| Lineup | Illinois | PG - Austin Coward (fresh) SG - Boris Zellous (fresh) SF - James Aguon (fresh) PF - Tomas Wilde (fresh) C - Terrance Riccio (fresh) | |
| Lineup | Syracuse | PG - Jeffrey Fuchs (fresh) SG - Bruce Shreve (fresh) SF - Peter Bad (fresh) PF - Derrick Fong (fresh) C - Stuart Ried (fresh) | |
| 20:00 | Illinois | Tomas Wilde wins the tip | 0-0 |
| Game Plan | Illinois | Illinois is playing a motion offense and a man to man (+1) | |
| Game Plan | Syracuse | Syracuse is playing a triangle offense and a 3-2 zone (-2) | |
| 19:49 | Illinois | Tomas Wilde clanks a fadeaway from the right wing | 0-0 |
| 19:48 | Syracuse | Peter Bad grabs the board | 0-0 |
| 19:44 | Syracuse | Bruce Shreve buries a 3pt attempt from the left corner | 0-3 |
| 19:29 | Illinois | Tomas Wilde misses badly on a jumper from the left wing but he's fouled by Derrick Fong - foul #1 on Derrick Fong, team foul #1 | 0-3 |
| 19:29 | Illinois | Tomas Wilde makes the 1st free throw | 1-3 |
| 19:29 | Illinois | Tomas Wilde makes the 2nd free throw | 2-3 |
| 19:00 | Syracuse | Peter Bad is fouled on the floor by Terrance Riccio - foul #1 on Terrance Riccio, team foul #1 | 2-3 |
| 18:52 | Syracuse | Boris Zellous is called for the reach on Peter Bad - foul #1 on Boris Zellous, team foul #2 | 2-3 |
| 18:43 | Syracuse | Bruce Shreve is hacked by James Aguon - foul #1 on James Aguon, team foul #3 | 2-3 |
| 18:24 | Syracuse | Austin Coward steals it from Peter Bad | 2-3 |
| 18:01 | Illinois | Tomas Wilde can't connect on a jumpshot from the left side | 2-3 |
| 18:00 | Illinois | Tomas Wilde tips it in | 4-3 |
| 17:49 | Syracuse | Jeffrey Fuchs can't connect on a 3pt shot from the left corner but the foul's on Boris Zellous - foul #2 on Boris Zellous, team foul #4 | 4-3 |
| Subs | Illinois | Nelson Boyer (SG) Boris Zellous | |
| Subs | Syracuse | | |
| 17:49 | Syracuse | Jeffrey Fuchs makes the 1st free throw | 4-4 |
| 17:49 | Syracuse | Jeffrey Fuchs makes the 2nd free throw | 4-5 |
| 17:49 | Syracuse | Jeffrey Fuchs misses the 3rd free throw | 4-5 |
| 17:49 | Illinois | Tomas Wilde grabs the defensive rebound | 4-5 |
| 17:29 | Illinois | Austin Coward's pass is intercepted by Stuart Ried | 4-5 |
| 17:08 | Syracuse | Stuart Ried misses long on a shot from the left side | 4-5 |
| 17:07 | Illinois | The rebound goes to Tomas Wilde | 4-5 |
| 16:47 | Illinois | Tomas Wilde is open and buries a turnaround from close range on a nice dish by Nelson Boyer | 6-5 |
| 16:23 | Syracuse | Derrick Fong lays it up and in and he's fouled by Tomas Wilde - foul #1 on Tomas Wilde, team foul #5 | 6-7 |
| Subs | Illinois | Edward Fox (SF), Andrew Bailey (PF), Robert Fisher (C) James Aguon, Tomas Wilde, Terrance Riccio | |
| Subs | Syracuse | | |
| 16:23 | Syracuse | Derrick Fong makes the free throw | 6-8 |
| 16:05 | Illinois | Nelson Boyer misses badly on a 3 pointer from the right wing | 6-8 |
| 16:04 | Syracuse | The rebound goes to Stuart Ried | 6-8 |
