Terrence Shannon, Marcus Domask Lead Illinois Past No. 11 Florida Atlantic

The Illinois Fighting Illini have relied on the scoring of Terrence Shannon for most of the season.

On Tuesday, he received a little help on the offensive end.

Shannon scored a season-high 33 points but was also aided by a career-high 33 from Marcus Domask. The result was a 98-89 victory against No. 11 Florida Atlantic, a Final Four participant from last year. The game was part of the Jim Valvano Classic at Madison Square Garden in New York.

Shannon and Domask combined to shoot 25 of 35 from the field.

"Yeah, we'll take 25 of 35 every night," Illinois coach Brad Underwood said. "Those guys were sensational. It was a slugfest. It was such a weird game. It's amazing how we come out of the Rutgers game, and every game has a different identity. We needed every one of them. We shot 63% for the game, and we needed all of that because they're so efficient offensively. It just didn't seem like we could get a stop, we put them on the foul line, and they don't miss free throws. Marcus and Terrence were special tonight."

It was a banner game for Domask, who shot 15 of 21. He had 25 points in the second half, including a stretch of seven straight made free throws.

"He's got a great little fadeaway," Underwood said. "He's so strong, takes a great hit, and can separate. The high ball pressure they put on didn't bother him; it was to his advantage. There were four or five possessions where I think he just drove it straight down and shot a layup. We're able to do that because of Coleman and his ability to shoot a three. We spaced him in the corner a lot tonight, and that opens the paint up for those guys."

The Illini return to action Saturday at Tennessee.

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Shandel Richardson is the publisher for Illini Now. He can be reached at shandelrich@gmail.com.