Mayer is shooting 38.1% from beyond the arc with 2.1 made 3-pointers per game for the Fighting Illini, while averaging 11.9 points. Terrence Shannon Jr. is averaging 16.1 points and 1.5 steals over the last 10 games for Illinois.

Cooper is averaging 10.5 points and 5.6 assists for the Golden Gophers. Dawson Garcia is averaging 11.8 points over the last 10 games for Minnesota.

LAST 10 GAMES: Fighting Illini: 7-3, averaging 71.4 points, 35.7 rebounds, 12.3 assists, 5.5 steals and 5.8 blocks per game while shooting 44.1% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 64.6 points per game.

Golden Gophers: 1-9, averaging 58.3 points, 29.5 rebounds, 12.6 assists, 4.9 steals and 3.4 blocks per game while shooting 40.1% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 72.3 points.

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The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.