Illinois Basketball Trips Up No. 15 Michigan and Big, Bad Danny Wolf

The Illini came found renewed life in several areas when they needed it most, in a road grinder against the Wolverines

Mar 2, 2025; Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA; Michigan Wolverines center Danny Wolf (1) loses control of the ball while driving to the basket against Illinois Fighting Illini guard Kylan Boswell (4) in the first half at Crisler Center. Mandatory Credit: Lon Horwedel-Imagn Images | Lon Horwedel-Imagn Images

If you're having a tough time figuring out exactly who this Illinois basketball team is, don't sweat it – you're not alone.

The Illini are still trying to figure it out themselves.

Whether they got any closer Sunday at Ann Arbor's Crisler Center is up for debate, but in the meantime, the Illini will no doubt gladly take the 93-73 road win over No. 15 Michigan to give them their first back-to-back wins since early February and keep them moving in the right direction with the arrow pointed toward March.

For that, Illinois (19-11, 11-8 Big Ten) owes a significant debt of gratitude to junior swingman Tre White, whose 19 points and 11 rebounds paced the Illini and helped restore their perimeter touch – for one game, at least – with 3-for-4 shooting on threes.

Road kILL. pic.twitter.com/prpwSzDial

— Illinois Men's Basketball (@IlliniMBB) March 2, 2025

White's resurgence following a flu bug that ran through the Illini roster – and which left White in perhaps the worst shape of all – has been not only welcome but vital to any hopes Illinois might have of finishing this season as spectacularly as it started. His 16 points against Duke was overlooked in a an MSG massacre, and his 14 in 20 minutes against Iowa felt like a matter of course in a 20-point win that saw four Illini score in double figures.

But on Sunday against the Wolverines, White slashed, stroked and pulled out the stops on defense to help limit Michigan offensive catalyst Danny Wolf to nine points and one assist – a game-changer for the undersized Illini against a dynamic 7-footer for which the rest of the Big Ten has yet to find an answer.

The Illinois win sent Michigan (22-7, 14-4 Big Ten) teetering, now a full game behind conference-leading Michigan State with two games left on UM's schedule. The Wolverines get a potential equalizer against the Spartans in their regular-season finale, but they first need to beat Maryland – no simple task – to have a chance to match MSU's Big Ten record and and avenge last month's 75-62 loss to the Spartans in Ann Arbor.

In the meantime, the Illini are again finding ways to win - some old, some new. After a dreadful first half from the field against Michigan, the offense came alive as Kasparas Jakucionis had 14 of his 17 points and Ben Humrichous (nine points) and Jake Davis (six points) did all their scoring after the break.

But it was White who carried the torch, scoring . After Illinois caught fire, hitting five of seven shots (including two threes from Humrichous) to separate a 41-41 tie, White threw in a bunny to push Illinois' lead to 54-45 with 11:58 to play. White went on to score 12 of his 15 second-half points down the stretch and snuff out the embers of any remaining Michigan upset hopes.

White's perfect second-half shooting line sparked the Illini, who shot a blistering 61.1 percent from the field and 11-for-23 from three (47.8 percent) after the break. Jakucionis and Kylan Boswell finished with 17 points apiece, and Will Riley chipped in 13.

While the offense hibernated for another half, it was the Illini's world-beating defense and rebounding – which had been their signature earlier this season, but which eluded them over the past three games – materialized to stake them to a 31-30 halftime lead.

With Illinois again clanking shots (32.4 percent from the field) and kicking the ball around (eight turnovers) in the first half, the defense stifled Wolf (four first-half points) and the Wolverines' perimeter shooting (2-for-7 on three-pointers) while winning the rebounding battle 23-19.

The Illini close out the regular season Friday against Purdue, last season's Big Ten champs and the preseason conference favorite, and a victory puts them at 20 wins on the season, marks a three-game winning streak and gives a legion of Illini fans renewed confidence that their team has finally found itself.

We'll know soon enough.

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