Illini turn tables against Gophers, use defense to split season series

Minnesota held Illinois to 36 points four weeks ago in Minneapolis. In Thursday night's rematch between the two teams, Coach Bruce Weber's Illini flexed their own defensive muscles.
 
By limiting the Gophers to just 41 points, the 20th-ranked team in the nation won by double digits despite its own sluggish offensive performance. Illinois' 52-41 triumph in Champaign not only put Tubby Smith's team squarely on the NCAA Tournament bubble (again); the blue-collar breakthrough proved that the Illini can actually win an ugly grinder once in a while.

Low-scoring contests hadn't been kind to Illinois in 2009. Weber's wide-eyed youngsters had that nightmare in Williams Arena, followed a few weeks later by that impossible-to-forget 38-33 loss on home hardwood against Penn State. It's hard to imagine losing a game in which you allow 38 points, but that's exactly what happened to the Big Ten's third-place team against the Nittany Lions. Consider this win, then, a not-very-aesthetic but psychologically significant moment for Illinois. For all their struggles on offense, the Illini now know--at least a little more than they did coming into this game--that they can experience tough sledding at the offensive end but still beat a respectable opponent.
 
It's important to emphasize that Illinois didn't just win with defense, but clutch defense. Minnesota compiled strong runs of 9-2 and 7-2 in this game, but those runs came at the start of the first half and midway through the second half, respectively. When Illinois displayed its best defense, the impact was much greater, because the Illini made their charges at the end of each half.

In the final 4:31 of the first half, Illinois blanked the Gophers and took a 28-23 lead to the locker room as a result. Having trailed by several points on multiple occasions in the first half, the late run--fashioned at the defensive end of the floor--enabled the home team to throw the mental burden on the backs of a young Minnesota club that has been unable to find a consistent every-game scorer in the month of February. (Aside of Damian Johnson's 18 points, no other Gopher scored in double figures.)
 
After Minnesota worked incredibly hard to forge a 39-38 lead with 10:09 left in regulation, the Illini limited the Gophers to just two points--yes, two--the rest of the way. After their four and a half minute shutout at the end of the first half, the Illini whitewashed the visitors over the final 6:21 of the second half. Mid-half runs made Minnesota competitive in Assembly Hall, but Illinois finished each 20-minute stanza with authority. In basketball, the one who runs last runs best, to put a spin on a familiar saying, and that's why the Illini shook off a 37-25 rebounding deficit to make Minnesota sweat out the final week of the Big Ten regular season.

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