Illini out after losing to Houston; Kofi Cockburn only Illinois player with double figures
PITTSBURGH (CBS/AP) -- The Illini are out of the NCAA Tournament after losing to the Houston Cougars Sunday.
Illinois lost 68-53 to Houston, who now advance to the Sweet 16. Houston was a Final Four team last season.
For Illinois, it's another year of deep disappointment. The fourth-seeded Fighting Illini (23-10) were determined to go farther after being bumped by Loyola last year, but couldn't get past the second round again.
"We fell short. Games like these - you can't really put it in words. It's a hard feeling going through it for another year. We went through this last year before," said Illini All-American center Kofi Cockburn. "It hurts really bad, especially for the guys that's leaving. We always want to leave with a good feeling. We don't want to leave the freshman and the other guys."
Head Coach Brad Underwood emphasized that the team should still give themselves credit for success, but not without acknowledging problems.
"We won a Big Ten championship. I mean, they're going to hang a banner. We're going to get a ring, and it's a Big Ten championship. We happened to have fewer points than our opponent today, and that happens," Underwood said, "and we didn't play very well. We didn't shoot it very well. We played well enough. We didn't shoot it very well."
They were 6-25 from long range on Sunday after making just one of 17 three-pointers Friday.
"When you look at our two games here, we shot it terrible," Underwood said. "We turned the ball over 17 times, got out-rebounded, gave up a boatload of offensive rebounds. When you combine turnovers with offensive rebounds, it really stresses your offense."
As CBS 2's Matt Zahn reported, Cockburn was the only Illinois player in double figures.
He scored 19 in 38 minutes to lead Illinois.
The big man spurned the NBA last year for a shot at some tournament redemption, only to come up short in what was likely his last college game.
Illinois was plagued with costly turnovers early, including one by Andre Curbelo that led to Houston's Taze Moore getting on the break. But down by 12 in the first half, Illinois battled back and was within 56-49 after Alfonso Plummer's four-point play.
But after Houston's Jamal Shead hit a floater, Fabian White Jr. made the play of the game by racing into the backcourt and swatting the ball before it went out of bounds with his left hand to Moore for a layup.
It's been that kind of season for the Cougars, who lost Marcus Sasser and Tramon Mark — two mainstays from last year's semifinal team — but are one of 16 teams still alive for a national title,
Both teams were tight in the early going, and the intense pressure seemed to squeeze the rims a little tighter, too.
Unlike Friday's game, when Houston started six of seven on 3-pointers to startle UAB, the Cougars were off the mark — in some cases, way off. Illinois was even worse, starting 1 of 9 on 3s.
The bigger issue, though, was the Illini couldn't figure out how to get the ball inside to Cockburn, who had two and three Houston players swarming on him whenever he got a touch. On one of the rare occasions the 7-footer got it cleanly, Josh Carlton grabbed his arms and was called for a Flagrant 1 foul.
Houston opened a 12-point lead, and Illinois was reeling.
That's when Underwood turned to freshman reserve Luke Goode, who came off the bench and made a pair of 3-pointers.
Trent Frazier's nailed a 3 at the horn to pull the Illini within 30-26 at half.
Following the game, clearly emotional Frazier emphasizes all the work this team put in and the good they've done the past couple years.
"Despite the loss, I'm still proud of this team," he said.
Underwood was asked why Curbelo -- who was a difference-maker in Friday's game against Chattanooga -- was not called to play at all in the second half on Sunday. Underwood's reply was, "Coach's decision."
Meanwhile, technical foul on a breakaway slam dunk by Illinois RJ Melendez in the second half also stood out Sunday. Melendez was issued the foul for hanging on the rim.
"It's deflating. You make a play that changes momentum of the game, and then to have that called in that moment? And I can't wait to see it. He told me he should never have called it, but in the moment, he calls it," Underwood said. "Maybe it's personal. I don't know. But for that to be called like that when a kid's got a full head of steam going 100 miles an hour, and we all talk about safety and wellbeing of student athletes? Horrible."
The technical foul did not decide the outcome of the game, but it was one of many factors that led to the Illini losing. They made plenty of their own mistakes that brought their season to an end Sunday.
