By IlliniGuys Staff

February 15, 2025

(Cover photo courtesy Joe Clark/IlliniGuys)

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. - Jaxon Kohler scored a career-high 23 points as No. 11 Michigan State pounded Illinois, 79-65 to make veteran coach Tom Izzo the all-time winningest coach in Big Ten history.

It was Izzo's 354th victory in conference play over his 30 seasons calling the shots in East Lansing, putting him past the late Indiana legend Bob Knight.

Izzo was denied his glory Tuesday night when Indiana upset his Spartans at home and it looked like he would have to wait a little longer again as the Illini stormed out to a 31-15 lead with 8:46 left in the first half. But his Spartans dug out and carved out a 19-4 run to close the gap to 35-34 before settling for a 41-37 halftime deficit

The team battled back and forth in the second half with seven ties and nine lead changes. Illinois took a 65-64 lead on a Ben Humrichous jumper at the 8:29 mark, but the Illini never scored again, missing their final 19 shots, 13 of those from three-point range. Michigan State took full advantage, scoring 36 of their 42 second-half points from two-point range or the free throw line as they finished the game on a 15-0 run.

Morez Johnson Jr. and Kasparas Jakucionis scored 17 points each for Illinois, whose hopes for a first-round bye took a major hit with the loss.

The Illini, the number one rebounding team in the country, is winless this season when they lose the battle of the boards, as they did tonight by a 41-36 margin. They hit just 7-0f-33 from three-point range, including 1-of-16 in the second half, for just a 21 percent completion rate. Illinois is 14-0 when they hit 28 percent or more from the three-point arc, 3-9 when they don't.

They travel to Wisconsin Tuesday night for a rematch with a Badgers team they defeated in Champaign last month before heading to New York City for a showdown with a 3rd ranked Duke team that is playing as well as anyone in the country.

Stay with IlliniGuys.com for more postgame coverage.