Illinois' Meyers Leonard, right, goes to the basket against Indiana's Cody Zeller during the first half of an NCAA college basketball game Thursday, Feb. 9, 2012, in Bloomington, Ind. (AP Photo/Darron Cummings)

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Illini to Indiana 84-71: Return Firmly To The Bubble

Story Created: Feb 10, 2012 at 8:16 AM CDT

Story Updated: Mar 14, 2012 at 7:48 AM CDT

By Joe Kutsunis
HailtotheOrange.com
SBNation.com

If I had to pin point when the game turned against the Illini, it was the offensive possession at 12:29 in the second half. Previous to this it had been an up and down, if tightly called game, where neither team was able to pull ahead by more than a possession. IU led by three points, and Illinois was keeping pace. A screen by Meyers Leonard, a made three by DJ Richardson, and the game is tied. But then it wasn't, an offensive foul called against Leonard, his fourth, and the three waved off.

From there, Meyers would sit for some time, until well under 7 minutes to go, and even then, he could not guard, for fear of picking up a soft fifth foul (he had been called for number 3 by taking an elbow to the face, no joke.)

Fact is though, Illinois lost this game on its own merits, despite all the help the refs gave to the Hoosiers. Brandon Paul wasn't as much of a factor as he should have been, and on defense, they were all over the place, giving up lots and lots of layups.

So we are back on the bubble yet again. And right on time, I was beginning to worry that this season was going to be a boring one.


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