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Wednesday, Jan. 15

High school basketball

[JAN. 15, 2003] 

Boys

At Chillicothe

Olympia     11   36   38   48     52

IVC             8   19   32   48     55

Olympia:  Elliott 7-4-19, Olson 3-0-8, Schultz 3-3-9, Criswell 3-0-6, Kieser 1-2-4, Schmidgall 1-1-3, Thornton 1-0-3.  Totals 19-10-52.  Three-pointers:  Olson 2, Elliott 1, Thornton 1.

At Heyworth

Mount Pulaski     23   32   49     62

Heyworth              8   12   30     35

Mount Pulaski:  Milner 2-0-4, Erlenbush 4-0-12, Coers 0-0-0, Waymire 0-0-0, McCormack 0-0-0, Anderson 6-3-16, N. Tierney 7-1-15, Maske 0-0-0, J. Tierney 1-0-2, Olson 3-2-8, Moore 1-0-2, Loveall 1-1-3, Blaum 0-0-0.  Totals 25-7-62.  Three-pointers:  Erlenbush 4, Anderson 1.

Others

Warrensburg-Latham def. Hartsburg-Emden 46-32.

[to top of second column in this article]

Girls

At Stanford

NCHS       19   35   44     60

Olympia     16   23   34     46

Olympia:  Wilcox 0-0-0, Floyd 2-5-9, Prager 2-6-10, Brand 2-0-4, Canopy 3-0-7, Litwiller 5-2-12, Hieser 1-2-4, Totals 15-15-46.  Three-pointers:  Canopy 1.

Freshmen--At Normal

Lincoln def. Normal West 49-17.


Men's basketball pre-game notes

Illinois at Iowa

[JAN. 15, 2003]   Fighting Illini basketball: Fighting Illini basketball: No. 8 (AP), No. 8 Illinois (12-1, 2-0 Big Ten) at Iowa (10-3, 2-0 Big Ten) at 8:07 p.m. Wednesday at Carver-Hawkeye Arena (15,500) in Iowa City, Iowa

Probable Illinois starters

F, 34, Brian Cook (senior, 6-10, 240, 21.7 ppg, 8.4 rpg)

F/C, 40, James Augustine (freshman, 6-10, 220, 7.2 ppg, 5.9 rpg)

G, 24, Sean Harrington (senior, 6-3, 185, 10.5 ppg, 2.3 rpg)

G, 11, Dee Brown (freshman, 6-0, 175, 12.8 ppg, 3.7 rpg, 4.8 apg)

G, 5, Deron Williams (freshman, 6-3, 210, 6.5 ppg, 2.4 rpg, 4.5 apg)

Off the bench

C, 1, Aaron Spears (freshman, 6-9, 250, 3.2 ppg, 1.5 rpg)

G, 4, Luther Head (sophomore, 6-3, 175, 7.4 ppg, 2.6 rpg)

F, 23, Blandon Ferguson (senior, 6-3, 205, 2.7 ppg, 2.0 rpg)

G, 25, Jerrance Howard (senior, 6-1, 200, 0.0 ppg, 0.1 rpg)

G, 31, Nick Huge (junior, 6-4, 215, 0.7 ppg, 0.3 rpg)

F, 32, Kyle Wilson (freshman, 6-8, 230, 2.7 ppg, 1.7 rpg)

F, 42, Clayton Thomas (senior, 6-7, 240, 0.5 ppg, 1.0 rpg)

F, 43, Roger Powell (sophomore, 6-6, 220, 8.6 ppg, 3.6 rpg)

C, 45, Nick Smith (sophomore, 7-2, 240, 4.9 ppg, 3.2 rpg)

Series history -- Iowa

Illinois owns a 68-63 advantage over Iowa in the all-time series. Iowa leads 48-16 in games played at Iowa City, but the Illini and Hawkeyes have split the last four meetings there. Illinois defeated Iowa 77-66 at the Assembly Hall in the only meeting last season.

