LAS VEGAS — Ahh, so close again.
No. 19 Illinois came in following an upset of No. 8 UCLA, but its perfect start to the season was halted Sunday afternoon in Las Vegas’ T-Mobile Arena in the Continental Tire Main Event Championship, losing to No. 16 Virginia 70-61.
The weekend-long tournament, which featured four top-20 teams, tested the new-look Illini (4-1) to the brim. Unfortunately, they just did not do enough to come up on top.
In what we figured would be a back-and-forth affair, this title game did not disappoint. Up only two points at halftime, the Illini were playing from behind in most of the second half.