Rivalry still alive: Illini beat Hoosiers

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For Bruce Weber's Monday morning thoughts, click here

For Klee's in-game report , click here

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. – After No. 22 Illinois sealed a 65-52 win against Indiana, thoughts gradually turned to the rest of the schedule.

"Everybody except for Penn State, I believe, was in the Top 25 at some point," junior Dominique Keller said.

His math is correct. And that's not discounting Penn State, either, because the Big Ten's surprise team plays at Illinois on Wednesday with visions of an NCAA tournament berth.

Sunday's rout of the Hoosiers at Assembly Hall was the last game you could look at and say, "Meh, that's a win." Of the five remaining games, there are fewer gimmes than a Ryder Cup match. All four of the UI's opponents sport winning Big Ten records: Penn State (7-6), Ohio State (7-5), Minnesota (7-6), Michigan State (10-2), Penn State again.

"We get the best competition at the end of the season," said Mike Tisdale.

The Mike (Tisdale) and Mike (Davis) Show dominated Indiana, combining for 32 points and 17 boards. Illinois led by as many as 21 points, though Indiana cut the deficit to six, no doubt energized by a wild capacity crowd that hollered like it was 1976.

"It's hard to give a great team like that a 20-point heads up and try to come back and win," said Indiana guard and Central grad Verdell Jones, who had nine points.

The way Illinois (21-5, 9-4) stumbled to the final buzzer, you wondered if the Illini already were thinking about a rugged stretch that will decide whether they can overtake Michigan State in the title chase.

"Hopefully we can win out," said Chester Frazier, one of three seniors who won for the first time at Indiana. "Hopefully we'll get some help from some other teams."

As for the IU-UI rivalry, it made for better theater when Bruce Weber and Kelvin Sampson were exchanging awkward handshakes. But that fiery distaste on the sidelines is gone, at least for now, as Weber and Tom Crean stayed in the Valentine's spirit with a mini-lovefest after Indiana (6-18, 1-11) set a program record for losses in a season.

"I thought they've been ranked too low, in the sense of not getting the respect nationally they deserve," Crean said of the Illini.

"Kudos to the fans here, to sell this place out and continue to support the team," said Weber, who enjoyed his largest of margin of victory in a game at Indiana in 23-plus seasons on the Purdue and Illinois staffs. "It's just amazing to me, to be honest."

But it wasn't all hearts and chocolates inside Assembly Hall. The Indiana student section chanted "Weber sucks!" and "Shut up Weber!" as Illinois swept a regular-season series from Indiana for the first time since 1998.

"I've only been in this rivalry for one year, and I can tell you right now, I do not like this school," Keller said. "I don't like the coach, and I don't like the fans. As a matter of fact, I don't like the gym. It's just something about Indiana I just don't like. You can quote me on that."

GAME 26 RECAP

What Happened
With a pathetic first half, Indiana took another step toward claiming its first No. 11 seed in the Big Ten tournament. The Hoosiers made it interesting (and loud) by cutting a 21-point deficit to six, but Mike and Mike (32 points) sent the Hoosiers to a record-setting 18th loss.

What It Means
Not long ago, Hoosier heads would roll after a 13-point loss at home. But there's a different standard in the Hoosierdom these days, and the 17,346 rocked and rolled like Indiana had won. One student said, "We only lost by 13. Not bad." Illinois could've closed better but just wanted a win.

What the Illini Said
"He took it as a challenge when they didn't guard him. He got a little shook. But he played like a senior and he's done it all year. He's been our heart and soul. When he shot that thing, I was just praying it would go in, for his sake, because he deserves it." - Bruce Weber on Chester Frazier's big three in the second half

What the Hoosiers Said
"We didn't come out with enough intensity. They hit us and we didn't hit them back. That's something we went into halftime knowing. We did in the second half, but unfortunately it wasn't enough." - Guard Verdell Jones

What's Next
Demetri McCamey (flu) will celebrate his 20th birthday Saturday. The Illini hope his health improves enough so they can celebrate a pair of wins against teams in the upper half of the Big Ten standings: Penn State (Wednesday) and at Ohio State (Sunday).

pklee@news-gazette.com

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