Iowa won the last meeting at Iowa City in 2001 by the score of 78-62. Illinois last won at Iowa City on Jan. 26, 2000, when the score was 69-58.

On the air

Television: ESPN Plus local -- Larry Morgan, play-by-play; Doug Altenberger, expert ESPN Plus analyst

Radio: Illini Sports Radio Network, 43 stations
-- Brian Barnhart, play-by-play; Steve Bardo, expert analyst; Loren Tate pre-game and halftime reports

 

Coaching

Illinois

Head coach: Bill Self -- overall 194-99 (10th year), Big Ten 26-8; at Illinois 65-18 (third year); versus Iowa 2-1

Associate head coach: Norm Roberts (third year)

Assistants: Tim Jankovich (first year) and Wayne McClain (second year)

Trainer: Rod Cardinal (30th year).

Iowa

Head coach: Steve Alford -- overall 222-124 (12th year); at Iowa 66-47 (fourth year); versus Illinois 1-4

Assistant coaches: Brian Jones, Greg Lansing and Rich Walker

Quick shots

Illinois' 12-1 start is the school's best since 1989-90, when the Illini began 12-1 and ended 21-8 with Kendall Gill and Steve Bardo as seniors. ... A win over Iowa would give the Illini their best start since the 1988-89 season, when they started 17-0. ... Illinois has now won nine consecutive Big Ten conference games, dating back to the final seven games of last season, its longest streak since winning 13 straight conference games from Feb. 26, 1955, to Feb. 20, 1956, and the sixth longest conference-game-winning streak in school history. ... Illinois has won five straight Big Ten road games, its longest such streak since the Illini won six straight from Feb. 19, 1955, to Feb. 25, 1956, and again the sixth longest such winning streak in school history. ... Brian Cook has scored at least 17 points in all 11 of his games this season, including at least 20 eight times. ... Sean Harrington has averaged 16.5 points per game in his four starts for the Illini this season. ... Harrington is shooting 59 percent (19-32) from 3-point range over the last three games and 60 percent (28-47) in eight games at the Assembly Hall this season. ... Assistant coach Wayne McClain and sophomore forward Roger Powell are both celebrating birthdays on Jan. 15.

Cook books more weekly honors

Senior forward Brian Cook earned several weekly awards after a pair of stellar performances, averaging 28 points and 10 rebounds on 56 percent shooting to earn Big Ten, ESPN.com, The Sporting News, FoxSports.com and Dick Vitale Player of the Week honors and lead the Illini to a 2-0 start atop the conference standings.

The senior forward guided the Illini to a road victory at Minnesota to open the Big Ten season and equaled his career high with 25 points by hitting six-of-13 from the field and 13-of-17 from the free-throw line. Cook added 11 rebounds for his 11th career double-double and third this season, which is tied for third among all league players.

The preseason Big Ten Player of the Year put on an even more impressive show against Wisconsin, shattering his career high with 31 points on 12-of-19 shooting, including a pair of treys, in just 26 minutes on the court. Cook added nine rebounds in the win to nearly record another double-double. The 6-10 forward produced 24 of his 31 points in the second half, including a streak of 15 consecutive Illinois points, and scored 22 of the Illini's final 26 points in the game. His12 field goals were the most by any Big Ten player this season.

He earns his second Big Ten Player of the Week accolade this season, as he was also honored on Dec. 9, and the third of his career.

Last time out -- Illinois 69, Wisconsin 63

Illinois improved to 2-0 in the Big Ten with a 69-63 win over Wisconsin at the Assembly Hall. Senior Brian Cook scored a career-high 31 points, including 24 in the second half, while leading the Illini with nine rebounds. Freshman James Augustine followed Cook with a career-high 17 points, including 13 in the first half, when Cook sat out more than 10 minutes with two fouls. After allowing Wisconsin to shoot 60 percent from the field in the first half, the Illini defense tightened to hold the Badgers to just 35.3 percent in the second. Cook's 3-pointer with 1:49 remaining gave Illinois a 12-point lead.

