2011-12 Year in Review

Men's Basketball

17-15 (6-12 Big Ten) // T-9th Place Big Ten

It was a tale of two seasons for the Illini basketball program in 2011-12. Illinois started strong and played like a top-25 team through the first half of the season. But the close games that had gone the Illini's way shifted in favor of the opposition in mid-January, and Illinois was unable to regain momentum, finishing the season with a record of 17-15 overall and 6-12 in the Big Ten.

The Illini opened the year with three straight double-figure wins at home, then headed to Mexico for the Cancun Challenge. In the semifinal game of that tournament, the Illini jumped out to an impressive 18-point halftime lead over a Richmond team fresh off an NCAA Sweet-16 appearance. The Illini went on to the defeat the Spiders by nine points, setting up a showdown with Illinois State for the championship.

ISU was ready for the challenge of facing its in-state rival from the Big Ten, scoring the game's first seven points and going on a 17-3 run at the start of the second half to open up a seven-point advantage. But the Illini regained control after a 13-3 run of its own to put away the Redbirds and win the Cancun Challenge title. D.J. Richardson was named Tournament MVP, while Sam Maniscalco earned All-Tournament Team honors.

Following a blowout win over Chicago State, the Illini entered a big week that featured a road game at Maryland in the Big Ten/ACC Challenge followed by a home game against 19th-ranked Gonzaga. The Illini responded to the call, winning both games.

The nine-point win at Maryland was Illinois' third straight victory in the Challenge and its sixth overall, tying the Illini for the most victories by a Big Ten team in the event's history. Sam Maniscalco led the effort with a career-high 24 points and five 3-pointers.

The 82-75 win over Gonzaga, meanwhile, caught the attention of poll voters, as the Illini entered the Top 25 the following week. Meyers Leonard was impressive against the Bulldogs, scoring a game-high 21 points on 9-of-11 shooting.

Two more victories followed, extending Illinois' winning streak to 10 and keeping the Illini among nine undefeated teams left nationally while also equaling the ninth-best start in school history. The run came to an end, however, at the United Center against a UNLV squad that would go on to earn an NCAA Tournament berth.

After a win over Cornell, the Illini took on ninth-ranked Missouri in St. Louis. The Illini roared back from a 14-point second-half deficit to take a 70-68 lead with two minutes remaining. Mizzou, however, reeled off seven unanswered points to retain the Braggin' Rights trophy. Joseph Bertrand had his coming out party against the Tigers, making all nine shots he attempted and scoring a game-high 19 points.

Big Ten play began in exciting fashion with the Illini defeating Minnesota in double-overtime at the Assembly Hall. Minnesota owned a 2-point lead and the ball with 18 seconds left in regulation. But the Gophers missed the front end of a one-and-one and the Illini forced overtime when Meyers Leonard made two pressure packed free throws with seven seconds remaining. The Illini outscored the Gophers 11-2 in the second overtime, with Leonard and Brandon Paul combining for 10 of the UI's 11.

A road loss at Purdue followed, but the Illini earned a road win the following game, defeating Northwestern by one point in Evanston. With the game tied, freshman Myke Henry grabbed an offensive rebound and was fouled on a putback attempt with six seconds left. He made one free throw to put the Illini on top, and Meyers Leonard then made a huge defensive play, blocking Drew Crawford's potential game-winning shot as time expired.

The Illini next defeated Nebraska, setting the stage for a showdown with No. 5 Ohio State. Led by Brandon Paul's epic performance, Illinois overcame its largest deficit of the season to defeat the Buckeyes. The Illini trailed 48-37 early in the second half before taking a 57-54 lead. Ohio State would not go away, however, regaining a two-point lead with three minutes left.

That's when Paul took over, scoring the final 15 points for the Illini on a pair of 3-pointers and nine free throws. After hitting two free throws to tie the game, Paul's first three during his run gave the Illini a 69-66 lead with 2:02 to go. Following two more free throws, his second trey – and school-record tying eighth of the game – came with the shot clock expiring and OSU defender Aaron Craft blanketing him, putting the Illini ahead 74-70 with just 43 seconds left. He then hit five-of-six from the line in the final 22 seconds to close out the win.

Paul scored a career-high 43 points on the night, the third-highest single-game total in school history, fifth-highest in the NCAA on the season, and the most by a Big Ten player in 18 years. Paul did more than just score, however, adding a game-high eight rebounds and career-high four blocked shots to his totals.

The win improved the Illini to 15-3 overall, 4-1 in conference play, and back into the Top 25. The tide turned after that game, however, as Illinois dropped 12 of its final 14 games. Seven of those contests, including the first five, were all decided by five points or less. Both victories during that stretch came at the Assembly Hall, 42-41 over No. 9 Michigan State and 65-54 over Iowa.