Illini Win
Dee Brown made sure that all Purdue gave No. 1 Illinois was a scare. Brown scored all 14 of his points in the second half to lead the Illini to a 68-59 victory over Purdue on Saturday.
AP Photo
Trailing at halftime for the first time this season, the Illini opened the second half with a 23-6 run to take control. Brown hit three 3-pointers during the surge, the last giving Illinois a 56-45 lead with just over nine minutes to play. He also turned up the heat defensively, creating turnovers and opportunities in transition for the quicker, more talented Illini. Luther Head scored 15 points for Illinois (16-0, 2-0 Big Ten), which came into the game outscoring opponents by 20.5 points a game, but this one was no gimme. Matt Kiefer had 17 points and six rebounds to lead Purdue (4-8, 0-2), which gave Illinois all it could handle for a little more than a half.
Illinois was uncharacteristically sluggish in the first half, missing open layups and 3-pointers, getting into foul trouble and lacking the crisp ball movement on offense that has made the Illini unbeatable so far this season. The Illini trailed for most of the half and were down 39-33 at halftime to the inspired Boilermakers, who quieted the thousands of Illinois fans who made the trip to West Lafayette. Purdue was aggressive from the opening tip after receiving a tongue-lashing from coach Gene Keady following another lackluster effort in a loss to Wisconsin on Wednesday. After that game, Keady openly wondered if he has waited too long to step aside as coach, suggesting that the team needs new blood and a new face to take over a team he may have lost. The Boilermakers showed on Saturday that they are still behind their beloved coach, who is in his 25th and final season on the Purdue bench. Kiefer scored 13 points in the first 10 minutes, including an eye-opening drive and dunk that gave the Boilermakers a 25-19 lead. He injected some much-needed life into a Purdue fan base that has grown weary of the team's failures so far this season. On their next possession, Kiefer drove the lane and dished to Carl Landry for a dunk that whipped the crowd into a frenzy. Landry had 10 points and five rebounds in the first half and finished with 15 points and six boards. The Illini, who came into the game shooting 51 percent from the field, shot just 38 percent in the first half while Purdue shot 57 percent. It was just about the reverse in the second half as the undermanned Boilermakers were overwhelmed by Illinois' depth and Brown's tenaciousness. Roger Powell had two huge dunks in the second half, including one off an inbounds play underneath the basket that swung the momentum back to Illinois. After a layup by Kiefer brought Purdue within 59-50, Powell converted a three-point play to extend the lead. Illinois is off to its best start since the 1988-89 team began the season 17-0. That team won the Big Ten championship and advanced to the Final Four. The only other Illinois team to start the season with 16 straight wins was 1914-15, when the Illini won the national championship.
ZERO TO HERO: Brown Delivers responds to challenges from Weber, Boilermakers
ILLINOIS 68, PURDUE 59
By Marlen Garcia, Chicago Tribune staff reporter
Published January 9, 2005
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. -- For the first time this season, Purdue looked brilliant. The Boilermakers had a magical shooting touch against Illinois, the No. 1 team in the country, and stymied possibly the best guard team in the country. "For 20 minutes," Purdue coach Gene Keady said. The remaining 20 minutes Saturday belonged to Dee Brown and his Illinois teammates, who quickly made up a six-point halftime deficit en route to a 68-59 Big Ten victory over the Boilermakers (4-8, 0-2 in Big Ten) before an announced crowd of 14,123 at Mackey Arena. About midway through the first half, the Boilermakers were 12 of 17 from the field, shooting a remarkable 70.6 percent. Purdue forward Matt Kiefer scored 13 of his 17 points in that span."They came out and took us by storm a little bit," Illinois guard Deron Williams said. Williams, who came in averaging 14.5 points a game, finished with a season-low six. Backcourt partners Brown and Luther Head had similar struggles, but only in the first half. With 4 minutes 59 seconds remaining in the opening half, Illinois (16-0, 2-0) trailed by nine, its biggest deficit this season. "We were a step behind ," said Illinois coach Bruce Weber, whose team also lost several tussles for rebounds. More than once in that half, Weber pounded his clipboard during timeouts and screamed at his players, directing most of his frustration at Head. Head had a few defensive lapses and missed an ill-timed shot with eight seconds left in the first half, leaving Purdue time to set up a final play. Jack Ingram ended up fouling the Boilermakers' Bryant Dillon, who sank two free throws for Purdue's 39-33 halftime lead."It was a