| College Basketball Preview: Illinois vs. Utah November 27, 2009 |
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Vegas Invitational
Las Vegas, NV - Illinois has enjoyed feeding off the crowd at Assembly Hall in opening with four consecutive wins. It won't have that luxury for its next three games. The 20th-ranked Illini look to remain undefeated when they play their first game away from Champaign on Friday against Utah in the Las Vegas Invitational. After outscoring its first three opponents by an average of 30.7 points, Illinois received its first test in Tuesday's 78-64 win over Wofford. With the game tied at 50-all with 13 minutes remaining in the second half, the Illini used an 8-0 run to pull away. Oddsmakers from online sportsbook SPORTSBETTING.com have made
"We picked up the intensity and started playing together and talking more," said junior guard Demetri McCamey, who scored a season-best 21. "We started using the crowd to our advantage. We got steals, we got put backs. We set the tone." Illinois now needs to prove it can win away from home. After this game, the Illini face either Oklahoma State or Bradley on Saturday. When this tournament concludes, Illinois plays its first true road game Wednesday against No. 19 Clemson. This tournament marks the first time the talented freshmen duo of Brandon Paul and D.J. Richardson play away from Assembly Hall. Paul is averaging a team-high 14.0 points while Richardson is third with 12.3 per game. The two are tough to guard because of their athleticism and ball-handling ability and have helped Illinois establish a 2.08 assist-to-turnover ratio, one of the best in Division I. Richardson has really stepped in the last two games, scoring 15 in each while connecting on 9 of 12 shots from 3-point range. Like Illinois, Utah (2-2) will be playing its first game away from campus. The Runnin' Utes arrive in Las Vegas following Tuesday's 77-74 loss to Seattle. Utah led the Redhawks 41-33 at halftime but fell apart after the break, hitting 8 of 27 shots (29.6 percent) in the final 20 minutes. The Utes still had a chance late, but Shawn Glover's last-second 3-point attempt bounced off the rim. "We weren't tough enough mentally or physically, offensively or defensively," coach Jim Boylen said. "I didn't like it. I didn't like the way we played. I didn't like giving up 19 offensive rebounds. I don't like (only) 10 assists in this program. I'm disappointed." Carlon Brown led the Utes with 22 points but had another tough shooting night. The junior guard, who's averaging a team-high 16.5 points, was a season-worst 5 of 17 from the floor and is hitting 38.2 percent of his shots. It could be tough for him to find his rhythm against a defensive-minded Illini team that's limiting opponents to 36.9 percent shooting. This will be the first meeting between these teams since Illinois' 99-65 victory Nov. 25, 1983, in Rosemont, Ill. Posted: 11/26/09 7:45PM ET
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