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Illinois
falls short against Ohio State
By Greg
Taylor
[FEB.
23, 2001]
Frank
Williams led Illinois with 22 points, 14 in the second half, but the
Illini came up two points short on the road in Columbus, Ohio,
losing to the Buckeyes 63-61. Illinois trailed for most of the game,
yet had two chances to tie or win the game inside the last 30
seconds of the game. Lincoln’s Brian Cook, who was saddled with
foul trouble most of the night, missed a 3-point attempt with seven
seconds left which would have placed Illinois in the lead. After
Ohio State’s Tim Martin missed two free throws, Williams attempted
another game-winning 3 at the buzzer, but that one also missed and
Ohio State claimed the victory.
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The
loss drops Illinois’ conference record to11-3 and reduces their lead
over second-place Michigan State to just one-half game in the
standings. The Spartans play back-to-back road games in the next week,
at Penn State and at Wisconsin. Illinois returns to action Saturday
afternoon at the Assembly Hall as seniors Marcus Griffin and Sergio
McClain will play their final home game for the Illini against Iowa.
Illinois will be looking to avenge an earlier road loss to the
Hawkeyes (78-62 on Jan. 11).
Illinois
battled foul trouble in the second half and quit attacking the basket
late in the game. Ohio State was led by senior Ken Johnson, who had 16
points and seven rebounds, and Brian Brown, who finished with 18
points. Ohio State shot an amazing 57 percent from the field in the
first half and finished at a 49 percent clip for the game. Illinois’
bench, which played so well Saturday at Indiana, had a sub-par effort,
contributing just 12 points. Illinois attempted only nine free throws
on the night and only one in the second half, compared to 14 Buckeye
attempts during the final 20 minutes of action.
Cook,
who finished with six points and four rebounds, didn’t get much help
from the men in stripes. Tim Higgins, who has officiated during three
Illinois losses this season, called Cook and Johnson for a double foul
early in the second half, even though Johnson clearly threw an elbow
and Cook appeared to do nothing. This was Cook’s third foul (only
Johnson’s first) and he was quickly whistled for a ticky-tack fourth
foul just 20 seconds later (Higgins strikes again). Cook was forced to
sit for almost eight minutes and was afraid to be aggressive on
defense when he returned to the game.
[to top of second column in
this article]
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Illinois
again struggled from the 3-point line, and junior Cory Bradford failed to
connect on a 3-point basket for the third consecutive game. The Illini
were able to out-rebound the Buckeyes 27-22 on the evening. Marcus
Griffin, who played for Lincoln College, joined Williams in double figures
with 12 points.
Illinois
can still grab at least a share of the Big Ten title by winning their
final two conference games but will need for Michigan State to lose one of
their final three games in order to claim the title outright. If Illinois
and Michigan State finish tied for first in the conference, Illinois would
receive the top seed in the Big Ten tourney as a result of beating the
Spartans in their only meeting of the year.
Of note: Illinois’
final regular season game at Minnesota has been moved from March 3 to
Sunday, March 4, at 3 p.m. This final game will be televised nationally on
CBS.
[Greg
Taylor]
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First,
starting center Marcus Griffin spends more time vomiting in a towel
than he does playing and finishes with just four points.
Second,
starting guard Cory Bradford cannot hit the broad side of a barn —
finishes the game with just three shot attempts and no points.
Third,
starting forward Sergio McClain forgets he can't shoot from the
outside and thinks he has become Cory Bradford and launches five
3-point shots, hitting just one and finishing with three points.
Finally,
Indiana's terrific trio of Jared Jeffries, Kirk Haston and Tim
Coverdale burn the Illini for a total of 50 points.
Sounds
like a sure defeat, right? Think again — after all, this is not your
father's Fighting Illini basketball team!
Illinois
overcame a subpar effort from three starters and beat their most
despised rival, the Indiana Hoosiers, 67-61 in Big Ten conference play
in Bloomington, Ind. While Marcus Griffin, Sergio McClain and Cory
Bradford combined for just seven points, Illinois played terrific
defense and shut down the Hoosiers (Indiana shot just 35 percent from
the field for the game). The victory moves Illinois’ season record
to 21-5 and allows them to keep a one-game lead in the conference,
with an 11-2 mark. Illinois has now beat Indiana four straight times
(including twice in Big Ten conference play) and has won three of the
last four games played in Bloomington. Somewhere, the bully in red
must be spitting orange and blue.
Lincoln’s
Brian Cook started fast, scoring seven early points, and led Illinois
in scoring with 16 points. Frank Williams added 14 points and, despite
missing six free throws, helped steady the ship when Indiana seemed
poised to make a serious run at the Illini. Cook and Williams, the
Illini's super sophs, are clearly the best two players on this deep
team and both appear to be committing to a return place on the Illini
team next season. Williams actually confirmed this after the game.
However,
the real story of this game was the great play of the Illini bench. Look
at the contributions from the four key bench players:
Arch
also made 7-of-8 free throws, keeping Illinois ahead.
Luke
scored all eight points in a crucial stretch which helped Illinois extend
a four-point lead to double digits.
Damir
also played great defense on Jeffries.
Sean
played an entire 10-minute stretch in the second half because, as Self put
it, "he was playing better defense than Cory."
[to top of second column in
this article]
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Photos by Tom
Seggelke & Brad Neal
Illinois
is one of the deepest teams in the country and may be one of the very
best, a point not lost on Indiana interim coach Mike Davis. "Illinois
is the best team we have seen this year," he said.
This
season marked the first wins Illinois has had at both Purdue and Indiana since
1956.
Sunday
night, Illinois moved up to No. 3 in the AP poll (press) and up to No. 4
in the ESPN/USA Today poll (coaches). Illinois continues to be on par for
a No. 1 seed in the NCAA tourney, but they refuse to look ahead that far.
After
the game, Illinois stated one and only one goal at this point: to win the
Big Ten title outright for the first time since Harry Truman was president
(1952). What must Illinois do to accomplish this feat? Win out — two
road games, Thursday at Ohio State and March 3 or 4 at Minnesota, and one
final home game, this Saturday vs. Iowa for Senior Day. Not one of these
three games will be easy, but Illinois is on a roll, and coach Self has
the Illini playing with great confidence.
So what
lies ahead for this team? Can they win the conference title outright? Can
they capture the conference tourney? Can they make the sweet 16 for the
first time since '89? How about the final four? I don't know about any of
these questions, but it will sure be fun watching!
[Greg
Taylor]
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