MINNEAPOLIS'Illinois scored the final 10 points of the game to escape Williams Arena with a 67-66 win over Minnesota Sunday afternoon. Illini junior guard Frank Williams converted a running jumper with 2.9 seconds remaining to claim the win and earn a share of the Big Ten regular season championship with Ohio State, Indiana and Wisconsin.
Illinois ends the regular season at 11-5 in the Big Ten, 23-7 overall and will face the winner of the Minnesota-Penn State contest March 8.
The Gophers (9-7 Big Ten, 16-11 overall) took a 66-57 lead with 3:12 left on the clock on a three-pointer by senior guard Kerwin Fleming. However, Illini senior guard Cory Bradford drilled a three-pointer of his own to trim the lead to 66-60 with 2:52 remaining. After a pair of free throws by Illini senior forward Robert Archibald, the Minnesota lead was cut to 66-62. Yet, the Gophers were able to chip away the majority of the remaining time, maintaining the advantage until the final minute.
With 20 seconds left, Williams stole the ball from Fleming in the backcourt. That led to a Bradford trey to make the score 66-65. On the ensuing inbounds, junior guard Kevin Burleson was trapped and turned the ball over after an errant pass to senior forward Dusty Rychart. This gave the Illini the ball back with seven seconds left. Williams then sealed the game with his running layup.
Minnesota led by as many as 13 in the first half only to see the Illini come back to within 35-33 at the half. Freshman forward Rick Rickert led the way for the Gophers in the half with 12 points in the first period.
Rickert finished the game with a team-high 18 points before fouling out with 2:15 left in the game. Senior forward Travarus Bennett added 15 points and eight rebounds. Junior forward Brian Cook led all players with 22 points and 11 rebounds.