| 15:49 | Syracuse | Peter Bad throws a bad pass out of bounds | 6-8 |
| Subs | Illinois | Wayne Foster (PG) Austin Coward | |
| Subs | Syracuse | Russell Jolley (SG), Robert Woods (C) Bruce Shreve, Stuart Ried | |
| Lineup | Illinois | PG - Wayne Foster (fresh) SG - Nelson Boyer (fresh) 1 ast. SF - Edward Fox (fresh) PF - Andrew Bailey (fresh) C - Robert Fisher (fresh) | |
| Lineup | Syracuse | PG - Jeffrey Fuchs (fresh) 2 pts. SG - Russell Jolley (fresh) SF - Peter Bad (fresh) PF - Derrick Fong (fresh) 3 pts. C - Robert Woods (fresh) | |
| 15:30 | Illinois | Jeffrey Fuchs takes the ball from Robert Fisher | 6-8 |
| 15:27 | Syracuse | Jeffrey Fuchs banks in the layup | 6-10 |
| 15:14 | Illinois | Nelson Boyer misses badly on a 3 from the right wing | 6-10 |
| 15:12 | Illinois | Robert Fisher pulls down the offensive rebound | 6-10 |
| 14:44 | Illinois | Nelson Boyer misses the jumpshot from just outside the lane | 6-10 |
| 14:43 | Syracuse | Peter Bad snags the defensive board | 6-10 |
| 14:30 | Syracuse | Peter Bad clanks a 3pt shot from the right corner | 6-10 |
| 14:28 | Illinois | Wayne Foster grabs the defensive rebound | 6-10 |
| 14:10 | Illinois | Wayne Foster is hacked by Jeffrey Fuchs - foul #1 on Jeffrey Fuchs, team foul #2 | 6-10 |
| Subs | Illinois | Austin Coward (PG), James Aguon (SF), Tomas Wilde (PF), Terrance Riccio (C) Wayne Foster, Edward Fox, Andrew Bailey, Robert Fisher | |
| Subs | Syracuse | Bruce Shreve (SG), Stuart Ried (C) Russell Jolley, Robert Woods | |
| 13:46 | Illinois | Nelson Boyer's pass is off the mark and out of bounds | 6-10 |
| 13:28 | Syracuse | Jeffrey Fuchs misses short on a 3pt jumper from the right corner | 6-10 |
| 13:27 | Syracuse | Stuart Ried grabs the offensive board | 6-10 |
| 13:21 | Syracuse | Terrance Riccio swats the dunk try by Derrick Fong | 6-10 |
| 13:20 | Syracuse | The offensive rebound goes to Stuart Ried | 6-10 |
| 13:00 | Syracuse | Stuart Ried throws a bad pass out of bounds | 6-10 |
| Subs | Illinois | Carl Hartsock (SG) Nelson Boyer | |
| Subs | Syracuse | | |
| 12:50 | Illinois | Carl Hartsock misses the jumpshot from just outside the lane but the foul's on Bruce Shreve - foul #1 on Bruce Shreve, team foul #3 | 6-10 |
| 12:50 | Illinois | Carl Hartsock makes the 1st free throw | 7-10 |
| 12:50 | Illinois | Carl Hartsock misses the 2nd free throw | 7-10 |
| 12:50 | Syracuse | Derrick Fong pulls down the rebound | 7-10 |
| 12:34 | Syracuse | Peter Bad comes up short on the floater from the left side | 7-10 |
| 12:33 | Illinois | Tomas Wilde pulls down the rebound | 7-10 |
| 12:14 | Illinois | Carl Hartsock scores on a jumper from the left wing on a nice dish by James Aguon | 9-10 |
| 11:54 | Syracuse | Bruce Shreve drills a 3 from straight away on a great pass from Jeffrey Fuchs | 9-13 |
| Lineup | Illinois | PG - Austin Coward (fresh) SG - Carl Hartsock (fresh) 3 pts. SF - James Aguon (fresh) 1 ast. PF - Tomas Wilde (fresh) 6 pts. 4 reb. C - Terrance Riccio (fresh) | |
