"I always kind of complain to the guys that I have to wait so long to wrestle," Wise said. "But when I can come out here and dominate and put the cap on a win like that, I can't complain. I knew I couldn't overlook him because anybody in the Big Ten is capable of beating anybody else, so I just wrestled as hard as I could and I was able to come out with the tech fall."
The Illini didn't let Northwestern's advantage in the lighter weights get to them, as B.J. Futrell put forth a valiant effort to not allow bonus points to No. 3 Brandon Precin, falling 6-0 at 125, and Ryan Prater dropped a 4-1 heartbreaker in which the Wildcats' Keith Sulzer scored all four of his points in the final 20 seconds. But Poeta started the comeback before the 12-minute intermission for the Big Ten Network and Smith-Bergsrud picked up where his teammate left off, thrilling the crowd with his last-second winning takedown against Dominic Marella to come out on top, 3-1.
"Our guys did a terrific job of competing," Illinois head coach Mark Johnson said. "We knew it would be a pretty even match, so it was important for some of our guys who had bad matchups not to give up a lot of bonus points and we were able to find some bonus points at different spots. And it was really nice to see John Wise go out and dominate like we all know he can."
Starting at 125, No. 3 Brandon Precin got in on a leg early, but B.J. Futrell fought him off. After a restart, though, Precin got in on a leg and nearly finished it for a takedown on the edge of the mat, even getting the takedown points. But after a referee's conference, the points were cleared away and the wrestlers started neutral. Futrell was given a stalling warning and after a restart, Precin got a leg, but Futrell was able to ward off the takedown as time ran out. Precin started down in the second and got a quick reversal for a 2-0 lead. Futrell attempted to sit out, but Precin hooked him in for a two-point near-fall for a 4-0 lead with 1:29 of riding time after the second. Futrell started down in the third and once again attempted to sit out, but Precin rode hard before getting a stalling warning of his own. With 30 seconds left, Futrell gave up a stalling point and Precin won, 6-0 with riding time.
No. 3 Jimmy Kennedy got a leg early on Eric Metzler at 133 and got a takedown. Metzler escaped after a restart but Kennedy got a nice slide-by takedown for a 4-0 lead. He managed to tilt Metzler for a two-point near-fall before the Wildcat escaped, giving Kennedy a 6-2 lead after three minutes. Metzler started down in the second and Kennedy let him up before working for a takedown. Metzler escaped to make it 8-4 in Kennedy's favor and Metzler was warned for stalling with three seconds left in the period. Kennedy started down in the third and, after Metzler put up a tough ride, Kennedy got out with just over a minute of riding time left and a minute left in the match. Looking for a takedown to secure the major decision, Kennedy shot and got a leg but the pair went out of bounds before control was established. Kennedy was able to throw the head and get a takedown to win by a 12-4 major decision after riding time was added.
At 141, Ryan Prater and No. 16 Keith Sulzer got in a mad scramble at the edge of the mat and Prater nearly got control, but Sulzer kept hold of a leg and a stalemate was called. Another wild scramble took up the final 40 seconds of the period, but neither wrestler was able to score in the first three minutes. Sulzer started down in the second and nearly got a reversal, but the hold was deemed potentially dangerous and broken. After another scramble, Prater regained definite control and rode out Sulzer the rest of the period. Prater started down in the third and got out with 54 seconds left in the bout. Sulzer shot quickly and got a leg, but Prater fought valiantly as time wound down. But Sulzer finally secured the takedown and added two late near-fall points for the 4-1 win.
Off a restart with 1:50 left in the first period at 149, Eric Terrazas got a leg, but Northwestern's Andrew Nadhir got a stalemate before points were scored. Nadhir shot off a restart and secured the takedown at the edge of the mat, but Terrazas escaped with 30 seconds left in the period. After no further scoring, Nadhir started down in the second with a 2-1 lead. Terrazas got a quick tilt for two near-fall points and a 3-2 lead before Nadhir escaped to tie it at 3. Terrazas got an ankle on the edge of the mat but couldn't secure the second one as time ran out. The Illini rookie started down in the third period and Nadhir let him go. Terrazas got a leg early in the period but the hold became dangerous and was broken. Off the restart, Nadhir shot and got the takedown, nearly scoring back points. Terrazas escaped to tie the bout at 5 then shot off a restart. After another stalemate, Nadhir got a slide-by takedown and rode him out for the 7-5 win.
