Memory Lane: 2004-05 Illini not-so-super

Remembering 2004-05: Take that, Sparty!

Remembering 2004-05: Cool at Kohl

Remembering 2004-05: Working OT against Iowa

Remembering 2004-05: A milestone moment

Remembering 2004-05: A scare at Purdue

Remembering 2004-05: Big Ten opener's a blast

Remembering 2004-05: Illini braggin' but draggin'

Remembering 2004-05: Chicago gets taste of No. 1

Remembering 2004-05: UI climbs to No. 1

Remembering 2004-05: UI 91, Wake Forest 73

Remembering 2004-05: UI 89, Gonzaga 72

Remembering 2004-05: UI 87, Delaware State 67

Remembering 2004-05: UI 92, Lewis 61

Remembering 2004-05: UI 78, Southern Illinois-Edwardsville 58

Remembering 2004-05: N-G front pages

Remembering 2004-05: Midnight Madness

Remembering 2004-05: Orange & Blue Scrimmage

EACH WEEK, WE'LL TAKE A LOOK BACK AT A MEMORABLE MOMENT IN ILLINI HISTORY, THANKS TO THE WORDS OF THE NEWS-GAZETTE

This week: In our continuing series on the 2004-05 Illini, Bruce Weber's unbeaten Illini beat Indiana on Super Bowl Sunday — but didn't look good in doing it.

Date: Feb. 6, 2005

Headline: Illini sack Hoosiers

By BRETT DAWSON

CHAMPAIGN — If ever there was a day to put on a show at the Assembly Hall, this was it.

A national TV audience. More than a dozen recruits in the house. The added sizzle of Super Bowl Sunday.

The Illini were supposed to be showstoppers.

But with not much show in an ugly 60-47 win against Indiana on Sunday, Illinois put the emphasis on stoppers.

"I think we can shut down anybody in the country if we just defend and play in a frenzy like we always do," Illinois guard Dee Brown said. "Everybody just looks at our offense, especially fans. We win games off our defense."

The Illini certainly did that Sunday.

The shots weren't falling (Illinois was 4 for 16 from three-point range) and the fast break was broken as Indiana milked the shot clock and shifted defenses to keep the Illini out of rhythm.

It was a textbook tale of how to beat Illinois (23-0, 9-0 Big Ten).

Except for the final score.

The book on beating the Illini is to change defenses, mix in zones and pray the guards aren't hitting the outside shot. Everybody knows it.

Nick Smith even brought it up in this week's Sports Illustrated piece on Illinois.

"Maybe Mike (Davis) read Sports Illustrated," Illinois coach Bruce Weber cracked.

But that plan of attack doesn't take into account the Illini's own man-to-man defensive plan.

And that, Davis said, might be the underrated part of the nation's top-rated team.

"To me, their strength is their defense," Davis said. "They cause a lot of havoc, they get a lot of transition baskets. They score a lot of points off turnovers."

Indiana had almost as many turnovers (15) as baskets (17) against the Illini. The Hoosiers (10-10, 5-4) managed 37.8 percent shooting and were 4 for 14 from three-point range.

"I take some pride in it," Weber said. " hope we're a good offensive team .. but the reason we beat Gonzaga and Wake (Forest) the way we did early is because we guarded. I've been happy with the way we've continued to do it. I think we've even gotten better in our defense."

It looked that way Sunday.

And Illinois was fortunate it did.

On a day when Illinois shot 43.2 percent from the floor, a day it managed 26 first-half points - its fewest in a half this season - and had 12 assists vs. 15 turnovers, defense bailed out the Illini.

It wasn't pretty.

But Illinois will take it.

"Just get stops. That's the key to playing," said Brown, who scored 12 points and made three of Illinois' four three-pointers. "Every night you can't be on, every night you can't be offensively putting on shows like we did at Michigan State."

Lately, in fact, it's seemed easier for the Illini to set off offensive fireworks away from the Assembly Hall.

In two of its last three home games — Sunday and two weeks ago against Iowa — Illinois has been off the mark offensively.

On the road, in wins at Wisconsin and Michigan State, the Illini have been on point.

After the game, Brown suggested that's because Illinois has a tendency to try too hard at home.

There's a crowd of 16,618 to impress. In addition, Sunday's crowd featured a who's who of Illinois recruiting targets, including Indianapolis junior Mike Conley Jr., sophomore E.J. Gordon and swingman Marques Johnson, a junior from Fort Wayne, Ind., and E'Twaun Moore, a sophomore guard from East Chicago, Ind.

"We talked the other night — and maybe I shouldn't have — that we're getting down to four home games, three now, for the seniors and everybody," Weber said. "Maybe you try to do too much."

On Sunday, though, Illinois did just enough to win.

Weber and his players admitted the absence of Indiana's leading scorer, Bracey Wright, sidelined with an ankle injury, might have taken some of the luster off the game.

And Weber described his team as 'disappointed in their overall performance,' and said he hopes the Illini will carry 'a little extra edge' into Tuesday's game at sputtering Michigan.

But Sunday hardly was a total bust.

In winning its 33rd straight regular season game and its 19th consecutive regular season Big Ten game, the Illini kept pace with Boston College, the nation's only other unbeaten. And they assured themselves their 10th consecutive week as the nation's No. 1 team in both media and coaches' polls.

That should keep the alumni smiling.

As for the recruits? Illinois put a positive spin on the game for them, too — one Davis hardly could disagree with.

"We were just talking with some recruits, and Dee was telling a recruit how hard it is, that it's difficult the way we play — to defend like we do with pressure, to push the basketball, run in motion, all those things,"Weber said.

"He just said, 'Why do you think we win?' What he led into was people don't like to play against us. Not only is it tough for us, but because of our pressure, how intense we play, how we push the ball, we just wear other teams down."

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