| Lineup | Syracuse | PG - Jeffrey Fuchs (fairly fresh) 4 pts. 1 ast. SG - Bruce Shreve (fresh) 6 pts. SF - Peter Bad (fairly fresh) 2 reb. PF - Derrick Fong (fairly fresh) 3 pts. C - Stuart Ried (fresh) 3 reb. | |
| 11:32 | Illinois | James Aguon is fouled on the floor by Derrick Fong - foul #2 on Derrick Fong, team foul #4 | 9-13 |
| Subs | Illinois | Nelson Boyer (SG), Edward Fox (SF), Robert Fisher (C) Carl Hartsock, James Aguon, Terrance Riccio | |
| Subs | Syracuse | Robert Woods (PF) Derrick Fong | |
| 11:23 | Illinois | Austin Coward misses badly on a jumper from the free throw line but he's hacked by Stuart Ried - foul #1 on Stuart Ried, team foul #5 | 9-13 |
| Subs | Illinois | | |
| Subs | Syracuse | Russell Jolley (SG) Bruce Shreve | |
| 11:23 | Illinois | Austin Coward misses the 1st free throw | 9-13 |
| 11:23 | Illinois | Austin Coward makes the 2nd free throw | 10-13 |
| 11:14 | Syracuse | Jeffrey Fuchs misses the 3pt jumper from the left corner | 10-13 |
| 11:13 | Illinois | Edward Fox grabs the defensive rebound | 10-13 |
| 10:59 | Illinois | Tomas Wilde connects on the jump hook from the right block on a nice dish by Austin Coward | 12-13 |
| 10:32 | Syracuse | Russell Jolley misses the 3 from the left corner | 12-13 |
| 10:30 | Illinois | Austin Coward pulls down the rebound | 12-13 |
| 10:28 | Illinois | Russell Jolley takes the ball from Austin Coward in the backcourt | 12-13 |
| 10:20 | Syracuse | Jeffrey Fuchs knocks in the 3 pointer from the right corner on a nice dish by Peter Bad | 12-16 |
| 10:04 | Illinois | Robert Fisher misses badly on a jumpshot from the left side | 12-16 |
| 10:03 | Syracuse | Peter Bad gets the rebound | 12-16 |
| 09:43 | Syracuse | Peter Bad misses the easy layup but he's fouled by Robert Fisher - foul #1 on Robert Fisher, team foul #6 | 12-16 |
| Subs | Illinois | Wayne Foster (PG), James Aguon (SF), Andrew Bailey (PF), Terrance Riccio (C) Austin Coward, Edward Fox, Tomas Wilde, Robert Fisher | |
| Subs | Syracuse | Paul Bramblett (PG), Bruce Shreve (SG), Cesar Gallo (C) Jeffrey Fuchs, Russell Jolley, Stuart Ried | |
| 09:43 | Syracuse | Peter Bad makes the 1st free throw | 12-17 |
| 09:43 | Syracuse | Peter Bad makes the 2nd free throw | 12-18 |
| 09:23 | Illinois | Andrew Bailey scores on a fadeaway jumper from the free throw line on a nice dish by Wayne Foster and the foul's on Robert Woods - foul #1 on Robert Woods, team foul #6 | 14-18 |
| Subs | Illinois | | |
| Subs | Syracuse | Allen Midgette (SF) Peter Bad | |
| 09:23 | Illinois | Andrew Bailey makes the free throw | 15-18 |
| 09:11 | Syracuse | Cesar Gallo is fouled on the floor by Terrance Riccio - foul #2 on Terrance Riccio, team foul #7 | 15-18 |
| Subs | Illinois | Robert Fisher (C) Terrance Riccio | |
| Subs | Syracuse | | |
| 09:11 | Syracuse | Cesar Gallo misses the 1st free throw | 15-18 |
| 09:11 | Illinois | The rebound goes to Andrew Bailey | 15-18 |
