Michigan
Illinois
High-Scoring Second Half Sends Michigan Past Illinois
2/17/2019 6:04:00 PM | Women's Basketball
» U-M scored 41 second-half points and took the lead for good at 31-30 with 7:26 left in the third quarter and never trailed again.
» Kayla Robbins led the Wolverines with a career-best 15 points, with Hallie Thome (14), Deja Church (12) and Hailey Brown (11) all reaching double figures.
» With her 14 points, Thome became the third player in program history to reach the 2,000-point mark (2,013).
Site: Champaign, Ill. (State Farm Center)
Score: Michigan 70, Illinois 56
Records: U-M (18-9, 9-6 B1G), Illinois (10-16, 2-13 B1G)
Next U-M Event: Thursday, Feb. 21 -- vs. Rutgers (Crisler Center), 7 p.m.
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. -- The University of Michigan women's basketball team fell behind by one in the early moments of the third quarter, regained the lead with 7:16 left in the period and never looked back in a 70-56 win over Illinois on Sunday afternoon (Feb. 17) at State Farm Center.
Senior Hallie Thome became the third player in program history to reach the 2,000-point mark, finishing with 14 points to move her career total to 2,013. U-M also picked up its sixth straight win, tying for the third-longest win streak during conference play in program history.
Junior Kayla Robbins turned in a career-best 15 points on 6-for-7 shooting to go with five boards and two steals in 13 minutes. Sophomore Deja Church went for 12 points and classmate Hailey Brown hit three triples en route to 11 points.
Michigan was in an early 6-0 hole after Illinois hit a pair of triples early before Church scored at the 7:41 mark to break U-M into the scoring column.
U-M ended the first quarter on an 8-0 run for a 15-11 lead after 10 minutes, holding Illinois off the board for the last 4:04 of the period. Robbins scored four points during the spurt, with junior Akienreh Johnson and Church each accounting for two points.
The Wolverines continued to put the clamps on defensively, keeping Illinois off the board for the first 2:48 of the second quarter while extending its lead to 10 points after a layup from Thome, two free throws from freshman Naz Hillmon and a jumper at the top of the key from Brown.
Michigan took a 29-18 lead on a Church put-back with 3:44 left in the second quarter but Illinois ended the frame by scoring the last six points for a 29-24 Michigan lead at the break.
Illinois scored the first six points of the third quarter to take a 30-29 lead with 7:40 left, completing a 12-0 run that spanned halftime. Hillmon hit a pair of free throws, with Robbins following with a steal for a 33-30 advantage. Michigan kept its foot on the gas, with Robbins converting a three-point play for a 38-32 advantage with 5:15 on the third-quarter clock.
Thome found Brown for a triple at the top of the key and then converted her own three-point play the next time down, pushing Michigan's lead to nine, 47-38, with 2:00 left in the third.
Michigan extended its lead to 10 points on the opening possession of the fourth quarter and led by as many as 19 points in the final stanza, taking the 14-point win.Â
U-M will be back at Crisler Center on Thursday (Feb. 21) at 7 p.m. when it hosts Rutgers.
