SB Nation Chicago - Michigan Vs. Illinois: Illini Fall On Senior Night, 71-62https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/community_logos/48877/chicago-fave.png2012-03-01T20:10:44-06:00http://chicago.sbnation.com/rss/stream/26020342012-03-01T20:10:44-06:002012-03-01T20:10:44-06:00Michigan Vs. Illinois Final Score: Wolverines Prevail, 71-62
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<p>The Fighting Illini were hoping to deliver a resume-building win over Michigan on Thursday night, but that wasn't in the cards for them, and it's starting to look like nothing short of a Big Ten tournament championship will get them into the 2012 NCAA tournament.</p>
<p>After trailing by eight points to the Wolverines at halftime, the Illini rallied early in the second half to pull within one point. But they were never able to wrest control of the game from the Wolverines, who went on to win, 71-62.</p>
<p><i>Related: <a href="http://chicago.sbnation.com/illinois-fighting-illini/2012/3/1/2835721/illinois-vs-michigan-preview-ncaa-bubble-trey-burke-meyers-leonard/in/2602034">Michigan Vs. Illinois Preview: Illini On The Bubble Heading Into Senior Night</a></i></p>
<p>Illinois shot just 38.5% from the field and Michigan did a nice job of cleaning up those missed shots and preventing the Illini from perhaps altering the course of the game with second-chance points.</p>
<p><a class="sbn-auto-link" href="http://www.sbnation.com/ncaa-basketball/players/123688/meyers-leonard">Meyers Leonard</a> had a nice second half for Illinois and finished with a team-high 18 points. <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="http://www.sbnation.com/ncaa-basketball/players/123897/tim-hardaway-jr">Tim Hardaway Jr</a>. finished with 25 points for Michigan.</p>
<p><i>For more on this game stay with <a href="http://chicago.sbnation.com/">SB Nation Chicago</a>. For more on the </i><i>Illini check out <a href="http://hailtotheorange.com/">Hail to the Orange</a></i><i> and for more on the </i><i>Wolverines head over to <a href="http://www.maizenbrew.com/">Maize n Brew</a>. For more news and notes around the country, stick with SB Nation's <a href="http://sbnation.com/ncaa-basketball">college basketball news hub</a>.</i></p>
https://chicago.sbnation.com/illinois-fighting-illini/2012/3/1/2838152/michigan-vs-illinois-final-score-ncaa-basketballSteven Muma2012-03-01T18:50:38-06:002012-03-01T18:50:38-06:00Michigan Vs. Illinois Halftime Score: Illini Trail 35-27
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<p>It's senior night in Illinois, and it's also a crucial night for the Illini's NCAA tournament hopes, slight though they may be at this point. But Michigan played a solid first half and took a 35-27 lead into halftime, so Illinois is going to need a clutch second-half rally to pick up a resume-building win on Thursday night.</p>
<p><i>Related: <a href="http://chicago.sbnation.com/illinois-fighting-illini/2012/3/1/2835721/illinois-vs-michigan-preview-ncaa-bubble-trey-burke-meyers-leonard/in/2602034">Michigan Vs. Illinois Preview: Illini On The Bubble Heading Into Senior Night</a></i></p>
<p><a class="sbn-auto-link" href="http://www.sbnation.com/ncaa-basketball/players/99887/brandon-paul">Brandon Paul</a> leads the Illini with 10 points on 4-9 shooting. Illinois shot just 36.7% as a team. Michigan, on the other hand, hit 52% of its shots in the half, including a 5-9 effort from beyond the arc.</p>
<p><i>For more on this game stay with <a href="http://chicago.sbnation.com/">SB Nation Chicago</a>. For more on the </i><i>Illini check out <a href="http://hailtotheorange.com">Hail to the Orange</a></i><i> and for more on the </i><i>Wolverines head over to <a href="http://www.maizenbrew.com/">Maize n Brew</a>. For more news and notes around the country, stick with SB Nation's <a href="http://sbnation.com/ncaa-basketball">college basketball news hub</a>.</i></p>
https://chicago.sbnation.com/illinois-fighting-illini/2012/3/1/2838007/michigan-vs-illinois-halftime-score-ncaaSteven Muma2012-03-01T10:29:09-06:002012-03-01T10:29:09-06:00Michigan Vs. Illinois Preview: Illini On The Bubble Heading Into Senior Night
