Dan Hurley's plan to avoid the tryptophan hangover by hosting UConn's Thanksgiving celebration on Wednesday turned out to be next-level coaching.

No. 5 UConn defeated No. 13 Illinois, 74-61, on Friday in the SentinelOne Showdown at Madison Square Garden. This was the fifth-ever meeting between UConn and Illinois: the last time they met was in a 2024 Elite Eight showdown where UConn went on a 30-0 run on their way to a 77-52 win. Things went down much differently this time at Madison Square Garden, even if they sometimes looked reminiscent of that affair and the end result was the same.

Here are the takeaways:

UConn started hitting three-pointers early, and they did not stop – nor did Illinois do much to try to stop them, either. Whether stepping back and shooting, firing off a shot off of a screen, or passing from the paint to beyond the arc, UConn was both taking and hitting their threes. They wrapped up the first half with 7-for-17 shooting from deep and, not coincidentally, a 43-32 lead over Illinois.

UConn wasn't quite as deadly from three in the second half, but the damage had already been done. Illinois' first made three-pointer of the second half came at 12:40; they shot just 6-for-29 on threes (20.7%) for the game. It's tougher to come back from a first-half 11-point deficit without the three, but Illinois also wasn't hitting their twos: they missed their first 10 field goal attempts in the second half.

Yes, UConn lost to then-No. 4 Arizona and dropped from No. 3 to No. 5 because of it, but the Huskies also defeated No. 9 BYU days before that and now have a win over No. 13 Illinois. They still have Kansas (which recently fell out of the top 25) and No. 10 Florida left between now and Dec. 9, and then nearly an entire month in between before their next ranked matchup against current No. 14 St. John's.

UConn isn't undefeated, but they have already had some heavy-hitters on the schedule, and while they lost to Arizona, this is a real good team with the makings of a deep run come March Madness time, as Illinois would surely tell you after having to deal with them for 40 minutes on Friday. The Huskies are showing some serious toughness despite being in one of the most difficult parts of their 2025-2026 schedule.

Illinois generally didn't match up well with UConn on Friday, but it would've been worse if not for senior guard Kylan Boswell. After sinking a free throw with 9:53 left in the game, Boswell had 23 points – half of his team's total. He would finish with 25 points, 9 rebounds and 3 assists as well, but he just didn't get enough help from his teammates. Just one other scorer – Tomislav Ivisic – reached double-digits. That was the real difference between these two teams in this Madison Square Garden matchup. UConn showed off its depth, and Illinois couldn't get enough from its core contributors.

Boswell entered the game scoring 16.1 points and 4.1 rebounds per game, so this was certainly stepping up. How much he needed to step up was the issue here, though: as noted on FOX's broadcast, with just under 8 minutes to go in the game and UConn leading 64-50, the last non-Boswell field goal had come with just under 5 minutes remaining in the first half; it was all free throws and Boswell for more than half of the second.

UConn led by as many as 21 points, and at times it looked like a repeat of the 77-52 victory over Illinois in the 2025 NCAA Tournament. Despite the Illini's struggles shooting, though, they fought back – especially Boswell – and brought it to within seven with 2:56 left in the game. 

A loss is a loss, yes, but there's a difference between getting wrecked by a top-5 team like UConn and refusing to quit despite struggling, and bringing it to a point where there was even a realistic chance of winning. That's a comfort for the Fighting Illini. They're still 6-2, and this was a loss to a high-ranked opponent … but not the blowout it could have been if they hadn't pushed through their shooting struggles and adjusted. That made it a lot closer late – even briefly – than it looked like it could possibly be, enough to wonder what things would have looked like if not for that dismal and uncharacteristic start to the second half.

UConn was finally close to full strength, as top recruit and freshman guard Braylon Mullins finally made his season debut after dealing with an ankle injury, while 6-foot-10 senior forward Tarris Reed Jr. returned to the lineup after missing the last two games with his own ankle issue. Mullins played just two minutes in the first half, snagging a rebound while missing his one shot before scoring his first points in the second, and Reed played 15 total minutes with five rebounds and two points. Reed came into the game averaging 20 points and 9.3 rebounds for the season. Getting him back is huge for the Huskies, and getting him back at the same time Mullins, who scored 25 points per game in high school last season, will make it easier to forget about that loss to Arizona.

As for Illinois, it takes on No. 17 Tennessee on Dec. 6, but then the schedule softens until a Jan. 24 matchup against current No. 1 Purdue: that's time to work on what it couldn't manage against the Huskies, namely, an inability to keep up beyond the arc or on ball movement. UConn dropped 19 dimes to Illinois' 10, in a game where the Fighting Illini needed better looks to narrow the gap almost from the start.

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