No. 3 Illinois (2-1) went into the lion’s den on Tuesday night in Lubbock, Texas, for a matchup with No. 16 Texas Tech (3-0) and left with its first loss of the 2026-27 campaign. The Illini clawed back from a 22-point deficit but ultimately fell short, 84-77.

Here are five key stats that determined the game:

5 stats that explain Illinois' loss to Texas Tech

The Illini’s free-throw percentage: 42.1 percent

Where else would we start? Illinois did almost everything in its power to dig itself out of a 22-point hole, just to come up short (and long ... and left ... and right) at the free-throw line. The Illini went 8-for-19 in the game and 7-for-15 in the second half. 

Texas Tech, meanwhile, was an impressive 23-for-26 (88.5 percent) from the charity stripe. It wound up being a 15-point disparity at the line. 

Texas Tech’s offensive rebounds: 18

We knew Jamichael Stillwell was going to be a difference-maker – but we never expected this. Stillwell, a Red Raiders forward who didn't become eligible until Tuesday morning, finished with 13 boards – six on the offensive end – in just 26 minutes.

As a team, Texas Tech snagged 18 offensive rebounds, compared to Illinois' 10. The Illini, the No. 1 rebounding team in the country entering this game, lost the overall rebounding battle, 43-32. 

Interestingly, Texas Tech managed just five more second-chance points than Illinois (15-10). But that was enough. The Red Raiders took five more field goals and seven more free throws. More shots, more points.

Illinois’ three-point percentage: 29.4

The Illini, save for Quentin Coleman (5-for-6), couldn’t hit the broad side of a barn from beyond the arc. They shot 10-for-34 as a team. That means the non-Coleman Illini went just 5-for-28 (17.9 percent).

And it wasn’t due to a shortage of quality looks. Illinois had some wide-open jumpers it missed. Almost all of those the threes the Illini did make were heavily contested. Three-point shooting volatility is just a part of basketball. But if a team fails to hit free throws, too (as Illinois did), it’s not going to be a good night.

Turnovers: 16

Illinois had 11 turnovers in the first half. Texas Tech had 15 points off those turnovers. The Illini were down 20 at the half. Do the math. Andrej Stojakovic getting ripped. Ill-advised passes. Rakes from help defenders on drives. Illinois' first-half offense was ugly for good reason.

And the few-and-far-between transition pushes couldn’t have been much sloppier. To Illinois’ credit, it dropped the turnover number to just five in the second half and surrendered only four points off those miscues.

Two-point percentage: 76.9 percent

The Illini were inefficient from deep, yet they still managed to go 50.0 percent from the field. How? Because they were superb inside the arc. Illinois missed just six total two-pointers all night (20-for-26).

Coach Brad Underwood puts a huge emphasis on passing up midrange jumpers – he was surely steamed at one first-half pull from Coleman – and it continues to pay off. The next step: When the threes aren’t falling, feed it inside to Tomislav Ivisic and let the slashers – Coleman and Stojakovic – attack.