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EVANSTON - It took Illinois 39 minutes, 57 seconds, to take the lead.

And that's plenty fine with the Illini.

Demetri McCamey banked in a leaner with 2.9 seconds remaining to give No. 22 Illinois a 60-59 triumph that won't soon be forgotten.

Illinois trailed 57-43 with 5:56 left. But Trent Meacham poured in 12 points during a late-game surge - and finished with 15 points - that gave Illinois the improbable victory before packed house of 8,117 at Welsh Ryan Arena.

Northwestern (13-9, 4-7 Big Ten) managed only two points over the final six minutes. McCamey's game-winning bucket gave him a game-high 21 points and clinched a stirring comeback for Illinois (20-5, 8-4). The Illini did not hold the lead until the final basket of the game.

12:00 Left in Regulation - Northwestern 48, Illinois 37

- With his high school coach in attendance, Demetri McCamey is keeping Illinois in the game. The St. Joe's product scored 11 points in the first 4:05 of the second half, including a pair of three-pointers. If you're watching on ESPN2, you can see Gene Pingatore behind the UI bench, wearing a black coat and red sweater.

- Friend of HQ Michael Rothstein is conducting a straw poll of media types for the National Player of the Year. You can see his latest poll here. Klee's first straw-poll ballot: 1. Blake Griffin 2. Tyler Hansbrough 3. James Harden. Klee's second straw-poll ballot: 1. Blake Griffin 2. Tyler Hansbrough 3. Jerel McNeal.

- Mike Tisdale had one rebound against Purdue and has zero rebounds tonight.

- The Northwestern student section has been endearingly obnoxious. They have the obligatory shirt-less guys in the front row, the purple wigs, the purple face paint, and they've been on Bruce Weber's case from the opening tip until now. Can't imagine the student section is like this all the time, but they brought their game tonight.

"Michigan State's is probably the best. And their numbers are much bigger," Weber said of the various student sections. "Northwestern's I hear, because it's literally from here to there."

- If you're looking for a place to drink beer at the Big Ten tournament in Indianapolis, the league office recommends Illinois fans go here: The Ram, 140 S. Illinois Street, (317-955-9900).

- It's almost bizarre how the Illini's mood and body language change in road games. They bark at the officials more often, they slump their shoulders after Northwestern buries a 3, they take their time getting into the huddle. You don't see much of that at the Assembly Hall.

- HQ staff writer Tony Bleill spent part of last weekend with Jamar Smith at Southern Indiana. He'll have a story in Sunday's News-Gazette. For more on Jamar, click here.

Check back in a few.

Klee

Halftime - Northwestern 31, Illinois 25

- You figure Kevin Coble and/or Craig Moore are going to get theirs. But Bruce Weber was concerned that a role player on the Northwestern roster would stand up and throw in 8 or 10 points.

"It seems like each game one guy will get eight that's getting (averaging) only three or four," Weber said this week.

Glenbard West product John Shurna, with eight points, has been that guy. Shurna averages 7.2 points, so he's topped his average in the first 20 minutes. And even though he won the Class 4A slam dunk competition last year, Shurna hasn't thrown one down.

- Each Thursday, Klee submits his Top 4 seeds in each NCAA regional if Selection Sunday were today (and not March 15): Here are the top four seeds this week, not including the results of tonight's games (because Louisville just got drilled at Notre Dame):

Midwest
1. Oklahoma
-Look for Sooners in Kansas City (first weekend), Indianapolis (second) and... Detroit (Final Four)
2. Michigan State
3. Marquette
4. UCLA

West
1. Pittsburgh
2. Memphis
-Tigers' success in NCAAs in last three seasons (two Elite Eights, Final Four) almost unmatched
3. Wake Forest
4. Ohio State

East
1. Connecticut
2. Duke
3. Louisville
4. Illinois
-A top-five seed likely would place Illini in Dayton, Minneapolis or Kansas City for first weekend

South
1. North Carolina
2. Villanova
3. Clemson
4. Missouri
-After watching lifeless Tigers in Braggin' Rights game, it took an arm-twisting to put them here

- The nation's 43rd-best free throw shooting team, Illinois missed all five of its free throws in the first half.

- This is the fifth time Illinois has trailed at the half.

- Marcus Jackson reports Illinois had nine assists on 11 baskets, so their nation-leading assist percentage (70.2 on the season) is in good hands, even if their road record in Big Ten play (1-4) is not.

- And Northwestern one-upped the Illini, recording 11 assists on 11 field goals.

- Louisville Courier-Journal beat writer Brett Dawson checks in via text message: "Stephen Bardo (who's awesome) said early in the game Northwestern could pull the upset by hitting 12 three-pointers. They've got six at the half, and the lead."

- On that subject, Illinois currently ranks fourth in the nation -- out of 330 teams! -- in three-point field goal defense. Of course, that was their ranking entering tonight's game, before they got Luka Mirkovic-ed. The forward had one three-pointer (1-for-4) before tonight. He has two in the first half.

