Men’s basketball falls to Arizona in overtime
Illinois Trent Meacham walks off the court after Illinois lost in overtime to Arizona at the United Center in Chicago on Saturday, Dec. 8, 2007. Illinois was plagued by untimely fouls in the second half, Illinois lost the game in overtime 72-78. Erica Magda
December 7, 2007
CHICAGO – The Illinois men’s basketball team suffered a 78-72 overtime loss at the hands of the 22nd-ranked Arizona Wildcats at the United Center on Saturday in the Lexus “December to Remember” Classic.
The Illini led for 39 of the game’s 40 minutes, giving way to the Wildcats with 57 seconds left in regulation. Once in overtime, the Wildcats never looked back, and were helped largely by Illinois’ inability to make free throws.
“Obviously it’s a disappointing game,” Illinois coach Bruce Weber said. “(The free throws) have plagued us for the last two years, and especially down the stretch.”
DI multimedia
DI multimedia
Illini fall in overtime
Click to view an audio slideshow.
To be sure, the Illini shot 2-of-8 from the charity stripe in the second half while the Wildcats were a perfect 6-of-6.
Arizona’s Jordan Hill had a career afternoon, scoring 23 points on 8-of-12 shooting. He also snared a career-high 14 rebounds in 41 minutes of playing time.
His day overshadowed that of Illinois’ Shaun Pruitt, who scored a career-high 24 points of his own. There was doubt about whether the senior center would play after twisting his ankle in practice a week ago, but if it was bothering him, it didn’t show on the court.
“(Arizona) decided to have Jordan Hill guard me one-on-one for most of the game, so I just wanted to take advantage of that,” Pruitt said. “Usually teams send a guy or two to double me.”
The loss is the third high-profile nonconference loss of the season for Illinois, which lost to Duke and Maryland earlier this year.
