National Basketball Association
Illinois 78, Butler 61
When: 10:00 PM ET, Wednesday, November 21, 2012
Where: Lahaina Civic Center, Lahaina, Hawaii
Officials:
# Roger Ayers, # Jim Burr, # Tim Higgins
Attendance:
2400
By SportsDirect Inc.
Illinois 78, Butler 61: Tournament MVP Brandon Paul scored 20 points as the Fighting Illini rolled in the championship game of the Maui Invitational.
Tracy Abrams scored 17 points and D.J. Richardson added 14 for Illinois (6-0), which never trailed in the tournament. Tyler Griffey, a 6-9 senior forward, also had a hot hand from the perimeter, making 4-of-5 from beyond the arc and scoring 14 points.
Rotnei Clarke did his best to match the backcourt trio. The senior guard, who transferred from Arkansas in the off-season, finished with 27 points for Butler (3-2), making 6 of 13 shots from 3-point distance. The Bulldogs didn’t get the support they needed to keep pace with Illinois, however, as no other player scored more than eight points for the Bulldogs.
Illinois came into the game tied for 37th in the nation in 3-point shooting efficiency at 41.3 percent (19-46) and converted 10-for-25 from beyond the arc. Five different players made 3-pointers for the Fighting Illini.
Butler missed eight of its first 10 shots and quickly fell behind 13-5. Clarke scored 15 of the first 19 points for Butler, but the Bulldogs still trailed by 11 at the half. They pulled as close as five points on a 3-pointer by Clarke with 12:29 remaining, but Illinois answered with a 10-0 run and maintained a comfortable lead the rest of the way.
GAME NOTEBOOK: Illinois outscored its three opponents by a combined 133-75 in the first half. … Butler freshman guard Kellen Dunham, who made 5 of 9 3-pointers and scored 17 points in Tuesday’s upset of No. 9 North Carolina in the semifinals, finished 0-for-9 from 3-point range and scored four points. … Tim Higgins, who had officiated nine Final Fours in his career, refereed his final game.
Top Game Performances
| Butler |
|
Illinois |
|
Rotnei Clarke 27 |
Scoring |
Brandon Paul 20 |
|
Roosevelt Jones 3 |
Assists |
Brandon Paul 4 |
|
Kameron Woods 8 |
Rebounds |
D.J. Richardson 9 |
|
Devontae Morgan 3 |
Free Throws Made |
Tracy Abrams 6 |
|
Jackson Aldridge 1 |
Steals |
Tracy Abrams 2 |
|
N/A |
Blocks |
Tyler Griffey 2 |
Team Stats Summary
| Team |
Points |
FG% |
3PM-3PA |
FTM-FTA |
Assists |
Rebounds |
Blocks |
Steals |
Turnovers |
| Butler
|
61 |
36.1 |
7-28 |
10-17 |
11 |
35 |
0 |
2 |
10 |
| Illinois
|
78 |
48.0 |
10-25 |
20-21 |
11 |
29 |
5 |
5 |
8 |