- Northwestern coach Bill Carmody is 1-14 against Illinois. One of his goals:

"We'd like to get to the point where we can make it a real rivalry, because they've beaten us an awful lot," Carmody said earlier this week.

He's halfway there, at least tonight.

- UI sports information intern and hoops afficionado Emily Wickstrom informs us the Illinois women have defeated Northwestern, 60-46, and have now won four of their last five.

Check back in a few.

Klee

8:00 Left in First Half - Northwestern 20, Illinois 16

The insight of the season, thus far, came from Dominique Keller's mother when Klee talked to her on the phone yesterday.

"He's named after Dominique Wilkins," Tonita Keller said. "I loved the way he played the game. He played the game with a smile on his face, and no one knows if you're mad or not. I tell Dominique, 'Play the game with grace and a smile on your face."

And his middle name?

"His middle name is DePaul," she said. "I loved the DePaul basketball team because they dominant."

For more from Tonita Keller, click here.

- One of the specialty awards handed out at the end of the season is the Big Ten Sixth Man of the Year award. Wisconsin's Jason Bohannon won it last season by averaging 8.2 points (with two starts). Here's a look at the top sixth man candidates among the teams in the upper half of the Big Ten standings (with their stats in Big Ten play):

- B.J. Mullens, Ohio State (0 starts, 10.8)
- Chris Allen, Michigan State (1 start, 8.8 ppg)
- Paul Carter, Minnesota (0 starts, 7.0 ppg)
- Dominique Keller, Illinois (0 starts, 6.5 ppg)
- Calvin Brock, Illinois (0 starts, 6.0 ppg)
- Danny Morrisey, Penn State (0 starts, 4.5)
- Marcus Green, Purdue (1 start, 3.6 ppg)

- The last time Illinois lost at Northwestern - a 70-60 defeat on Jan. 14, 2004 - Croatia product Davor Duvancic came off the Wildcats' bench to score 22 points.

And Serbian product Luka Mirkovic has stung the Illini tonight with a couple of early three-pointers.

Check back in a few.

Klee

12:00 Left in First Half - Northwestern 16, Illinois 8

- Part of the reason we felt (somewhat) comfortable predicting an Illini road victory was because of Jay Price's scouting report. The assistant has handled these Princeton-style scouts well, from the Georgetown win a few years back, to the Air Force win in the NCAA tournament, to Bruce Weber's 9-1 record against Northwestern.

- And right now, it's not looking like a very wise prediction. The Wildcats have splashed four three-pointers in the first eight minutes.

- The Demetri McCamey heat check hasn't arrived yet. He usually fires up the heat check before the first media timeout - and usually from the right wing - but the Wildcats have limited his perimeter touches thus far.

- We're told the Illinois bus ride was a wild one yesterday. Driving up I-57 with the high winds made for a wobbly ride, and some of the passengers kept their eyes on the movie to avoid noticing the back-and-forth weaving.

- Illinois has remained largely free of injury and illness this season. But the strangest illness hit Mike Davis. When I asked him the Bell's palsy this week, Davis admitted to being "freaked out" when the left side of his face wouldn't move, and one of his parents flew to C-U to check on him.

"The day after the Michigan State game (Jan. 17), I went to the doctor and he said, 'You have Bell's palsy.' I was freaked out a little bit. It was scary," Davis said. "I've never had something like that and never thought I would. It's gone now, thank goodness, and I'm healthy."

Check back in a few.

Klee

Tipoff - No. 22 Illinois (19-5, 7-4 Big Ten) at Northwestern (13-8, 4-6)

Craig B. checks in via email: "Paul, do you think that Northwestern can leverage this year into becoming increasing competitive in the Big Ten?  Maybe not upper division, but competitive enough to make the tourney on a semi-regular basis? Can they turn the gym they play into a pit?"

Thanks for the question Craig. Some would say their gym already is a pit. We disagree. We like Welsh-Ryan, mainly because it's it feels like you're watching a high school super-sectional with seventh-year seniors. But to answer your question, no, I don't think Northwestern can make the NCAA tourney on a semi-regular basis. Northwestern's program has been around since 1904-05 and hasn't been to the Dance.

But your question reminds me of something Gene Keady told Bruce Weber when Weber was searching out head coaching jobs. Keady advised Weber to make sure the program has enjoyed success in the past. That means it can have success again. And that was part of the reason Weber was comfortable heading to SIU. Even though SIU had fallen on hard times, mainly due to a couple of bummer recruiting classes, the Salukis had experienced success back in the day, and Keady and Weber felt they could do it again. The rest is history.

- HQ recruiting blogger Jeremy Werner served up a recruiting update with former Illini target Donivine Stewart today on HQ. Here's what the Peoria standout said about Tracy Abrams' commitment to Illinois, which, for all intents, ended the Illini's recruitment of Stewart.

"That's what colleges do. That's their job," Stewart said. "They have to find a point guard in a conference like the Big Ten. It just so happens that he took the offer before I did. It doesn't necessarily affect what I do."

Click here for the rest of Werner's update.

