National Basketball Association
Illinois 72, Nebraska 65
When: 5:15 PM ET, Saturday, March 2, 2013
Where: Assembly Hall, Champaign, Illinois
Officials:
# Bill Ek, # John Higgings, # Ted Valentine
Attendance:
16618
By SportsDirect Inc.
Illinois 72, Nebraska 65: Tracy Abrams scored eight of his team-high 16 points in the final 4:05 as the Illini held off the visiting Cornhuskers.
Five players scored in double figures as the Illini (21-9, 8-8 Big Ten) celebrated Senior Day and the 50-year anniversary of the first game in their home venue, Assembly Hall. Seniors Brandon Paul and D.J. Richardson scored 14 and 13 points, respectively, in their final home game.
Ray Gallegos led all scorers with 23 points for Nebraska (13-16, 4-12), which got 20 points from Dylan Talley. The Cornhuskers have lost two straight and four of five.
Nebraska led 57-55 with six minutes to go, but Paul's jumper at the 5:39 mark tied the score and keyed a 9-2 spurt by the Illini as they grabbed a lead they would not relinquish.
Abrams contributed four points during that run as part of his final flourish. Meanwhile, Nebraska missed six of seven shots in the final 3:03 to lose its fourth straight conference road game.
GAME NOTEBOOK: Illinois' Myke Henry contributed 12 points and nine rebounds, including a key offensive board with 48.1 seconds left and the Illini clinging to a 66-62 lead. ... Talley logged his seventh 20-point performance of the season. ... Illinois senior Sam McLaurin was limited to two points in seven minutes because of an early ankle injury.
Top Game Performances
Nebraska |
|
Illinois |
Ray Gallegos 23 |
Scoring |
Tracy Abrams 16 |
Dylan Talley 5 |
Assists |
Brandon Paul 5 |
David Rivers 5 |
Rebounds |
Myke Henry 9 |
Dylan Talley 4 |
Free Throws Made |
Tracy Abrams 6 |
Dylan Talley 2 |
Steals |
D.J. Richardson 2 |
Brandon Ubel 2 |
Blocks |
Joseph Bertrand 1 |
Team Stats Summary
Team |
Points |
FG% |
3PM-3PA |
FTM-FTA |
Assists |
Rebounds |
Blocks |
Steals |
Turnovers |
Nebraska
|
65 |
45.5 |
9-18 |
6-9 |
11 |
22 |
5 |
4 |
11 |
Illinois
|
72 |
43.6 |
9-26 |
15-18 |
10 |
32 |
2 |
4 |
10 |