Despite getting into foul trouble, which limited him to just six minutes in the second half, Shannon finished with 29 points, five rebounds and two assists.
The TD Garden was electric for Thursday night’s Sweet 16 matchup between No. 2-seeded Iowa State and No. 3-seeded Illinois, radiating bright orange.
Forget the late tipoff time. From the moment the ball was thrown up at center court, the Illini and every fan in attendance cheering for them were charged up. Their power source was, once again, March magician Terrence Shannon Jr.
In front of a crowd that appeared to be largely in favor of Illinois, against the No. 1 defense in the country, Shannon soared like he has all tournament. As the stakes get higher, he seemingly only gets better, as was the case in Illinois’ 72-69 win over Iowa State.
