MILWAUKEE (WAND) - For an Illini Basketball season filled with inconsistency, it is almost fitting that their NCAA Tournament hopes were squashed by a game filled with turnovers and missed threes.
The sixth-seeded Illini fell to third-seeded Kentucky, 84-75, in the second round of the NCAA Tournament on Sunday evening at Fiserv Forum. Â
The Illini had no answer for Kentucky's Kobe Brea, who put in a career-high 23 points.
Illinois had 14 turnovers and shot just 28% from three-point range.
"In the most important game of the year, we did not play our best," said Kasparas Jakucionis, who had six Illinois 14 turnovers. "You can't win in March when you don't play your best.Â
Junior G Kylan Boswell did his best to shoulder a win for the Illini. Boswell's 23 points were a career-high in an NCAA Tournament game. But it did not soften the blow of being sent home in the round of 32.
"I hate this f***-ing feeling right here," said Boswell. "I hate when media comes in after a loss, I hate sitting here talking after a loss. I hate losing in March, I've done it three years in a row. I hate especially too when it doesn't feel like the time is right to lose too."
Sophomore C Tomislav Ivisic poured in 19 points, including five 3-pointers, and pulled down six rebounds for the Illini.
Ivisic's five triples broke his own NCAA Tournament record for a 7-footer set in the team's Round 1 win vs. Xavier on Friday. His nine combined threes in the Illini's NCAA Tournament run are now the most in a career by a 7-footer in NCAA Tournament history. Â
