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No. 24 Illinois Tops American 70-55

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. (AP) — Malcolm Hill scored 13 points as No. 24 Illinois defeated American 70-55 on Saturday.

The Illini (7-1) only led by two points midway through the first half, but a 17-2 run put the Eagles (5-4) in an early deficit.

American whittled the lead to eight with 10:42 remaining in the second half. But the Illini's Jaylon Tate had a three-point play and Hill drained a 3-pointer off a steal on the next possession.

Nnanna Egwu chipped in five points and seven rebounds, while Rayvonte Rice worked his way through a shooting slump, 1-of-7 from the field, to finish with 10 points.

Pee Wee Gardner led American with 16 points, while Jesse Reed added 13 points.

After consecutive poor shooting performances against Baylor and Miami, the Illinois offense was back to its usual form. The Illini shot 48.1 percent in the first half and 48 percent overall.

However, Illinois was just 5-of-12 from behind the 3-point line, well below its average of 9.4 threes per game.

The Eagles lost the bench scoring stat 28-3. Their lone bench points came on a buzzer-beating 3-pointer by Marko Vasic to end the game.

The Eagles looked to slow the pace of the game and worked the entire shot clock on many possessions. Despite only scoring 55 points, the Eagles shot 50 percent from the field.

TIP-INS

American: The 70 points is the most American has given up this season. Saturday's loss also marks the first time this season the Eagles have lost when scoring more than 49 points.

Illinois: Entering Saturday's game, Rice was the only player in the country with at least 14 points, six rebounds and one made 3-pointer in each game. His streak was snapped as he was 0-for-3 from behind the arc and finished with two rebounds.

UP NEXT

American: Plays at La Salle on Dec. 16.

Illinois: Plays No. 10 Villanova in New York on Tuesday.
(© 2014by STATS LLC and Associated Press. Any commercial use or distribution without the express written consent of STATS LLC and Associated Press is strictly prohibited.)

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