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<p>The Illinois Fighting Illini (17-12, 6-10 Big Ten) can keep their NCAA Tournament hopes alive with a win over the No. 13 Michigan Wolverines (21-8, 11-5 Big Ten) on Thursday.</p> <p>The Illinois Fighting Illini and No. 13 Michigan Wolverines meet for the second time this season on Thursday night in Champaign, and the Illini need a victory on Senior Night to keep their NCAA Tournament hopes alive. In the first matchup, Wolverines <a href="http://www.sbnation.com/ncaa-basketball/players/52342/zack-novak">Zack Novak</a>, <a href="http://www.sbnation.com/ncaa-basketball/players/145685/trey-burke">Trey Burke</a>, <a href="http://www.sbnation.com/ncaa-basketball/players/123897/tim-hardaway-jr">Tim Hardaway Jr</a>., and <a href="http://www.sbnation.com/ncaa-basketball/players/123899/evan-smotrycz">Evan Smotrycz</a> each scored in double digits and Ilini <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="http://www.sbnation.com/ncaa-basketball/players/123688/meyers-leonard">Meyers Leonard</a> was held to just five points as Michigan claimed a 70-61 home win back on Feb. 12. This time around, the Illini (17-12, 6-10 Big Ten, No. 63 RPI) are desperate for a win and riding the bubble for the NCAA Tourney. </p>
<p>In the Big Ten rematch on Thursday, Illinois has a serious home-court advantage. Michigan has a 13-game losing streak at Assembly Hall, and is up against the emotion of senior night this time around. Then again, the Illini don't really have any strong ties to the two seniors on the roster this year. As <a href="http://www.fightingillini.com/sports/m-baskbl/spec-rel/022812aac.html" target="_blank">FigthingIllini.com</a> points out, Guard <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="http://www.sbnation.com/ncaa-basketball/players/28040/sam-maniscalco">Sam Maniscalco</a> transferred from Bradley following the completion of his undergraduate degree last season, and <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="http://www.sbnation.com/ncaa-basketball/players/126828/jean-selus">Jean Selus</a> is a two-year player in the program after walking on following his time at Parkland Junior College in Champaign.</p>
<p><a href="http://www.sbnation.com/ncaa-basketball/players/123897/tim-hardaway-jr">Tim Hardaway Jr</a>. led the Wolverines in scoring for most of the season, and still holds a respectable 14.1 points per game mark, but freshman guard <a href="http://www.sbnation.com/ncaa-basketball/players/145685/trey-burke">Trey Burke</a> has really been the lead player during the second half of the season. Burke has scored in double figures in 26 of 29 games this season, and adds 4.8 assists and 3.4 rebounds per contest as well. Stopping the Wolverines backcourt will be a huge key to the game for the Illini.</p>
<p>Illinois is led by <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="http://www.sbnation.com/ncaa-basketball/players/99887/brandon-paul">Brandon Paul</a> (14.8 PPG), Meyers Leonard (13.4 PPG) and <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="http://www.sbnation.com/ncaa-basketball/players/99886/d-j-richardson">D.J. Richardson</a> (12.1 PPG). Leonard responded to some tough love from Bruce Weber by dropping a 22-point, 14-rebound double-double in Sunday's win over the <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="http://www.sbnation.com/ncaa-basketball/teams/iowa-hawkeyes">Iowa Hawkeyes</a>, and they will need a similar performance to knock off a talented Michigan team on Thursday.</p>
<p><b>Game date/time: </b>6:00 PM CT, Thursday, March 1, 2012</p>
<p><b>Location: </b>Assembly Hall, Champaign, IL</p>
<p><b>TV: </b>ESPN, ESPN3</p>
<p><b>Radio: </b>Illini Sports Network</p>
<p><b></b>For more on this game stay with <a href="http://chicago.sbnation.com/"><i>SB Nation Chicago</i></a>. For more on the <a href="http://www.sbnation.com/ncaa-basketball/teams/illinois-fighting-illini"><i>Illini</i></a> check out <a href="http://www.sbnation.com/ncaa-basketball/teams/illinois-fighting-illini"><i>Hail to the Orange</i></a> and for more on the <a href="http://www.sbnation.com/ncaa-basketball/teams/michigan-wolverines"><i>Wolverines</i></a> head over to <a href="http://www.maizenbrew.com/"><i>Maize n Brew</i></a>. For more news and notes around the country, stick with SB Nation's <a href="http://www.sbnation.com/ncaa-basketball"><i>college basketball news hub</i></a>.</p>
https://chicago.sbnation.com/illinois-fighting-illini/2012/3/1/2835721/illinois-vs-michigan-preview-ncaa-bubble-trey-burke-meyers-leonardSteve von Horn