INDIANAPOLIS — Makira Cook scored 16 of her 20 points in the first half and Genesis Bryant finished with 18 points as fourth-seeded Illinois beat top-seeded Washington State 81-58 in a Women’s Basketball Invitation Tournament semifinal Monday.
Cook and Bryant combined to make 15 of 24 shots from the field and four 3-pointers. Adalia McKenzie added 14 points and Camille Hobby had 12 points and eight rebounds for the Illini.
Illinois (18-15) faces top-seeded Villanova (22-12) in the first-year tournament’s championship game Wednesday at Hinkle Fieldhouse (6 p.m., ESPN2). The Illini have won four postseason games in a single tournament for the first time in school history and are chasing the program’s first postseason tournament title.
Astera Tuhina led the Cougars with 20 points. Eleonora Villa added 14 points for Washington State (21-15), which produced a season-low point total. The previous low was 59.
It was never really close as the Illini shot 54% from the field. Cook made six of her first eight shots to stake the Illini to a 23-14 lead after one quarter, and the Illini extend the margin to 42-28 at halftime.
Instead of fighting back, Washington State continued to fade. Illinois opened the second half on a 7-2 spurt, extending the lead to 19, then jumped out to a 54-30 cushion courtesy of Kendall Bostic’s 3-pointer with 5:06 left in the third quarter.
Washington State managed to cut the deficit to 60-45 late in the third, but Illinois answered with seven straight points and pulled away throughout the fourth.
