Illini ask ‘why not us?’ as defending champs await

BOSTON — The Illinois men’s basketball team is so experienced that many of its players wouldn’t get carded at a local dive bar. They are physical enough that their front line looks like it could be auditioning for linebacker spots at the NFL combine.

The Illini balance that age and edge with an offense that can hum like a jazz band, with flourishes of deft passes and cuts that have formed one of country’s most efficient and effective units.

That harmony manifested itself in a first-half burst on Thursday night and a closing kick that allowed No. 3 Illinois to outlast No. 2 Iowa State 72-69 in the round of 16 in the NCAA tournament on Saturday night.

Illinois solved the nation’s most efficient defense Saturday, jumping out with abandon in the opening minutes to build a 13-point lead and never relinquishing the lead to top Iowa State, which cut the lead to two three times in the final 10 minutes. Illinois scored the game’s first eight points and never flinched, enduring star Terrence Shannon Jr.’s second-half foul trouble and flummoxing Iowa State’s offense.

The spot in the Elite Eight continues Illinois’ deepest NCAA tournament run since 2005, when the Illini lost in the national title game. And the Illini teased with enough potential against the Cyclones that they left fans at TD Garden wondering if they could prove a worthy foil to defending national champion UConn when they meet Saturday night with a spot in the Final Four on the line.

“We didn’t come here to win one game,” Illinois coach Brad Underwood said. “We came here to win two.”

UConn blasted No. 5 San Diego State 82-52 earlier Thursday to reaffirm the Huskies’ status as the country’s best team and the tournament’s No. 1 overall seed. UConn, which has lost just one game since late December, will face Illinois for the first time since 1994.

There were bursts in Thursday night’s game where Illinois looked like a worthy foil. Junior forward Luke Goode said the Illini will take a “why not us” mindset into the game as he said the veteran Illini “have seen it all.”

“I have more of a respect for them,” said Illinois forward Coleman Hawkins. “I think it’s a higher level of respect. I think they’ve been playing great all year. I think they’re well-coached, and they do what they do.”

The linchpin of any Illinois upset bid on Saturday will be Shannon, the star guard who finished with 29 points in Thursday’s win. That included sitting for more than five minutes in the second half a