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Down goes Illinois: Loyola Chicago pulls off upset, Illini become first No. 1 seed to fall in NCAA Tournament

Dustin Schutte

By Dustin Schutte

Published:

Illinois had Ayo Dosunmu and Kofi Cockburn, but they were no match for Cameron Krutwig and Lucas Williamson from Loyola Chicago.

The Ramblers are in the middle of another Cinderella story this postseason, as the No. 8 seed took down top-seeded Illinois 71-58 in the Round of 32 to advance to the Sweet 16. The Fighting Illini are the first No. 1 seed to lose in this year’s tournament and the fourth B1G team to be knocked out of March Madness.

Krutwig had a stellar performance in the 13-point win, recording a double-double with a 19-point, 12-rebound and 5-assist performance on Sunday afternoon. Williamson added 14 points and Marquise Kennedy also scored 14 off the bench for Loyola Chicago.

Cockburn was Illinois’ leading scorer with 21 points and Adam Miller scored 10. Ayo Dosunmu was held to just 9 points on 4-of-10 shooting and Trent Frazier had 2, making just 1-of-10 shots.

Loyola Chicago was a nightmare for Illinois on the defensive end, forcing 17 turnovers and holding the Illinois to just 4-of-14 from behind the 3-point line. The Ramblers shot 51% for the game compared to Illinois 44.9%

Illinois’ season has come to an end at 24-7. The Illini finished second in the B1G standings and won the B1G Tournament last weekend. But Brad Underwood’s team had no answer for the Ramblers in the Round of 32.

Dustin Schutte

Dustin grew up in the heart of Big Ten country and has been in sports media since 2010. He has been covering Big Ten football since 2014. You can follow him on Twitter: @SchutteCFB