Illini, Pruitt do it again
INDIANAPOLIS - When the final seconds ticked away on Illinois' 54-50 win over Minnesota in Saturday's Big Ten Tournament semifinals, Chester Frazier threw the ball so high it nearly hit the overhead scoreboard, and Mike Davis puffed out the Illinois on the front of his jersey like the Dee Brown days.
While the Illini had 37 wins for Brown to celebrate in 2005, it might be more appropriate for Davis, Frazier and the rest of the Illini to Party Like it's 1999.
That was the last time Illinois missed the NCAA Tournament. It also was the only other time a double-digit seed has made a run like this through the Big Ten Tournament.
In 1999 Illinois was seeded 11th and beat three ranked teams before losing to Michigan State in the championship game.
This year's 10th-seeded Illini will try to take it one giant step further - upset No. 1 seed and No. 8-ranked Wisconsin and earn a ninth straight bid to the NCAA Tournament.
How unlikely is it that at 2:30 p.m. today 16-18 Illinois will play 28-4 Wisconsin on Channel 2 in the final game before the pairings are announced on Selection Sunday?
Saturday's win gave Illinois its first four-game winning streak this year. If they beats the Badgers, the Illini will have 4 wins in four days including two over top-20 teams.
No wonder Frazier couldn't wait to heave that ball.
"It felt so good," Frazier said. "Not to have another heartbreaking loss. It felt good to have the ball in my hands at the end of the game and get rid of it and see the smiles on my teammates' faces."
Like the '99 run, different players are stepping up each night. Frazier made the game-winning shot to beat Penn State, Demetri McCamey scored 26 points against Purdue, and Saturday two seniors who have been maligned much of the year delivered.
Shaun Pruitt filled up the stat sheet with 16 points, 8 rebounds, a season-high 3 blocked shots and 2 steals. He also made 6 of 7 free throws one night after missing all 4. Brian Randle added 11 points and 8 rebounds.
"We just bought into the system and tried to believe anything can happen and it's not over," Pruitt said. "Honestly, we've been looking forward to this Big Ten Tournament for a long time - probably sooner than we should have because we knew our season wasn't going well. We knew it was our opportunity."
Illinois led almost the entire way but could never quite pull away from Minnesota in its 20th straight win over the Gophers (20-13). The Illini led 29-23 at halftime, then made 1 field goal in the first 10:34 of the second half.
Both teams looked like they were playing their third game in three days. Minnesota only scored 9 points during that ten-minute span to catch Illinois at 32.
McCamey, who didn't miss a 3-pointer Friday night, was held to 8 points. But he had 7 assists, including one on a Pruitt dunk, then a layup for Randle and a Randle dunk that opened up a 52-44 lead.
"Coach talked to me and told me to calm down and get your teammates involved," McCamey said.
Once again, Illinois missed 3 of 5 free throws in the final minute and had a turnover to allow Minnesota within 4, but Lawrence MacKenzie misfired with 10 seconds left.
A few seconds later Frazier and Davis were displaying their joy in their own ways, a celebration that will seem like a half-hearted high-five compared to the scene with one more win today.