Dec. 18, 1999

Box Score

By NANCY ARMOUR
AP Sports Writer

CHICAGO (AP) - Cory Bradford might want to consider buying a couple of cases of that soap he used at halftime.

Bradford washed away his early slump, scoring 19 of his 21 points in the second half, and Frank Williams sparked a comeback late in the first half Saturday as No. 20 Illinois rallied for an 84-70 victory over No. 8 Kansas.

Williams finished with 15 points and eight assists, and Marcus Griffin added 16 points on 6-of-9 shooting and 12 rebounds - despite getting sick just before halftime.

"I did wash them before the game. I think my hands were still dirty so I went back and washed them again," Bradford said. "I don't think the two halves were that different. It's just one half I was making my shots, the other half I wasn't."

That was the theme of the game. Illinois (6-2) recovered from a dismal start to go 17-of-30 (57 percent) in the second half, while the Jayhawks (8-2) went cold. Kansas was 12-of-37 (32 percent) from the floor in the final 20 minutes. On one possession, the Jayhawks had five tries at the hoop and still came away without any points.

Kenny Gregory, the key to Kansas' victory Thursday against No. 12 Ohio State, had only seven points. Jeff Boschee led the Jayhawks with 18 points, Drew Gooden scored 15 and Luke Axtell added 10.

"After the first 12 minutes, they were the aggressor," Kansas coach Roy Williams said. "They were the team with momentum. They were the team with the emotion and the enthusiasm."

It was the first victory in three tries over a ranked team for the Illini, who lost to Duke and Maryland by a total of five points. It also was their first victory over a Top 10 team since beating No. 7 Minnesota on Jan. 14, 1997.

With a minute left, the Illini fans were on their feet, chanting "Overrated" and "NIT" at the Jayhawks.

"Huge confidence-builder," Bradford said. "It tells us we can compete with anybody in the country."

It was the second loss at the United Center in two weeks for the Jayhawks, who lost to Michigan State in the Great Eight. Kansas lost despite outrebounding Illinois 53-41 and holding its 10th straight opponent to less than 50 percent shooting.

"We just didn't come out to play," Axtell said. "After the first five or seven minutes, we just weren't there."

The Illini looked as if they were sleepwalking through much of the first half, shooting only 9-of-31 (29 percent) and going nearly 10 minutes without a field goal. Bradford was 0-of-8 from the floor, including 0-of-5 from 3-point range.

Kansas took advantage of the sleepy Illini, taking a 24-12 lead on Gooden's turnaround jumper with 6:28 left.

"We were looking at Kansas instead of playing them," Illini coach Lon Kruger said. "We're still growing in that way. That's why this game helps us."

The Illini finally came alive on Dramir Krupalija's jumper, starting a 19-8 run to end the half. Williams took over from there, connecting on two 3-pointers from the left wing and a pull-up jumper.

He also made two nice passes, including one that he threaded through heavy Kansas traffic for a Griffin layup to cut Kansas' lead to 30-29 with 1:24 left in the half.

"We go through that in practice. I hit two or three shots and I'm ready to go," Williams said. "I wasn't looking for my shot. I was open and I took it."

Robert Archibald's layup at the start of the second half gave the Illini a 33-32 lead, their first since the opening seconds. Bradford sandwiched two 3-pointers around Williams' layup off his own steal as Illinois went on a 10-3 run to take a 41-35 lead with 17:03 left.

The Jayhawks closed within 59-54 on Axtell's 3-pointer with 7:19 left, but the Illini responded with a long-range flurry. Bradford hit two 3-pointers and Cleotis Brown added another, giving Illinois a 68-57 lead with 5:41 left, and Kansas never got close again.

"Eventually they'll fall," Bradford said of what he was thinking as he struggled early. "Just keep shooting."

And get some of that soap.