Coming off its first loss of the season, No. 25 Illinois took the floor at its State Farm Center home in Champaign on Saturday with plenty of motivation against struggling Maryland Eastern Shore.

So even when the Illini showed up with something less than their sharpest weapons, they managed to hammer the Hawks with size, muscle and blunt-force effort in an 87-40 runaway win.

An excellent defensive performance helped stake Illinois (4-1) to an early lead against the Hawks (2-6), allowing the opportunity for more floor time for its non-starters, including freshman Morez Johnson Jr., who had career highs of 10 points and 13 rebounds in just 13 minutes. Freshman forward Will Riley led the Illini with 19 points off the bench – all in the second half – and junior guard Kylan Boswell continued his recent upswing with 13 points, four rebounds and another sinister defensive performance.

After falling to No. 8 Alabama on a middling shooting night, Illinois came out clanking in the first half against the Hawks, “hitting” an atrocious 4-for-21 3-pointers (19.0 percent) before the break. But the Illini’s suffocating defense turned that blemish into an inconsequential blip.

Illinois held Maryland Eastern Shore to 7-for-33 field-goal shooting (21.2 percent) in the first half – including 1-for-12 from 3-point range – and forced 10 turnovers. The Hawks seemed to not know what hit them – and, as Mike Tyson might have noted, certainly had no plan after getting punched in the face. The Illini seemingly cut off every avenue on their opponents, who finished the first half with no assists.

After halftime, Riley was ablaze, pulling up for feathery jumpers and slinking to and around the rim for all-angles buckets that came easily for an 18-year-old in just his fifth college game. The outsized Illini annihilated the Hawks on the boards, 59-38, and held them to 22.1 percent field-goal shooting for the game.

CBS Sports’ Jon Rothstein Has High Praise for Illinois Basketball Freshmen

Top 5 Must-Watch Matchups for Illinois Basketball in 2024-25