NEW YORK (AP) — The first Big Ten tournament game at Madison Square Garden featured a couple of teams that were a combined 1,665 miles — give or take — away from home, no players from New York City, and a kid from Iowa having a blast on the big stage.

The Big Ten opened a five-day run at the “Mecca of Basketball” with Jordan Bohannon leading Iowa past Illinois 96-87 on Wednesday night. Bohannon scored 25 points and had six assists, including a bounce pass to Luka Garza for a jam with 34 seconds left to keep the Illini at bay.

The 12th-seeded Hawkeyes (14-18) got solid work inside from Tyler Cook (19 points, five rebounds) and Garza (20 and eight) to go with the accurate shooting of Bohannon. The sophomore was 5 for 7 from 3-point range. Iowa will face fifth-seeded Michigan on Thursday. “They’re not an easy team to guard,” Iowa coach Fran McCaffrey said. “They share it. They spread you out. They have multiple 3-point shooters. They also have multiple drivers.”