 

Defense

After 12 games this season, Illinois opponents are shooting just 36.8 percent from the field, including just 29.3 percent from 3-point range.

Against Coppin State on Dec. 30, Illinois held the Eagles to just 12 field goals, the fewest made shots in the 40-year history of the Assembly Hall, and to just 29 percent shooting from the field. Coppin State was the second Illini opponent this season to shoot under 30 percent. In the Big Ten opener, Illinois held Minnesota to 30.5 percent shooting on its home floor, as the Gophers made just 19.2 percent (5-26) from 3-point range.

Illinois has now held six of its last seven opponents to under 40 percent shooting from the field and has a total of eight such defensive efforts this season. Coppin State's 37 points were the fewest allowed by the Illini since defeating Northwestern 63-30 on Feb. 19, 2000.

Illinois leads the Big Ten in scoring defense, allowing opponents an average of just 59.2 points, and also leads in in field-goal percentage defense, at .368. The Illini also rank third in the league in rebounding margin (plus 5.0) and fifth in steals per game (7.0).

In the latest national statistics compiled by the NCAA, Illinois ranks ninth in field-goal percentage defense and third in scoring margin (plus 22.5), while ranking 11th in scoring defense.

Howard says 2003 is final season

Guard Jerrance Howard has said that the 2003 season will be his final campaign as a player at Illinois. Howard, who would have one season of eligibility remaining in 2003-04, after redshirting as a freshman in 1999-2000, will graduate in May and plans to possibly enter the coaching field. He will be listed as a senior for the remainder of his Illinois career.

Unselfish play

The Fighting Illini have begun the 2002-03 season with unselfish play. Illinois leads the Big Ten and ranks fourth in the nation in assists per game (19.5 average), highlighted by a season-high 25 assists versus Oakland, 24 versus Arkansas-Pine Bluff, and 23 against both Western Illinois and North Carolina. In the win over Coppin State, the Illini were credited with 21 assists on 22 made baskets, an amazing 96 percent of shots made. Illinois has tallied 20 or more assists in seven games and has recorded assists on over 67 percent of its baskets (254 assists on 375 FG) on the season. Guards Dee Brown and Deron Williams rank second and fifth, respectively, in the Big Ten in assists, with averages of 4.8 and 4.5 per game.

High-scoring Illini

Illinois has opened the 2002-03 season by averaging 79.2 points, outscoring its opponents by an average of 20 points per game. Illinois is shooting 50.4 percent from the field, ranking 11th in the nation in field-goal percentage, and has shot better than 50 percent in eight-of-13 games this season.

Illinois leads the Big Ten in scoring margin (plus 20.0), field goal percentage (.504) and 3-point field goal percentage (.401) while ranking second in scoring average (79.2). Illinois' top six scorers are all shooting 48 percent or better from the field.

Hot start

Illinois' eight straight wins to open the 2002-03 season tied the 10th best start in the 98-year history of Fighting Illini basketball and rank as the Illini's best start since beginning the 1995-96 season 9-0.

Illinois' current 12-1 record is its best since the 1989-90 season, when the Illini began 12-1. A win over Iowa on Wednesday would give Illinois its best start since beginning the 1988-89 season with a 17-0 mark.

Top 25 streak continues

Illinois began last week ranked No. 8 in the ESPN/USA Today Coaches' Poll, extending its streak to 48 consecutive polls in which the Illini have been ranked, including every poll during Bill Self's tenure. Illinois is also ranked No. 8 in the AP's top 25.

The Illini had a school-record streak of 30 straight polls in the top 10 snapped last January but has never dropped out of the coaches' top 25.

