Brad Underwood wanted his Illini to bring more intensity to Braggin’ Rights this year.
The fifth-year Illinois men’s basketball coach who entered Wednesday’s annual rivalry game with a 1-3 record in the holiday tradition and no win since his 2017 debut season, made that point repeatedly this week while challenging his players to remember the energy level Missouri had flashed during the Tigers’ three-year winning streak.
Message received.
Mizzou’s streak, snapped.
Significantly so.
With sharpshooting guards firing away from the outside and 7-foot center Kofi Cockburn having his way with any Tiger who dared to cross his path, Illinois blitzed Mizzou 88-63 in front of a smaller than normal but much more orange than black-and-gold crowd.