The greatest game in Illinois basketball history is recorded by Terrence Shannon Jr.

It took Terrence Shannon Jr.’s best game in program history for the Illinois basketball team to defeat Nebraska on Saturday.

This accomplishment on its own is fantastic for the Illini. During the first quarter of this game, Nebraska had the upper hand. Before practically every member of the Illinois basketball team woke up and began to perform, things were looking very dire.

I say almost because there was one player who performed exceptionally well the entire time. Terrence Shannon Jr. was, without a doubt, the finest player in the nation and the top player on the court for both teams from beginning to end. Really, the front-runner for the John R. Wooden Award wasn’t even able to attend the Big Ten

The championship match of the tournament.

On Saturday, Shannon performed some amazing feats against the Cornhuskers. However, I believe I am undervaluing Shannon’s contributions to the Illini. I believe we need to improve on the performance we witnessed against Nebraska.

Sure, I’ll take it there.

The greatest game in the history of the Illinois basketball program was just finished by Terrence Shannon Jr.
This isn’t hyperbole, I promise. Allow me to explain why, in the illustrious history of the Illinois basketball program, I think this was the best game any player has ever had.

Let’s just get the score started. With 11 of 22 field goals and 5 of 9 three-pointers made, Shannon finished the Nebraska game with 40 points. Additionally, he scored 13 out of 16 free

toss the line.

Shannon has the most points in a single game among only four players in Illinois basketball program history. Dave Scholz scored 42 points in February 1968, Dave Downey scored 53 points in February 1963, Andy Kaufmann scored 46 points in December 1990, and Brandon Paul scored 43 points in January 2012.

One thing unites the four records that are ahead of Shannon’s forty points. None of the four games meant anything at all. Downey scored 54 points during an Indiana defeat. Kauffman scored 46 points in the season’s sixth game. The teams that Paul and Scholz played for ended up with overall records of 17-15 and 11-13, respectively.

And that brings me to the significance.

of Shannon’s 40-point performance. He scored forty points in a postseason game. The goal was to reach the Big Ten Tournament championship match. This was not a mid-season game against a poor non-conference foe or a Big Ten cellar team or anything of the sort.

The previous night, Nebraska defeated Indiana by a score of 27 points. The Cornhuskers had not allowed 80 points in any of their previous eight games, but Shannon’s 40 points helped his side score 98 points. Nebraska has played three games in overtime this season, and the most points they have allowed is 98.

Shannon scored forty points, which ranks fifth in Illinois basketball history, as I previously noted. However, what makes this

enormous game The fact that he scored the most points in a Big Ten Tournament game ever—40—makes it even more remarkable. Take a moment to consider that. Just consider all of the outstanding players that the Big Ten has produced since 1998. Shannon surpasses them all.

Finally, I want to delve more into the significance of Shannon’s 40-point performance. All of the points I made in the earlier paragraphs still hold true when you take into account the NCAA tournament.

Illinois would probably maintain its No. 4 seed in the NCAA tournament with a defeat. Some teams may encounter difficult opponents in this area and lose in the opening round. With his enormous game, Shannon drove Illinois

to the victory over Nebraska. The Big Ten Tournament championship game is now in play.

We might very well be guaranteed a No. 3 seed in the NCAA tournament at this point. Securing the win against the Cornhuskers eases the path to the Sweet 16 a bit. Additionally, if things go well on Sunday, Illinois may possibly have a chance to sneak into the No. 2 seed.

Shannon had a game to remember against Nebraska, scoring forty points. It was among the best performances in the annals of conference tournaments. Ultimately, I consider it to be the best single-game performance in Illinois basketball program history.