Illini Fall At Nebraska, Have Lost 9 Of 10

Rayvonte Rice scored 23 points and grabbed six rebounds, but no other Illini scored in double figures as the Nebraska Cornhuskers beat the Illini men 67-58 Wednesday night in Lincoln.

Shavon Shields set a career high with 33 points for Nebraska.

Illinois Coach John Groce compared his team to a dependable,  but uninspiring appliance.

"At the end of the day, I thought we made way too many mistakes tonight," he said.  "We played hard, but it reminds me of the line in 'Christmas Vacation' with Chevy Chase, you know, when they come out and they look at the lights, and the daughter says to the grandpa, 'but dad worked hard,' he says, 'so do washing machines."

Illinois has lost 9 of 10, and  falls to 3 and 9 in the Big Ten conference.

The Illini host Ohio State Saturday night at the State Farm Center.