- Klee would like to thank Chicago Sun-Times reporter Herb Gould, who brews his own beer and gave Klee two bottles for a weekend taste test. Especially looking forward to the stout.

- Starting lineup for Illinois: Frazier, Meacham, McCamey, Davis and Tisdale. This is the 23rd straight game Bruce Weber has gone with that lineup.

- I'd say it's about 70-30 (orange vs. purple) in here.

And the Orange Krush has invaded Welsh-Ryan Arena. The Krush brought two busses up from C-U. That's good work out of the Krush.

Check back in a few.

Klee

20 Minutes Until Tipoff - No. 22 Illinois (19-5, 7-4 Big Ten) at Northwestern (13-8, 4-6)

- UI ticket director Jason Heggemeyer has some information for us. He said there are about 1,500 tickets remaining for the Penn State (Feb. 18) and Minnesota (Feb. 26) games at the Assembly Hall. The home finale against Michigan State is sold out.

- Here's one reason I think No. 2 Oklahoma is as close to a Final Four lock as there is (that includes Carolina). Because the Sooners have reserves like Juan Pattillo, reserves that can do this. (Click on the Top Videos tab.)

- If Illinois wins the remainder of its home games (there's three) and wins at Indiana (and it should), the Illini finish 11-7 in the Big Ten. You'd take that, wouldn't you?

- Your boy Tim Doyle - NU alum and Big Ten Network analyst - just walked in. He's here as a fan.

- Westchester St. Joseph's coach Gene Pingatore, who coached UI sophomore Demetri McCamey, is in attendance tonight. The prep legend is sitting directly behind the UI bench. He caught the Illinois-at-Iowa game last season, to observe St. Joe's alums Tony Freeman and McCamey.

Wasn't long ago that you wouldn't have seen Gene Pingatore anywhere near the Illinois bench. McCamey, you might remember, is the first scholarship player to attend Illinois out of St. Joe's.

Check back in a few.

Klee

40 Minutes Until Tipoff - No. 22 Illinois at Northwestern

Since it's a road game, the Illini won't have any recruits in attendance tonight, but their recruits are in the news. Here's a look at the UI recruits, courtesy of HQ correspondent Troy Gentle:

TRACY ABRAMS (Mount Carmel) - Had 10 points, six rebounds and three assists but could not stop De La Salle from rolling to a 64-46 win last Friday. The Caravan hosts St. Ignatius in a Catholic League crossover game Friday.

JOSEPH BERTRAND (Sterling) - Scored 16 points as Sterling beat Dixon for the third time this season 61-51 last Friday. Tuesday saw the Golden Warriors fall to Freeport 51-50 despite Bertrand's 19-point effort. Sterling will host Ottawa on Friday.

MEYERS LEONARD (Robinson) - Had a double-double (14 points, 10 rebounds) in a 62-56 win against Paris last Friday, then scored 14 points in a 44-42 win against Olney East Richland on Tuesday. The Maroons face Salem on Friday.

And for news on Brandon Paul, Jereme Richmond, Tyler Griffey, Crandall Head and D.J. Richardson, click here.

- A. Kumar checks in from Crystal Lake via email: "Paint the Welsh-Ryan Arena orange? Maybe not. But I am going to take a 43-minute long trip to be there cheering for the Illini. Go Illini!

Mr. Kumar, you'll be pleased to know they're selling the orange out in the concourse at Welsh-Ryan. (Go here for photos from HQ blogger Ed Bond.) So if you forget yours, there's plenty to go around. Fans are filing in. The arena is about, oh, 20 percent full, and it's 50-50 orange and purple. A Northwestern ticket official told me yesterday that it will be a sellout.

Check back in a few.

Klee

45 Minutes Until Tipoff - No. 22 Illinois (19-5, 7-4 Big Ten) at Northwestern (13-8, 4-6)

Good evening everyone, Paul Klee and Marcus Jackson joining you from Welsh-Ryan Arena. We've got about an hour until tipoff. Feel free to send any questions or observations or rants our direction (pklee@news-gazette.com) and we'll get them posted.

Marcus Jackson caught up with Stephen Bardo a few minutes ago. The former Illini is sitting courtside scanning his game notes before calling tonight's game on ESPN2.

"I've got the dream job, I go all over the country," Bardo said. "We get access to everybody and I get to see the best players in the country."

It's true, really. He's got about the best gig you could have in the business. Bardo called the UConn-Michigan game last weekend, he had Blake Griffin's Sooners this week and will head down to Carbondale (his hometown!) on Saturday for the SIU-Creighton game.

"In the last week I've seen DeShawn Sims, Manny Harris, UConn - the No. 1 team in the country," Bardo said. "I saw Oklahoma last night, the No. 2 team in the country. I'll go mid-major (Saturday) and women's on Sunday. So I'm doing it all and am having a blast with it all."

Good for him. There isn't a nicer guy in the biz.

- Stu Durando of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch is here and drops a prediction on us: "Illinois by a comfortable four-point margin."

- Klee's prediction, click here.

- Rossow's prediction, click here.

Check back in a few.

Klee