At 157, neither No. 2 Mike Poeta nor No. 14 Jason Welch was able to mount any offense in the first period. Poeta started down in the second and Poeta escaped quickly for a 1-0 lead. Poeta got a leg with 1:20 left in the period and managed to turn the corner for the takedown. After a restart, Poeta was called for stalling and Welch escaped. With Poeta leading 3-1, Welch started down in the third and quickly escaped. Poeta quickly got in on a leg and worked around into control for the takedown. Welch escaped and Poeta got another takedown off a sloppy shot by Welch for a 7-3 lead with 40 seconds left. Welch escaped after a restart, but Poeta shot in, got a leg and turned the corner for a takedown with five seconds for the 9-4 win, which brought Illinois within 9-7 at the intermission.
Following the break, No. 15 Roger Smith-Bergsrud and Dominic Marella fought through a scoreless first period. Marella started down in the second and quickly escaped, and Smith-Bergsrud got both ankles as Marella returned to the center, but the Wildcat wriggled away to avoid any scoring the rest of the period. Smith-Bergsrud started down in the third and quickly escaped to tie the bout at 1. With 20 seconds left, Marella shot and Smith-Bergsrud threw him by before grabbing both ankles for the winning takedown and a final score of 3-1.
At 174, John Dergo picked up where he left off last week at Purdue, getting a leg early against Robert Kellogg, but Kellogg went out of bounds before any scoring. Kellogg shot off a restart and allowed Dergo to get a leg, which he eventually worked into a takedown. Kellogg was warned for stalling with 45 seconds left in the period and was able to escape and Dergo worked for a tilt. Dergo countered one of Kellogg's shots and got in on a leg before scoring for a 4-1 lead after three minutes. Dergo started down in the second and escaped in 10 seconds for a 5-1 margin. Dergo shot soon after and got the takedown before working his ride once again. Kellogg was called for stalling once again, making the score 8-1 in Dergo's favor and the Illini rode him out for 2:04 of riding time heading into the third. Kellogg started down in the final period and Dergo let him up. Dergo shot off a restart and worked into a takedown after Kellogg nearly fought it off. Kellogg escaped, but Dergo added riding time for the 11-3 major decision, extending Illinois' lead to 14-9.
Ben Friedl stepped in at 184 against top-ranked Jake Herbert and the Wildcat got a pair of early takedowns sandwiched around an escape. Friedl escaped again but Herbert shot in and got another takedown on the edge of the mat for a 6-2 lead after a period. Herbert started down and got a reversal before Friedl escaped. Herbert got another takedown and a stalling point for an 11-3 lead. He added another takedown for a 13-4 lead after two periods. Friedl started down in the third and escaped quickly. Herbert got three more takedowns and another stalling point for a 20-8 lead. He added a late takedown and riding time, but Friedl escaped with one second left to avoid the technical fall with a 23-9 final score, which cut Illinois' lead to 14-13.
At 197, Jordan Blanton, ranked 12th at 184, stepped on the mat against John Schoen. Blanton got a leg with 1:16 left and worked Schoen's head over for the takedown. After 25 seconds, Schoen escaped and the period ended with Blanton leading 2-1. Schoen started down and escaped in the second to tie the bout at 2. Off a restart, Blanton got a leg and worked it into a takedown with 17 seconds left, then rode out Schoen for a 4-2 lead. Blanton started down in the third and escaped in 24 seconds for a 5-2 lead. Schoen got in on a leg but Blanton fought him off with just over a minute left. Schoen shot off a restart, but Blanton blocked it and turned the corner for the takedown. Blanton let him up to make the score 7-3, then got a takedown on the edge of the mat with 24 seconds left. He once again let Schoen up and quickly got the takedown, nearly sticking Schoen on his back but finishing with an 11-4 win and pushing the Illini up 17-13.
In the evening's final bout, No. 10 John Wise shot off the whistle, which Paul Rands blocked, but Wise kept after it and eventually got control for a takedown just 14 seconds into the match. Wise began to ride him hard, looking for the turn, which he got in the form of a three-point near-fall with 1:17 left in the period. Rands got hit with his second stalling warning with 13 seconds left, giving Wise a point, and the Illini senior turned the Wildcat once again for three more back points and a 9-0 lead after the first period. Wise started down in the second and quickly escaped, then got the takedown and put Rands on his back for three more near-fall points and the 15-0 technical fall in 4:05. That was the icing on the cake of Illinois' 22-13 comeback victory over the Wildcats.
No. 9 Illinois returns to action on Sunday at No. 17 Wisconsin at 1 p.m. The Badgers had the night off on Friday.
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