By IlliniGuys Staff

December 29, 2024

(Cover photo courtesy Illinois Athletics)

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. - In the first 112 years of Illinois basketball, there were two triple-double performances.

Since Brad Underwood's arrival in 2017, there have been five.

Kylan Boswell became the latest to join the club, posting 18 points, 10 rebounds, and 10 assists to steal the spotlight at the 24th ranked Illini throttled Chicago State 117-64 Sunday afternoon.

It's the biggest margin of victory this season for Illinois (9-3), who saw six players score in double figures.

That includes sophomore center Tomislav Ivisic, who broke out of a slump to score a game-high 23 points. The 7'1" Ivisic combined for just 24 points in his last three games, but enjoyed the best shooting day of his young career, hitting 9-of-12 from the field and connecting on a trio of three-pointers.

Kasparas Jakucionis had 14 points to see his school freshman record end with six consecutive games with 20 points or more, but the 6-foot-6 NBA prospect is within reach of the school record of eight 20 point games in a season.

While the Lithuanian native may be the team's early season MVP, it's Boswell who has been Mr. Clutch in December. The junior transfer from Arizona has been a steady hand over the last four games, averaging 15.8 points per outing and combining to go 28-of-30 from the free throw line over that stretch, including a game-clinching 11-of-12 in last Sunday's win over Missouri.

Boswell got the final assist needed to make history when he zipped an out-of-bounds pass under the Illinois basket to a waiting Keaton Kutcher, who drained a three-pointer from the corner. to put his veteran teammate in rare company. Boswell's triple-double is the second one in 2024, after Marcus Domask delivered the program's first NCAA tournament triple-double against Morehead State last March. Ayo Dosumnu did it twice two weeks apart during his All-American campaign in 2021. Mark Smith, Sergio McClain, and Coleman Hawkins also pulled off the stunt in their Illini careers.

Boswell also delivered the team's highlight of the year so far, when he scooped up a loose ball on the defensive end, spun a long-range backspin pass ahead to a streaking Dravyn Gibbs-Lawhorn, who gathered himself with one dribble before throwing down a one-handed tomahawk jam over a Chicago State defender.

Gibbs-Lawhorn finished with 16 points, Will Riley had 13, and Morez Johnson Jr. 11 points all off the bench.

Chicago State (0-15) was led by Gabe Spinelli's 20 points.

The win was number 152 for Underwood at Illinois, putting him fourth on the all-time list behind Lou Henson, Harry Combes, and Bruce Weber.

Illinois still has one more non-conference game left when they will face #4 Duke at New York City's Madison Square Garden on February 22nd. But they will make their lone West Coast trip later this week when they visit 9th ranked Oregon Thursday night as they resume Big Ten Conference play.

Stay with IlliniGuys.com for more postgame coverage.