Bench play

The Illinois bench has a very productive start this season, averaging 22.7 points and 10.9 rebounds, while limiting the opponents' bench to 15.3 points and 9.4 rebounds. Illinois' bench is outscoring the opponents by 7.4 points per game and is out-rebounding the opponents by 1.5 boards per game. Eastern Illinois and Minnesota have the only two opposing benches to outscore Illinois.

Bench numbers (points-rebounds):

Illinois 32-9, Lehigh 9-7

Illinois 40-18, Arkansas-Pine Bluff 14-8

Illinois 32-9, Western Illinois 14-6

Illinois 39-14, North Carolina 7-1

Illinois 20-9, Arkansas 19-13

Illinois 12-13, Eastern Illinois 18-12

Illinois 13-3, Temple 8-8

Illinois 30-13, Missouri 26-11

Illinois 17-12, at Memphis 11-15

Illinois 12-10, Coppin State 6-8

Illinois 11-10, Oakland 5-7

Illinois 14-11, at Minnesota 36-17

Illinois 9-6, Wisconsin 11-8

Illinois totals 281-137, opponents 194-121

The book on Cook

Senior Brian Cook, a preseason Big Ten Player of the Year selection, is proving the recognition was deserved. He may deserve more. Cook leads the Big Ten in scoring at 21.7 points per game, while ranking fourth in rebounding at 8.4 boards per contest. He also ranks sixth in the league in field-goal shooting (.555) and third in free-throw percentage (.838). Cook has been the leading scorer and rebounder in nine of his 11 games this season.

Cook's 31-point total against Wisconsin Jan. 11 was a career high and the most by an Illinois player since Kevin Turner scored 35 versus Indiana on Jan. 3, 1998.

Cook's streak of consecutive made free throws came to an end at 32 on Jan. 4 against Oakland, tying Rob Judson for second place in school history for consecutive free throws.

 

 

[to top of second column in this article]

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Cook enters the Iowa game with 1,388 career points, 15th on the UI career scoring list, with NBA players Ken Norman and Kendall Gill in his immediate sights.

After sitting out the first two games of the season (along with teammate Jerrance Howard) as an NCAA penalty for playing in an unsanctioned summer basketball tournament, Cook returned and immediately established himself in the Illini lineup.

Cook has scored at least 17 points in all 11 games he's played, reaching 20 points eight times. He's also had at least eight rebounds eight times and has averaged 9.7 boards over the last seven games.

Cook's best-scoring game came against Wisconsin with a career-high 31 points. Other top games were 25 points each against Minnesota and Temple, 22 against North Carolina, 22 versus Oakland, 21 against Eastern Illinois and Memphis, and 20 versus Coppin State.

In the win over No. 11 Missouri, Cook scored 17, making all 10 of his free-throw attempts, and pulled down a game-high nine rebounds. In two games to open Big Ten play, Cook recorded the 11th double-double of his career with 25 points and 11 boards against Minnesota and followed with 31 points and nine boards against Wisconsin.

Dee-lightful, Dee-pendable -- no Dee-bate, Dee can play

Who is the best freshman point guard in college basketball? It's hard to find a rookie guard who has made more of an impact than Illinois' Dee Brown. Brown has started every game and leads the Illini in minutes played (33.4 avg.). He has scored in double figures in eight-of-13 games and is second on the team in scoring, averaging 12.8 points. Brown exploded for a career-high 25 points against Eastern Illinois on Dec. 10, hitting 10-of-14 shots, including a career-high five 3-pointers.

In two December performances in front of national television audiences, Brown first had a game-high 21 points along with seven assists and five rebounds in Illinois' victory over No. 11 Missouri to earn Big Ten Player of the Week honors on Dec. 21. He then followed with 19 points, including five 3-pointers, along with three assists, three boards and no turnovers in 37 minutes against Memphis.

Brown ranks second in the Big Ten in assists, with 4.77 per game, and ranks fourth in the league with an assist-turnover ratio of 2.14. He also ranks 21st in the Big Ten in scoring, at 12.8 points per game. One of the quickest guards in America, Brown has 1.5 steals per game for seventh in the Big Ten.

