Jan. 8, 2005
By JON KRAWCZYNSKI
AP Sports Writer
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. (AP) - Dee Brown made sure that all Purdue gave No. 1 Illinois was a scare.
Brown scored all 14 of his points in the second half to lead the Illini to a 68-59 victory over Purdue on Saturday.
Trailing at halftime for the first time this season, the Illini opened the second half with a 23-6 run to take control.
Brown hit three 3-pointers during the surge, the last giving Illinois a 56-45 lead with just over nine minutes to play. He also turned up the heat defensively, creating turnovers and opportunities in transition for the quicker, more talented Illini.
Luther Head scored 15 points for Illinois (16-0, 2-0 Big Ten), which came into the game outscoring opponents by 20.5 points a game, but this one was no gimme.
Matt Kiefer had 17 points and six rebounds to lead Purdue (4-8, 0-2), which gave Illinois all it could handle for a little more than a half.
Illinois was uncharacteristically sluggish in the first half, missing open layups and 3-pointers, getting into foul trouble and lacking the crisp ball movement on offense that has made the Illini unbeatable so far this season.
The Illini trailed for most of the half and were down 39-33 at halftime to the inspired Boilermakers, who quieted the thousands of Illinois fans who made the trip to West Lafayette.
Purdue was aggressive from the opening tip after receiving a tongue-lashing from coach Gene Keady following another lackluster effort in a loss to Wisconsin on Wednesday.
After that game, Keady openly wondered if he has waited too long to step aside as coach, suggesting that the team needs new blood and a new face to take over a team he may have lost.
The Boilermakers showed on Saturday that they are still behind their beloved coach, who is in his 25th and final season on the Purdue bench.
Kiefer scored 13 points in the first 10 minutes, including an eye-opening drive and dunk that gave the Boilermakers a 25-19 lead. He injected some much-needed life into a Purdue fan base that has grown weary of the team's failures so far this season.
On their next possession, Kiefer drove the lane and dished to Carl Landry for a dunk that whipped the crowd into a frenzy.
Landry had 10 points and five rebounds in the first half and finished with 15 points and six boards.
The Illini, who came into the game shooting 51 percent from the field, shot just 38 percent in the first half while Purdue shot 57 percent. It was just about the reverse in the second half as the undermanned Boilermakers were overwhelmed by Illinois' depth and Brown's tenaciousness.
Roger Powell had two huge dunks in the second half, including one off an inbounds play underneath the basket that swung the momentum back to Illinois. After a layup by Kiefer brought Purdue within 59-50, Powell converted a three-point play to extend the lead.
Illinois is off to its best start since the 1988-89 team began the season 17-0. That team won the Big Ten championship and advanced to the Final Four.
The only other Illinois team to start the season with 16 straight wins was 1914-15, when the Illini won the national championship.