Nittany Lion's last-second shot sinks Illini 64-63
With eight seconds left, Tailor Battle had the ball 80 feet from the place everyone knew he would go.
Nobody could stop him.
Penn State's point guard raced upcourt and squeezed past Illinois' Chester Frazier and Mike Davis in front of his team's bench, then galloped past Trent Meacham reach's as he turned toward the hoop.
Battle then pulled up just in front of Demetri McCamey and Calvin Brock at the block and rattled in a short jumper with 0.3 seconds left to give Penn State a stunning 64-63 Big Ten win over Illinois at Bryce Jordan Center.
Battle's basket, which relied on lots of rim, gave the Nittany Lions their only lead in the game's final 35 minutes.
Hundreds of screaming PSU students blanketed the court after the final second expired on Illinois' errant inbounds.
"We didn't stop the ball," said Illinois coach Bruce Weber. "All we said was stop the ball.
"Our kids played their butts off. I couldn't be more proud of them. We just didn't make the plays when it counted."
No. 23 Illinois led 60-50 and then 63-55 on Dominique Keller's putback with 3:52 left, but Penn State scored the final 9 points as the Illini went down in a hail of missed opportunities.
Illinois missed a pair of 3-pointers, a pair of 2-pointers and the front end of two 1-and-1s in the final three minutes.
With the Illini clinging to a 63-62 edge, sophomore forward Mike Davis stepped to the line with 8.4 seconds left.
His attempt barely reached the rim and ricocheted to Jamelle Cornley, who handed the ball to Battle and started him on his path to glory.
"I got it in the wrong people's hands," said Weber, indicating Meacham or McCamey should've caught the inbounds pass when Penn State fouled deliberately with 8.4 seconds to go. "It's my fault."
And Penn State's gain.
The Nittany Lions (21-9, 10-7) might have clinched an NCAA berth while sweeping Illinois in the regular season for the second year in a row.
"They've owned us," Weber said. "I don't know why."
Just as in Penn State's 38-33 win at Illinois on Feb. 18, Battle took control late. He finished with 15 points, 6 rebounds and 4 assists.
McCamey led the Illini (23-8, 11-7) with 16 points and 7 assists. Mike Tisdale added 12 points while Frazier had 11.
After failing to get to the free-throw line in the first game at Penn State, the Illini finally got there with 14:27 to go.
Considering they made just 2 of 7 the rest of the way, perhaps it was wiser to avoid free throws.
In any case, the Illini must wait until Sunday to learn their Big Ten tournament seed.
They can still be No. 2 as long as Penn State loses at Iowa and Purdue loses at Michigan State. But if both win, the Illini get the No. 4 seed.