Among the top freshmen in the league, he ranks among the top four in assists (first), points (fourth) and steals (first) per game.

Brown becomes first Illinois freshman to earn Big Ten Player of the Week honors

Dee Brown became the first freshman in Illinois history to earn Big Ten Player of the Week honors. He was honored on Dec. 23 after pouring in a game-high 21 points in the Illini's victory over No. 11 Missouri.

The first-year point guard connected on a trio of 3-pointers, recorded a game-high seven assists and added five rebounds, including four on the offensive glass, in the win. Against Missouri, Brown broke the 20-point barrier for the second time on the season, while his seven assists against the Tigers also ranked as the second best output of his career.

Brown was the second Illini to earn Big Ten Player of the Week accolades this season, as teammate Brian Cook was honored on Dec. 9.

Twice as nice -- Williams joins Brown in all-freshman backcourt

Deron Williams and Dee Brown make up perhaps the best freshmen backcourt in the nation. The two rank first and fourth, respectively, in the Big Ten in assist-to-turnover ratio and have the Illini leading the Big Ten in team assists and assist-to-turnover ratio. Brown leads the team in minutes, at 33.4 per game, but Williams is third, at 24.3 minutes. Williams is averaging 6.5 points, is second to Brown for the team lead in assists with 59, and is second on the team in steals with 17. Williams is shooting 45 percent from the field. He leads the Big Ten in assist-turnover ratio, at 2.68, and is fourth in assists, with an average of 4.5.

 

That's a three -- Sean Harrington

Senior Sean Harrington has been hot from behind the arc this season. He has made 38-of-72 treys, leading the Big Ten and ranking sixth in the nation in 3-point field-goal percentage, at 52.8 percent. Harrington nailed a career-high six 3-pointers in Illinois' win over North Carolina on Dec. 3 en route to a 20-point output, tied his mark by making six-of-eight treys on his way to 18 points against Coppin State, and tied it again with six-of-nine treys on his way to a career-high 22 points against Minnesota. Against Oakland, Harrington had 20 points, connecting on five 3-pointers.

In his four games as a starter this season, Harrington is averaging 16.5 points per game, including an average of 20 points in his first three starts. It was the first time in his career at Illinois that he scored in double figures in three straight games.

Harrington is third on the team with 34 assists and has just 12 turnovers, for an assist-to-turnover ratio of 2.83. He also ranks third on the team with 16 steals. In games played at the Assembly Hall, Harrington is 28-of-47 (.596) from 3-point range.

Harrington ranks fifth on the UI career list with 165 3-point field goals.

Augie hot

Another member of the heralded Illini freshman class to shine has been newcomer James Augustine. He has bolstered the UI frontcourt, averaging 7.2 points and shooting over 65 percent from the field, ranking second in the league in field goal percentage. He has scored in double figures five times, with a season-high 17 points versus Wisconsin on Jan. 11.

He is second on the team in rebounding, behind Brian Cook, and is averaging 5.9 boards. Augustine has been Illinois' top rebounder in three games, highlighted by back-to-back nine-rebound performances versus Lehigh and Arkansas-Pine Bluff. He ranks 15th in the Big Ten in rebounding, at 5.9 per game, and eighth in blocked shots, at 1.4 per game.

Cook named Co-Big Ten Player of the Week following wins over UNC and Arkansas

Brian Cook was named Big Ten Co-Player of the Week on Dec. 9, after leading the Illini to victories over North Carolina and Arkansas. He shared the award with Indiana's Tom Coverdale.

