The Illinois Fighting Illini completely dismantled the Oregon Ducks, and during the game, stars like David Mirkovic and Keaton Wagler had their usual dominant performances.
However, one moment from the Big Ten matchup stood out among the rest as one of the best plays of the game, and undeniably the most selfless moment of the night.
With less than a minute remaining, Illinois freshman guard Mihailo Petrovic brought the ball down court and had a path to the basket. However, instead of driving for a layup, he passed the ball backwards, between his legs, to senior guard AJ Redd.
Petrovic set the screen on two Oregon defenders in front of him, and Redd pulled up for the long-range bucket, scoring three of his five points on the night.
Of course, the game was the last regular-season home game for the seniors on Illinois's roster, including Redd, who has been with the team for four years. Meanwhile, Petrovic has years of eligibility remaining.
So, Petrovic's foresight and selflessness to give the senior the bucket during his last home game in Champaign should have fans as excited about their team as the 26-point victory itself.
With the win, the Fighting Illini improved to 23-7 overall and 14-5 against conference opponents. The victory, spearheaded by transfer Andrej Stojakovic , virtually cemented the team near the top of the Big Ten and secured byes through the first few rounds of the upcoming conference tournament.
While the year is far from over for the Illini (barring any inexplicable chaos in the postseason), the play by Petrovic and Redd highlighted why this season has been so special for Brad Underwood's squad.
Hopefully, there will only be more of those moments to come over the next few weeks of Illinois basketball.
This article was originally published on www.writingillini.com as They weren't MVPs but Mihailo Petrovic and AJ Redd had the play of the game vs Oregon .