crusher," Weber said. "At the time, emotionally, we thought it could be a big difference-maker."Illinois had not trailed at the half of a regular-season game since Feb. 8, 2004, when Minnesota had a one-point lead in a game the Illini won by 10. Head caught an earful for his miscues. "I won't tell you all the words he used," Head said of Weber's outburst. Brown and Head made all the right moves in the second half. Brown, who did not take a shot in the first half, scored 14 points in the final 20 minutes. His first three-pointer, with 16:27 left, tied the game 41-41. "I'm not going to force a shot," Brown said of his zero attempts early. About a minute later, a dunk by Roger Powell put Illinois ahead for good. Later, Brown sank three three-pointers in a 75-second span, the third of which gave the Illini an 11-point lead. "I just told them to play like you're No. 1," Weber said. "Somebody step up and make plays and play with some heart.' [Dee] took it to heart, and Luther did [too]." Head scored 15 points to lead the Illini. Illinois players said they expected Purdue to come out firing and had not underestimated the Boilermakers as they had before the teams' first meeting last season, when Purdue upset the Illini at the Assembly Hall. "We knew they were going to play their hearts out," Williams said. Ultimately, Purdue didn't have the depth--or the shooting touch--to keep up with the Illini in the second half. The Boilermakers shot 33.3 percent in the second half while Illinois made 54.5 percent of its shots. The Boilermakers' Kiefer also had foul trouble, playing just 26 minutes. Charles Davis, Kiefer's replacement, just joined the team Jan. 1 and doesn't have his timing down when shooting, even on simple shots. Davis had been playing tight end for Purdue's football team, which lost to Arizona State on Dec. 31 in the Sun Bowl. "We knew we had to play the last 20 minutes great to win the game," Keady said."At halftime we were shooting 57 percent and they were shooting 37 percent, and they were only down six. They had to feel good about that."
AP Photo
Trailing at halftime for the first time this season, the Illini opened the second half with a 23-6 run to take control. Brown hit three 3-pointers during the surge, the last giving Illinois a 56-45 lead with just over nine minutes to play. He also turned up the heat defensively, creating turnovers and opportunities in transition for the quicker, more talented Illini. Luther Head scored 15 points for Illinois (16-0, 2-0 Big Ten), which came into the game outscoring opponents by 20.5 points a game, but this one was no gimme. Matt Kiefer had 17 points and six rebounds to lead Purdue (4-8, 0-2), which gave Illinois all it could handle for a little more than a half.
Illinois was uncharacteristically sluggish in the first half, missing open layups and 3-pointers, getting into foul trouble and lacking the crisp ball movement on offense that has made the Illini unbeatable so far this season. The Illini trailed for most of the half and were down 39-33 at halftime to the inspired Boilermakers, who quieted the thousands of Illinois fans who made the trip to West Lafayette. Purdue was aggressive from the opening tip after receiving a tongue-lashing from coach Gene Keady following another lackluster effort in a loss to Wisconsin on Wednesday. After that game, Keady openly wondered if he has waited too long to step aside as coach, suggesting that the team needs new blood and a new face to take over a team he may have lost. The Boilermakers showed on Saturday that they are still behind their beloved coach, who is in his 25th and final season on the Purdue bench. Kiefer scored 13 points in the first 10 minutes, including an eye-opening drive and dunk that gave the Boilermakers a 25-19 lead. He injected some much-needed life into a Purdue fan base that has grown weary of the team's failures so far this season. On their next possession, Kiefer drove the lane and dished to Carl Landry for a dunk that whipped the crowd into a frenzy. Landry had 10 points and five rebounds in the first half and finished with 15 points and six boards. The Illini, who came into the game shooting 51 percent from the field, shot just 38 percent in the first half while Purdue shot 57 percent. It was just about the reverse in the second half as the undermanned Boilermakers were overwhelmed by Illinois' depth and Brown's tenaciousness. Roger Powell had two huge dunks in the second half, including one off an inbounds play underneath the basket that swung the momentum back to Illinois. After a layup by Kiefer brought Purdue within 59-50, Powell converted a three-point play to extend the lead. Illinois is off to its best start since the 1988-89 team began the season 17-0. That team won the Big Ten championship and advanced to the Final Four. The only other Illinois team to start the season with 16 straight wins was 1914-15, when the Illini won the national championship.
