CHAMPAIGN—Sixth man Dominique Keller scored 15 points and forward Mike Davis had 12 Sunday to lead Illinois past Western Michigan, 88-53.Both teams opened cold, shooting a combined 1-for-17 in the game’s first 5:30.But the Illini (8-2) opened up a 16-5 lead with 12:09 left in the first half on three straight baskets by Demetri McCamey, D.J. Richardson and Keller. The Broncos (3-4) never recovered.Illinois’ bench players scored 40 points.If there was a chance for Western Michigan to stay in the game, it came early, when the Illini couldn’t buy a basket and coach Bruce Weber loudly reminded his team often to play controlled and pass the ball around.Illinois didn’t hit a field goal in the first 5:11, going 0-for-9 and limping to a 4-3 lead at the free-throw line.But the Broncos were just as bad.They had one field goal over that stretch. Point guard David Kool – Western Michigan’s leading scorer with 23 points a game – had two points at halftime on 0-for-8 shooting and didn’t score from the field until early in the second half.And after Illinois got its first points from the field – a short basket from Mike Davis that gave the Illini a 6-3 lead – Western Michigan stayed cold. The Broncos were 7-for-34 at halftime and trailed the Illini 48-25.The Illini really came to life after McCamey – who finished with 11 points – scored on a layup on a fast break with 13:34 left in the half for a 10-5 Illini edge.
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EVANSTON—An 11-day layoff didn’t seem to bother Northwestern and it certainly didn’t bother freshman Drew Crawford, who scored a career-high 35 points, including eight 3-pointers, as Northwestern defeated North Carolina A&T 90-65 Sunday.The Wildcats (7-1) won their sixth in a row, and their 20 3-pointers smashed the team record of 15, set in 2007 against Arkansas State.With the score tied at 11-11, NU went on a 12-2 run, as Crawford hit three 3-pointers and Nash one. The Wildcats went 13-of-25 in the first half from behind the arc in taking a 50-37 lead at the break.Crawford had 24 points in the opening half, six on 3-pointers, topping his previous game-best of 22 points against Liberty, and far surpassing his 5.7-point average. He made his second 3-pointer just over six minutes into the game to beat that number.For the game, Crawford was 12-for-17 from the field, 8-for-13 from 3-point range. The Wildcats also set a school record for 3-point attempts with 47. They tried 36 from behind the arc in a 2003 game against Ohio State.Four Northwestern players scored in double figures, as Michael Thompson had 19, freshman Alex Marcotullio 11 and Jeremy Nash 10. Thompson had five 3-pointers, eight assists and five rebounds.Thomas Coleman led the Aggies (4-6) with 16 points, while Robert Johnson and Tavarus Alston had 12 points apiece. It was the first meeting between the schools.
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ROSEMONT—Will Walker scored 18 points and Devin Hill added 12 points and nine rebounds to lead DePaul to a 77-56 victory over UIC on Sunday night. DePaul (6-3) bounced back from a 31-point loss to Mississippi State in the Big East/SEC Invitational on Thursday in Tampa.Leading 29-27 with 4:17 left in the first half, DePaul pulled away by scoring 10 unanswered points to close out the first half. Hill capped the half with a three-point play. Hill led the Blue Demons with 10 points and seven rebounds in the half.Jeremiah Kelly finished with 11 points for DePaul.Robo Kreps led UIC (1-6) with 18 points. He was 4-of-8 in the first half for 11 points.UIC, which trailed by double digits throughout the second half has lost six straight after beating Illinois-Springfield in its opener. Zavion Neely added 15 points for the Flames.Flames center K.C. Robbins was ejected and assessed a flagrant foul late in the first half after he hit DePaul’s Mario Stula with a right forearm that sent Stula to the floor. Stula got up under his own power and came back in the game later in the half.Walker eclipsed the 1,000 career-point milestone with a 3 to put DePaul up 46-29 early in the second half. He became the 45th player in DePaul history with 1,000 or more points.
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NORMAL—Tyrone Lewis scored 26 points Sunday as Niagara handed Illinois State its first loss of the season, 76-68.Kashief Edwards scored 14 points and Austin Cooley 10 for Niagara (7-4), which also won when the teams met last year in Lewiston, N.Y., as part of the BracketBusters event.Dinma Odiakosa led ISU (7-1) with 14 points. Osiris Eldridge scored 12 for the Redbirds, but was 5-for-18 from the field, including 2-for-11 from 3-point range. Illinois State made only five 3-pointers in 23 attempts. Lewis had five of the Purple Eagles’ 10 3-pointers.Jackie Carmichael had 11 points and Kellen Thornton 10 for the Redbirds, who outrebounded Niagara 49-28. Carmichael and Odiakosa each had 13 rebounds.The Redbirds’ last lead was 53-51 after an Eldridge layup with 10:47 to go, then the Purple Eagles began a 12-4 run and controlled the game the rest of the way.