Cook scored a game-high 22 points in Illinois' 92-65 victory over No. 12 North Carolina. He connected on eight-of-12 shots from the field, grabbed a game-high eight rebounds and tied his career high with five assists. Cook was also the leading scorer in Illinois' 62-58 win over Arkansas, scoring 18 points in 39 minutes of action, the most playing time logged by an Illini player this season. Cook made seven-of-14 field goals and added four rebounds and four assists versus the Razorbacks. On the week, Cook averaged 20 points, six rebounds and 4.5 assists per game on combined 58 percent shooting.

Spears sidelined with knee injury

Freshman center Aaron Spears suffered a torn lateral meniscus in his left knee during practice on Dec. 16 and had arthroscopic surgery on Dec. 27. He is expected to miss four to six weeks of action, with a possible return in mid-February. He averaged 3.2 points and 1.5 rebounds in six games before he was injured.

Freshmen bask in season opener

For the first time in school history, Illinois opened the season with three freshmen in the starting lineup, as James Augustine, Dee Brown and Deron Williams were on the floor for the opening tip versus Lehigh on Nov. 24. Two sophomores, Roger Powell and Nick Smith, rounded out the starting lineup as the youngest in school history. Prior to the opener, the five starters had combined for a total of four starts (all by Nick Smith).

The previous time Illinois started three freshmen in any game was Feb. 20, 1991, when Rennie Clemons, Scott Pierce, and Tom Michael started versus Ohio State.

In the opening two wins of the season, the five Illinois freshmen scored 104 of Illinois' 186 points (56 percent), while grabbing 42 of the Illini's 90 rebounds (47 percent).

Fresh faces

Five freshmen have given an entirely new look to the Fighting Illini this season. The Illini recruiting class was a consensus top 10 group and includes McDonald's All-American Dee Brown, a 6-foot guard from Proviso East High School in Maywood; Deron Williams, a 6-3 guard from The Colony, Texas; Kyle Wilson, a 6-8 forward from Plano, Texas; James Augustine, a 6-10 forward from Lincoln-Way Central High School in New Lenox; and Aaron Spears, a 6-9 post player from Chicago Dunbar High School.

Jankovich added to UI staff

Bill Self added veteran coach Tim Jankovich to the Illinois coaching staff Nov. 20, replacing Billy Gillispie, who moved to UTEP as head coach on Nov. 2. Jankovich, a former head coach at North Texas, has worked as associate head coach the last three seasons at Vanderbilt. He served on the Oklahoma State staff with Self in the early 1990s.

 

National exposure

For the 2002-03 season, Illinois is scheduled to appear at least 13 times on national television, with five games on ESPN, four games on ESPN2 and four games on CBS.

Tip-ins

Illinois' 26 wins in 2002 tied as the third winningest season in school history. … The 2001-02 season was the second time in school history that the Illini posted back-to-back 26-win seasons. The last time was in 1984 and 1985. … In 2002, Illinois won at least 10 games in conference play for the third straight season and for the fifth of the last six years. ... In 2002, Illinois led the Big Ten in scoring in all games (77.3 ppg) for the second year in a row.

Back-to-back titles

During the 2001 and 2002 seasons, Illinois won back-to-back Big Ten titles for the first time in 50 years (since 1951-52) and for just the third time in school history. The Whiz Kids posted back-to-back titles in 1942 and 1943. Illinois has never won three straight Big Ten titles.

Self wins second Big Ten title in two years

Bill Self became just the second Big Ten coach in conference history to win Big Ten basketball titles in his first two seasons in the league. Self is the first since Wisconsin's Walter Meanwell did so in his first three seasons, from 1912-14.

Last season, Bill Self became the first coach in 22 years, the ninth all-time in the Big Ten and the second Illini coach to win a Big Ten championship in his first season as coach at a conference school.

League rookies earning hardware were Wisconsin's Meanwell in 1912, Guy Lowman in 1918 and Harold Foster in 1935, Iowa's Sam Barry in 1923, Michigan's George Veekner in 1929, Illinois' Doug Mills in 1937, Minnesota's Bill Musselman in 1972, Purdue's Lee Rose in 1979, Self in 2001 and Wisconsin's Bo Ryan in 2002.

