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Illinois' Robert Archibald drives to the hoop and finishes with the left-handed slam.
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Illinois' Brian Cook gets the ball in the paint and knows what to do with it.
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By JASON STRAIT
Associated Press Writer
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. (AP) - Frank Williams didn't start a game for the first time in two years. Illinois carried on fine without him.
Williams found himself watching from the bench early on Saturday after showing up five minutes late for the ninth-ranked Illini's game with Michigan.
Even with their playmaker on the bench, the Illini had little trouble handling the Wolverines. They scored the game's first eight points and never trailed in a 94-70 victory that snapped a two-game losing streak.
"I was real happy with how we started the game. We had a double-figure lead relatively early," coach Bill Self said. "It shouldn't make any difference what names are in there. We should play a certain style, and if we play that style we should have some success."
Illinois (13-4, 2-2 Big Ten) had plenty of success against the Wolverines (6-7, 2-2), particularly in the paint.
Lobbing the ball down low to big men Brian Cook and Robert Archibald, Illinois scored a majority of it points on dunks and layups. The Illini shot 68 percent for the game and had 28 assists and just 13 turnovers.
"We really did a great job of sharing the ball. Like Coach was saying, the open man took the open the shot," said Archibald, who finished with 19 points and nine rebounds.
Cook, who scored a combined 13 points in the losses to Wisconsin and Purdue, led Illinois with 20 points on 8-for-11 shooting.
The 6-foot-10 Cook also was a factor on the defensive end. Michigan struggled to get open looks down low and couldn't connect from outside. The Wolverines shot 38 percent for the game, including 7-of-23 from 3-point range.
"The last two games, we didn't play with anything close to the energy we played with today," Self said.
Illinois extended its homecourt winning streak to 26 games and evened its league record after dropping the last two games on the road.
"It didn't help us that we caught them at this time. I think that's obvious. I think they showed their character," Michigan coach Tommy Amaker said.
Williams played well coming off the bench, but Self said he doesn't expect to find his point guard there in the future.
The Big Ten's second-leading scorer had 14 points, four steals and seven assists, two on crowd-pleasing lobs that were dunked by freshman Luther Head. Sean Harrington matched Williams with seven assists.
It was the first time since early during Williams' freshman year that he didn't start.
Both the reigning conference player of the year and his coach downplayed the benching after the game.
"It's the first time anyone has been late. It was no big deal. Frank didn't make it a big deal out of it. But he didn't get here when he was supposed to be here," Self said.
Michigan cut the Illini's lead to 10-6 when Williams finally entered the game. He scored four of his team's next six points as the Illini went on a 16-4 run to open a 16-point lead and were up 45-26 at halftime.
LaVell Blanchard led the Wolverines with 17 points on 7-of-15 shooting and reserve Gavin Groninger had 12 points.
Illinois played its fifth straight game without top reserve Damir Krupalija, who is sidelined with a foot injury. Illinois also is missing Lucas Johnson, who practiced for the first time this year after tearing a knee ligament before the start of the season.
Neither is expected back before Tuesday's game against No. 13 Iowa, one of the most anticipated early matchups in the Big Ten season.
"It's certainly a big game. They don't like us and we don't like them," Self said of the Hawkeyes.