ZERO TO HERO: Brown Delivers responds to challenges from Weber, Boilermakers
ILLINOIS 68, PURDUE 59
By Marlen Garcia, Chicago Tribune staff reporter
Published January 9, 2005
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. -- For the first time this season, Purdue looked brilliant. The Boilermakers had a magical shooting touch against Illinois, the No. 1 team in the country, and stymied possibly the best guard team in the country. "For 20 minutes," Purdue coach Gene Keady said. The remaining 20 minutes Saturday belonged to Dee Brown and his Illinois teammates, who quickly made up a six-point halftime deficit en route to a 68-59 Big Ten victory over the Boilermakers (4-8, 0-2 in Big Ten) before an announced crowd of 14,123 at Mackey Arena. About midway through the first half, the Boilermakers were 12 of 17 from the field, shooting a remarkable 70.6 percent. Purdue forward Matt Kiefer scored 13 of his 17 points in that span."They came out and took us by storm a little bit," Illinois guard Deron Williams said. Williams, who came in averaging 14.5 points a game, finished with a season-low six. Backcourt partners Brown and Luther Head had similar struggles, but only in the first half. With 4 minutes 59 seconds remaining in the opening half, Illinois (16-0, 2-0) trailed by nine, its biggest deficit this season. "We were a step behind ," said Illinois coach Bruce Weber, whose team also lost several tussles for rebounds. More than once in that half, Weber pounded his clipboard during timeouts and screamed at his players, directing most of his frustration at Head. Head had a few defensive lapses and missed an ill-timed shot with eight seconds left in the first half, leaving Purdue time to set up a final play. Jack Ingram ended up fouling the Boilermakers' Bryant Dillon, who sank two free throws for Purdue's 39-33 halftime lead."It was a crusher," Weber said. "At the time, emotionally, we thought it could be a big difference-maker."Illinois had not trailed at the half of a regular-season game since Feb. 8, 2004, when Minnesota had a one-point lead in a game the Illini won by 10. Head caught an earful for his miscues. "I won't tell you all the words he used," Head said of Weber's outburst. Brown and Head made all the right moves in the second half. Brown, who did not take a shot in the first half, scored 14 points in the final 20 minutes. His first three-pointer, with 16:27 left, tied the game 41-41. "I'm not going to force a shot," Brown said of his zero attempts early. About a minute later, a dunk by Roger Powell put Illinois ahead for good. Later, Brown sank three three-pointers in a 75-second span, the third of which gave the Illini an 11-point lead. "I just told them to play like you're No. 1," Weber said. "Somebody step up and make plays and play with some heart.' [Dee] took it to heart, and Luther did [too]." Head scored 15 points to lead the Illini. Illinois players said they expected Purdue to come out firing and had not underestimated the Boilermakers as they had before the teams' first meeting last season, when Purdue upset the Illini at the Assembly Hall. "We knew they were going to play their hearts out," Williams said. Ultimately, Purdue didn't have the depth--or the shooting touch--to keep up with the Illini in the second half. The Boilermakers shot 33.3 percent in the second half while Illinois made 54.5 percent of its shots. The Boilermakers' Kiefer also had foul trouble, playing just 26 minutes. Charles Davis, Kiefer's replacement, just joined the team Jan. 1 and doesn't have his timing down when shooting, even on simple shots. Davis had been playing tight end for Purdue's football team, which lost to Arizona State on Dec. 31 in the Sun Bowl. "We knew we had to play the last 20 minutes great to win the game," Keady said."At halftime we were shooting 57 percent and they were shooting 37 percent, and they were only down six. They had to feel good about that."
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