College basketball highlights: Illinois fends off Wisconsin in Madison

It’s a big day of college hoops Saturday on FOX!

Tipping things off was a Big Ten women’s basketball showdown between Nebraska and No. 10 Iowa at Carver-Hawkeye Arena, with star Caitlin Clark scoring 33 points to lead the Hawkeyes to victory.

Next, men’s college basketball took center stage on FOX, as Illinois downed Wisconsin behind a career-best 26 points from Matthew Mayer. It was just Wisconsin’s 64th loss all-time at the Kohl Center.

Now, Washington hosts No. 6 Arizona, and Ohio State will face Indiana (8 p.m. ET) to close out the evening.

It all adds up to a dream day for hoops junkies, as there will be All-America candidates at their best, top-10 teams flexing their muscles and others looking to build up their NCAA Tournament résumés.

Here are the top plays!

No. 6 Arizona at Washington

Fresh feet

Some freshmen are built for the big moments. Some aren’t. Keyon Menifield Jr. is the former. The young man splashed in a number of baskets to tally eight points early in the first half.

FINAL: Illinois 61. Wisconsin 51

Stepback Bobby Jack

Matthew Mayer is known for his sharpshooting efficiency, and he showed exactly why early on for the Fighting Illini, creating space with a crafty stepback and knocking down the 3.

Mayoral

Mayer continued his hot stroke from downtown, burying another 3-pointer to reclaim the lead for Illinois.

The Illini led 20-16 at halftime in a game marked by defense or poor shooting, depending on how you looked at it. The Badgers shot 6-for-33 from the field in the first half (18%), while Illinois was 9-for-27 (33%).

Big time jam!

RJ Melendez took things inside on this play, and his rim-rattler kicked off a 20-11 run to push Illinois over the top.

FINAL: Iowa 80, Nebraska 76

Setting the stage for the Caitlin Clark show

Hawkeyes superstar and unanimous All-American Caitlin Clark is must-see TV. The nation’s third-leading scorer at 26.8 points per game, the junior is coming off the eighth triple-double of her career — a 28-point, 15-assist, 10-rebound master class as Iowa handed No. 2 Ohio State its first loss of the season.

Don’t leave me open

Any space is too much space to give Clark, and when she has time to get her feet set, it’s often bad news for opposing defenses. She made the Cornhuskers’ D pay from the corner to get Iowa on the board midway through the first.

Walk right into it!

The Hawkeyes started off slow, but it doesn’t take long for Clark to get going, and she began pouring it on in the second. This pull-up transition 3 was just a small part of her 16-point barrage in the first half, which gave the Hawkeyes a 41-30 lead at the break.

Shooters all around

Clark isn’t the only one that can spray it for the Hawkeyes. Gabbie Marshall swished home a trey after some stellar ball movement to increase Iowa’s lead.

Clark continued her effortless shot-making display en route to 33 points. She added 12 boards and nine assists in the crucial conference win.

COMING UP ON FOX:

Ohio State at Indiana (8 pm ET)

Ohio State Buckeyes

OSU

Indiana Hoosiers

IND

OTHER GAMES:

Cincinnati at No. 3 Houston

From long range!

Cincinnati was determined to pull off the upset of the season Saturday, and this half court shot from Mika Adams-Woods kept momentum on its side to close out the first half.

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