Second Half Surge Lifts Illinois Past Brown
Monday, November 24, 2014
Trailing 35-31 at the half, Illinois (4-0) exploded for 58 second half points to come away with an 89-68 win over Brown (1-4) at the State Farm Arena in the second round of the Continental Tire Las Vegas Invitational. Bears’ sophomore guard Steven Spieth led all scorers with a career high 21 points.
Illinois came in the game as the nation’s highest scoring team averaging over 100 points per game. The Fighting Illini, who have not lost a game in the month of November under third year coach John Groce, totaling 19 games, had their hands full with a determined Brown team, who held a four point lead at the half.
Spieth’s 21 points came on 7-of-10 shooting from the field and 6-of-8 shooting from the free throw line. He also pulled down seven rebounds and handed three assists.
GET THE LATEST BREAKING NEWS HERE -- SIGN UP FOR GOLOCAL FREE DAILY EBLASTBears’ senior forward Rafael Maia also scored in double figures, netting nine of his 13 points in the first half, while also pulling down six rebounds. Junior forward Cedric Kuakumensah and sophomore forward Leland King had seven points each for the Bears.
Aaron Cosby paced the Fighting Illini with 18 points, connecting on 5-of-10 field goals and 3-of-6 shots from behind the three-point arc. Rayvonte Rice registered a double-double with 15 points and a game high 10 rebounds.
Brown hung tough with a strong defensive effort early in the game against the high scoring Illini and held a 19-18 lead with 7:57 left in the opening half after a layup by Spieth.
Illinois rallied and held a 31-30 lead with 1:03 remaining in the half following two free throws by Cosby.
Maia knocked down a trey for the Bears and scored on a lay-up at the buzzer to lift Brown to a 35-31 lead at the half, making the first time Illinois trailed at the half this season.
After Brown grabbed its biggest lead of the game, 37-31, on a Spieth layup to open the half, Illinois went on a 15-0 run to break the game open and pull ahead by a 46-37 margin on two free throws and a layup by Cosby at the 16:12 mark of the second half.
Illinois continued to maintain the defensive pressure and pulled ahead by as many as 24 points in the second half, 87-63, on a layup by Malcolm Hill with less than two minutes remaining.
Brown travels to Las Vegas, NV to continue play Austin Peay in the Continental Tire Las Vegas Invitational on Thanksgiving morning, November 27 at the Orleans Arena. Tip-off is 2:00 pm EST.
