MADISON, Wis. — Matthew Mayer scored 18 of his career-high 26 points in the second half and Illinois defeated Wisconsin 61-51 on Saturday.
Mayer drained five 3-pointers and shot 9 of 19 overall. Jayden Epps added 13 points for the Fighting Illini (15-6, 6-4 Big Ten), who have won six of seven.
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Chucky Hepburn scored 15 points and Max Klesmit returned from a two-game injury absence to score 12 for the Badgers (12-8, 4-6), losers of three straight and six of seven.
Mayer scored 10 points in a 22-4 run that began midway through the second half, erasing Wisconsin’s only lead in the half and putting the Illini up by 17 with four minutes remaining.
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After the teams combined for the conference’s lowest-scoring first half of the season — Illinois led 20-16 at the break — the Illini got off to a quick start in the second with Mayer scoring eight of their first 12 points to take a 12-point lead. But Wisconsin responded with a 15-2 run with Hepburn hitting a pair of 3-pointers plus a drive and basket that put the Badgers up by a point.
The Illini opened 1-of-7 shooting and Wisconsin 1 of 10 as the teams combined for just five points by the first media timeout. Illinois shot 33% and Wisconsin a dismal 18%, the teams combining to go 15-for-60 overall and 5 of 24 from 3-point range.
Illinois, which beat Wisconsin at home 79-69 on Jan. 7, has won six straight in the series and three in a row in Madison.
Illinois plays host to Nebraska on Tuesday. Wisconsin is at Ohio State on Thursday.
