SPRINGFIELD — It wasn’t pretty, but in the end, Illinois’ players ended up celebrating in the corner around Jalen Coleman-Lands after the freshman’s three-pointer beat the buzzer to send the Illini to an 82-79 win against Chicago State on Monday at the Prairie Capital Convention Center.
For these Illini, a win’s a win and they’re all worth celebrating. But this celebration was more like a sigh of relief than an all-out party.
Yes, they’ve got injuries and they’re playing a lot of young guys, but Illinois shouldn’t need a heroic shot at the horn to take care of business against a team rated by Ken Pomeroy as the ninth-worst in the country in Division I.