Indiana's Christian Watford dunks on Meyers Leonard in the first half. (Chris Sweda, Chicago Tribune / February 9, 2012) |
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. — When Illinois has nightmares about Indiana's Assembly Hall, the free throw line will be the main villain.
The Illini's attempt at a late-season image makeover with a potential victory at a top-25 opponent Thursday night was erased each time the Hoosiers walked down the court to make chip shots. It was a frequent trip for the 84-71 victors.
Three Illini fouled out and two others collected four fouls apiece as the Hoosiers made 35 of an astounding 42 free throw attempts.
"The fouls in the first half, they probably were legit," said Illinois coach Bruce Weber, whose players made 12 of 15 for the game. "I'm not sure of the second half to be honest. But you have to deal with it."
Now the Illini (16-8, 5-6 Big Ten) need to deal with a stark reality.
They have lost five of their last six games and have fallen below .500 in conference play for the first time this season. Three of the next four games also are on the road, and four of their final seven regular-season games are against ranked opponents.
"You have to win games but these are not easy games to win," Weber said.
The Illini had kept pace with No. 23 Indiana (19-6, 7-6) through the first half but when center Meyers Leonard picked up his fourth foul with 12 minutes, 29 seconds remaining it left a void.
Leonard had dominated the first half with 15 points against his foil, freshman Cody Zeller. But Zeller came out strong after halftime and Leonard collected fouls, eventually picking up his fifth with 3:09 remaining.
While Leonard was on the bench nearly five minutes, Indiana established an eight-point lead.
"You just wish he'd get a couple calls when people bop him," Weber said. "They don't seem to call that. They just want to call hand checks and stuff on the perimeter."
Zeller scored 14 of his 22 points in the second half, making 12 of 14 free throws for the game to help offset Illinois' 52 percent field goal shooting.
"It's pretty frustrating because we were right there," freshman Myke Henry said. "It's like we hit a wall but we couldn't find a way to get over it."
After scoring only nine points in each of the last three games, guard D.J. Richardson broke out of a slump with 19. He made 5 of 12 3-pointers, scoring more points than he had since mid-December to keep Illinois in the game.
Henry, who played only one minute against the Wildcats, played extensively against Indiana to contribute eight points. Weber used six substitutes, who scored 12 points.
"We're close," Weber said. "We just have to see if we can connect it all together."
sryan@tribune.com
Twitter @sryantribune
The Illini's attempt at a late-season image makeover with a potential victory at a top-25 opponent Thursday night was erased each time the Hoosiers walked down the court to make chip shots. It was a frequent trip for the 84-71 victors.
Three Illini fouled out and two others collected four fouls apiece as the Hoosiers made 35 of an astounding 42 free throw attempts.
"The fouls in the first half, they probably were legit," said Illinois coach Bruce Weber, whose players made 12 of 15 for the game. "I'm not sure of the second half to be honest. But you have to deal with it."
Now the Illini (16-8, 5-6 Big Ten) need to deal with a stark reality.
They have lost five of their last six games and have fallen below .500 in conference play for the first time this season. Three of the next four games also are on the road, and four of their final seven regular-season games are against ranked opponents.
"You have to win games but these are not easy games to win," Weber said.
The Illini had kept pace with No. 23 Indiana (19-6, 7-6) through the first half but when center Meyers Leonard picked up his fourth foul with 12 minutes, 29 seconds remaining it left a void.
Leonard had dominated the first half with 15 points against his foil, freshman Cody Zeller. But Zeller came out strong after halftime and Leonard collected fouls, eventually picking up his fifth with 3:09 remaining.
While Leonard was on the bench nearly five minutes, Indiana established an eight-point lead.
"You just wish he'd get a couple calls when people bop him," Weber said. "They don't seem to call that. They just want to call hand checks and stuff on the perimeter."
Zeller scored 14 of his 22 points in the second half, making 12 of 14 free throws for the game to help offset Illinois' 52 percent field goal shooting.
"It's pretty frustrating because we were right there," freshman Myke Henry said. "It's like we hit a wall but we couldn't find a way to get over it."
After scoring only nine points in each of the last three games, guard D.J. Richardson broke out of a slump with 19. He made 5 of 12 3-pointers, scoring more points than he had since mid-December to keep Illinois in the game.
Henry, who played only one minute against the Wildcats, played extensively against Indiana to contribute eight points. Weber used six substitutes, who scored 12 points.
"We're close," Weber said. "We just have to see if we can connect it all together."
sryan@tribune.com
Twitter @sryantribune
