Illinois started this game off well. They came out of the gates firing, going up 10-4 five minutes into the game. There was little scoring in the first half, though. By the 10-minute mark, the score only showed 12-6 in favor of the Illini. This was a real defensive battle almost the entire night.
With five minutes left in the first half, Wisconsin was able to hit a jumper to narrow the deficit to five points at 18-13. The Badgers continued to chip away at the lead and made a dunk to end the first half. Illinois still went into the locker room with a 26-25 lead.