Mully & Haugh: Illini are 'playing their best basketball, and they know it'

(670 The Score) Third-seeded Illinois advanced to its first Elite Eight since 2005 with a 72-69 win against second-seeded Iowa State in the NCAA Tournament on Thursday.

The Illini are now riding a seven-game winning streak and have won 10 of their past 11 games. Against the Cyclones in the Sweet 16, the Illini started hot by jumping out to an 11-2 lead and made plays when they needed to at key moments in the second half against an opponent that had the nation’s top-ranked defense.

“They played at Iowa State’s pace and beat them at their own game,” CBS-2 Chicago sports director Marshall Harris said on the Mully & Haugh Show on Friday morning. “Their defense was better. They executed on offense when they needed to late in the game.

“They’re playing their best basketball, and they know it.”

Listen to Harris’ full interview in the audio player above. Illinois plays top-seeded UConn, the defending national champion, in the East regional final in Boston on Saturday evening.