Williams, Archibald move to the NBA

Frank Williams became Illinois' first, first-round NBA draft pick since 1990 when the New York Knicks chose him as the 26th pick of the 2002 draft. Teammate Robert Archibald soon followed as the 32nd pick by the Memphis Grizzlies. Archibald is the first native of Scotland to be drafted by an NBA team.

Quick shots

--Ingram transfers from Tulsa: Jack Ingram, a 6-10 forward-center from San Antonio, Texas, transferred to Illinois from Tulsa this past summer and will sit out the 2002-03 season per NCAA transfer rules.

--Future Illini: Three future student-athletes signed national letters of intent with the University of Illinois and Bill Self during the early signing period in November. The class includes 6-foot-3-inch guard Richard McBride of Springfield Lanphier High School, 6-8 forward Brian Randle of Peoria Notre Dame High School and 6-9 forward Warren Carter of Lake Highlands High School in Dallas, Texas. Both McBride and Randle are two-time all-state picks entering their senior seasons.

[Provided by Kent Brown,
assistant athletics director and
sports information director,
University of Illinois]

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Articles from the past week

Tuesday:

  • High school basketball

  • LCC men's basketball

  • McLaughlin signs with LCC

  • Men's basketball pre-game notes: Illinois State vs. Southwest Missouri State

Monday:

Saturday:

  • Breakfast of champions, Sunday

  • High school basketball

  • Redbirds, Bradley both trying to get the first one

Friday:

  • High school basketball

  • High school wrestling

  • Illinois basketball reunion this weekend

  • Men's basketball pre-game notes:

  • Illinois State vs. Creighton

  • Illinois vs. Wisconsin

Thursday:

  • Lincoln College vs. Lewis & Clark

  • 'Birds want to get aggressive, put brakes on UNI

  • Men's basketball pre-game notes: Illinois State vs. Creighton

Wednesday:

  • Sports Radio 1450 Shootout

  • High school basketball

  • LCC women's basketball

  • Northern Iowa edges the Redbirds 66-64

  • Illinois amazes in road opener
    Cook leads Illini to 76-70 win at Minnesota

Tuesday:

  • High school basketball

Cook's scoring explosion
dooms Badgers

Lincoln's Brian Cook goes off for career-high 31-point outburst in 69-63 win

By Jeff Mayfield

[JAN. 13, 2003]  It was basketball alumni day for the Illinois basketball program Saturday in the Assembly Hall. And if you didn't know any better, once the game started you would've sworn that the Illini were playing a brand of basketball that was more like that seen in the '70s and '80s.

What's up with that? Well, do you remember life before the 3-point line? That's the way much of this game played out, even though the Illini eventually hit eight 3-pointers to seal and slug out a 69-63 victory over a Wisconsin team they shared the conference title with a year ago.

Not only that, but the first half didn't exactly give you a great deal of confidence heading into the second half. In fact, Greg Taylor, who was seated on press row, said he had a real bad feeling about the second half. While sitting there he must've slipped me some of his famous Cubs Kool-aid, because I felt we had weathered the storm (where did that overwhelming sense of optimism come from?). Luckily, I was right for once.

Illinois came out of the locker room like a team possessed. Bucky Badger must've forgotten all about Cook, who sat most of the first half on the bench mired with two fouls. But somebody should've told Bucky that Cook would STILL probably start and play a little bit in the second half. Apparently, Bucky never got that message through to the troops, and Cook opened up the second half scoring with a wide-open dunk! James Augustine continued his phenomenal game by scoring a deuce and marksman Sean Harrington nailed a 3, and for all intents and purposes the Illini were 2-0!

