Nov. 3, 2005
Final Stats
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. (AP) -- Freshman Jamar Smith's outside shooting and James Augustine's work under the basket led Illinois to an 82-60 victory over Illinois Wesleyan in an exhibition game Thursday night.
The Illini, last season's national runner-up, broke from a 41-41 tie with a 17-5 run midway through the second half to defeat the Titans, picked in several preseason polls as the top team in Division III.
"It was a good game for us," said Illinois coach Bruce Weber. "It challenged us and we reacted well."
Smith hit two 3-pointers during the run and led the Illini with 16 points. He was 6-of-9 from the field, including 3-of-5 from 3-point range.
"It was fun," Smith said. "A lot of people were setting good screens, getting me a lot of open shots. My job was just to knock down the open shots."
Augustine scored 15 points on layups, free throws and one nifty turning jumper. Dee Brown, the only other player back from the Final Four run, had eight points and seven assists.
But the Illini did have some flaws in their first game. They were only 6-of-18 from 3-point range, committed a dozen turnovers and were whistled for 26 personal fouls.
"It wasn't a good showing but it was a decent showing for us, being such a young team," Brown said. "As a whole we have a lot of things to work on."
Wesleyan, located in Bloomington, about 50 miles west of the Illinois campus, was led by Adam Dauksas and Keelan Amelianovich, each with 13 points.
"I thought we ran out of gas," said Titans coach Scott Trost. "There was 13 minutes to go and we were 45-44. We came down, rushed a three probably a little bit but we were right there. We got tired."
The Titans could have had a halftime lead if they had been more successful from the free throw line. They were 7-for-15 in the first half and 16-for-27 for the game. An 8-2 run pulled Wesleyan within 24-22 with 5:36 remaining, but the Illini responded with a 9-3 run and led 37-31 at halftime.
The Titans tied the game at 41 with 14:37 left on a 3-pointer by Jason Fisher. But a quick basket by Brown and two free throws from Warren Carter started the decisive run as the Illini built a 63-48 lead over the next six minutes.
