Great Sport Moments: Final Four Fever
The Fighting Illini celebrate an overtime victory against the Arizona Wildcats during the 2005 NCAA tournament. (Image courtesy of U. of I. Athletics)
Ask any Illinois men’s basketball booster the most cherished game and year involving their favorite team, and the answers are always the same: the 2005 regional final against Arizona and Head Coach Bruce Weber’s 2004–05 NCAA tournament runner-up squad.
First, a bit of context. Illinois ranks with Gonzaga, Purdue and the Uni-versity of Oklahoma as the best programs to never win a national title. The 2004–05 team came closest to ending the drought, reaching the championship game opposite North Carolina.
Unfortunately for Illinois, the Tar Heels roster included four future NBA lottery picks.
Illinois had great talent too, with Dee Brown, Deron Williams and Luther Head, ’06 AHS, coming up big, game after game. But Illinois didn’t have the roster depth of North Carolina, so when center James Augustine, ’06 AHS, got in early foul trouble, the Illini faced an uphill battle. It ended with a 75-70 North Carolina win.
To get to the title game, Illinois put together a campaign that ended with the most wins (37) in school history. The team went into the season ranked No. 6 and never dropped lower.
The highlight of the early schedule was a Dec. 1st game against No. 1–ranked Wake Forest, led by future NBA superstar Chris Paul. Brown, Williams and pals dominated from the opening tip, thrilling the packed Assembly Hall crowd with a 91-73 victory. Roger Powell Jr., ’05 LAS, led the way with
19 points and seven rebounds.
Illinois continued to dismantle teams the remainder of the regular season, with only four games decided by less than double figures.
Then came the finale at Ohio State. Buckeyes reserve Matt Sylvester hit the game-winning three-pointer in the final seconds of Ohio State’s 65-64 victory. The 29-game win streak for Illinois ended.
In the NCAA tournament, No. 1 overall seed Illinois drew a favorable schedule for team travel. The Illini played two games in Indianapolis, two in Rosemont, Ill., and two in St. Louis.
The March 26th game against Arizona at Rosemont’s Allstate Arena is a “where were you?” moment for fans. The No. 9–ranked Wildcats seemed ready to send the Illini home unhappy, surging to a 15-point lead with four minutes left in the game.
That’s when the comeback started. Led by Williams—but getting contributions from multiple players—Illinois whittled the margin to five. Brown scored, then Williams tied it 80-80 with a three-pointer. Arizona missed a chance to win in regulation, forcing overtime. In the extra session, Williams hit two more three-pointers to give his team the lead.
Arizona had a chance to win at the buzzer but Hassan Adams missed a jumper, setting off a wild on-court celebration for the Illini.