 


[Photo by Tom Seggelke]

According to the LDN's stats, Cook blew up for 24 second-half points and seven rebounds and totally dominated the final 20 minutes. But had it not been for Augustine's huge first half, Cook's performance might well have been for naught! Augustine erupted himself by scoring 13 first-half points, including an important 3 from the corner as the half was winding down. So, with Cook on the bench for over 10 minutes the Illini STILL held a 36-30 lead at intermission.

Then Illinois REALLY got busy. In addition to the before-mentioned second-half offensive barrage, the Illini's defense stiffened as well, not allowing a field goal for the first 9:30 of the frame.

Wisconsin's big star, Kirk Penney, finally did wake up late in the game as he hit some big shots, including two 3-pointers, to pull the Badgers close… but, not close enough. Penney did finish with a double-double, going for 18 points and 12 rebounds as he helped Wisconsin win the rebounding wars 31-29.

But Illinois held The Cheesers to 35 percent shooting over the final 20 minutes after they went for 60 percent in the first half. The Illini also out-assisted them 18-8, and both teams had a hand in 10 turnovers each.

A sold-out Assembly Hall crowd of 16,500 roared their approval for all the former Illini stars as well as the critical victory over the Badgers. However, once school is back in session, many of the rowdiest, best fans will be back to assist the Illini even more!

Things REALLY toughen up for Illinois next as they travel to Iowa on Wednesday and to Indiana on Saturday!

 

[to top of second column in this article]

Railers tough, too

Speaking of tough, how 'bout those Railers? Going into the hostile environment of Lanphier's home court, not many gave Lincoln much of a chance over Richard McBride and the Lions. But, the Railers took the fight to Lanphier all night long and came away with another hard-fought victory. The Railers now find themselves at 15-2 and IF they can take care of business at home, should be in the driver's seat to upset Lanphier AND Southeast to win yet another CS8 title!

Hats off to Derek Schrader for his outstanding game Friday night and to Ryne Komnick for his stellar play over the last three or four games.

Next up is the shootout versus Pekin at the PCCC.

Lady Railers

Last week the Monday night sports showcase hosted some Lady Railers along with our Railer seniors of the week. Brittany Ingram and Jennifer Whalen did an outstanding job representing their school, their team and their program. These girls have really turned their season around over the holidays, and more exciting times are sure to follow!

More Railer stuff

According to the Charlie Essig report, the Railers are ranked No. 14 in the state, and that was before they pummeled Lanphier. Southeast is 31, with Lanphier ranked at 76. All other CS8 teams were beyond 132. In the City/Suburban Hoops report, Southeast was listed 11 with Lincoln 20. Peoria Central is ranked No. 1. As for players, Richard McBride is ranked No. 2 to Proviso-East's Shannon Brown. But this interesting little piece surfaced on Lincoln's Chris Bunch:

Little men -- big impact: Bunch is a jet-quick point guard. Runs the show despite his diminutive 5'9" size. He is a defensive whiz with excellent vision in the open court and in half-court sets.

Hats off to Hartsburg-Emden

Hartem put a bump in Mount Pulaski's roll by taking out the Hilltoppers 52-37 this past weekend. Always rivals, according to several sources this was the first win for Hartem over their nearby foes in quite some time. The win takes Hartem to 7-5 and 3-1 in league play.

NFL playoffs

We were right when we said that wild-card teams haven't fared all that well. According to the stats, wild-card teams were 9-39 coming into this year's playoffs. So all the smack talk from last week went for naught, and most of those teams, including the ones who made great comebacks, all went down this week. Every home team won. No predictions for next week, but I'd sure like to see boyhood favorites in the big game!

Cook wins another award

The LDN has just learned that Lincoln's Brian Cook has picked up another Big Ten Player of the Week award! Cook went for 25 against Minnesota and a career-high 31 versus Wisconsin in leading Illinois to a 2-0 first-place week! Nice going, Brian! [See the Big Ten announcement here.]

"FANdamonium"

...Tonight at 6, right here on the LDN link and on CITV and FIX-96.3 FM.

[Jeff Mayfield]


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