| 08:50 | Illinois | Nelson Boyer scores on a 3pt jumper from the left corner set up by Wayne Foster | 18-18 |
| 08:32 | Syracuse | Bruce Shreve misses the 3pt attempt from straight away | 18-18 |
| 08:31 | Illinois | Andrew Bailey gets the rebound | 18-18 |
| 08:10 | Illinois | Robert Fisher connects on the shot from the right side set up by Nelson Boyer | 20-18 |
| 07:54 | Syracuse | Bruce Shreve misses the 3pt attempt from the left corner | 20-18 |
| 07:52 | Illinois | Wayne Foster grabs the defensive rebound | 20-18 |
| Lineup | Illinois | PG - Wayne Foster (fresh) 2 ast. SG - Nelson Boyer (fresh) 3 pts. 2 ast. SF - James Aguon (fresh) 1 ast. PF - Andrew Bailey (fresh) 3 pts. 2 reb. C - Robert Fisher (fresh) 2 pts. | |
| Lineup | Syracuse | PG - Paul Bramblett (fresh) SG - Bruce Shreve (fresh) 6 pts. SF - Allen Midgette (fresh) PF - Robert Woods (fairly fresh) C - Cesar Gallo (fresh) | |
| 07:27 | Illinois | Andrew Bailey hits the front of the rim on the jumper from the left block but he's hacked by Robert Woods - foul #2 on Robert Woods, team foul #7 | 20-18 |
| Subs | Illinois | Austin Coward (PG), Edward Fox (SF), Virgil Polson (C) Wayne Foster, James Aguon, Robert Fisher | |
| Subs | Syracuse | Jeffrey Fuchs (PG), Peter Bad (SF), Stuart Ried (C) Paul Bramblett, Allen Midgette, Robert Woods | |
| 07:27 | Illinois | Andrew Bailey makes the 1st free throw | 21-18 |
| 07:27 | Illinois | Andrew Bailey makes the 2nd free throw | 22-18 |
| 07:04 | Syracuse | Bruce Shreve loses the dribble to Nelson Boyer | 22-18 |
| 07:01 | Illinois | Nelson Boyer hits the finger roll | 24-18 |
| 06:34 | Syracuse | Peter Bad drills a runner in the lane | 24-20 |
| 06:21 | Illinois | Austin Coward splits the doubleteam but misses short on a 3pt jumper from the left wing | 24-20 |
| 06:20 | Syracuse | Cesar Gallo snags the defensive board | 24-20 |
| 06:01 | Syracuse | Peter Bad hits a floater from the left block | 24-22 |
| 05:47 | Illinois | Austin Coward evades the doubleteam but misses long on a 3 pointer from the right wing | 24-22 |
| 05:45 | Illinois | Andrew Bailey hits the follow up shot | 26-22 |
| 05:28 | Syracuse | Cesar Gallo scores on a driving attempt from close range | 26-24 |
| 05:14 | Illinois | Edward Fox hits a 3pt jumper from the right corner | 29-24 |
| 04:51 | Syracuse | Peter Bad's dunk attempt is rejected by Virgil Polson | 29-24 |
| 04:50 | Syracuse | Peter Bad hits the follow up shot | 29-26 |
| 04:32 | Illinois | Virgil Polson misses the 3pt attempt from the right corner | 29-26 |
| 04:31 | Illinois | Andrew Bailey hits the follow up shot | 31-26 |
| 04:10 | Syracuse | Peter Bad misses long on a jumper from the right wing but he's hacked by Austin Coward - foul #1 on Austin Coward, team foul #8 | 31-26 |
| Subs | Illinois | Carl Hartsock (SG), James Aguon (SF), Tomas Wilde (PF), Robert Fisher (C) Nelson Boyer, Edward Fox, Andrew Bailey, Virgil Polson | |
| Subs | Syracuse | Paul Bramblett (PG), Russell Jolley (SG), Allen Midgette (SF) Jeffrey Fuchs, Bruce Shreve, Cesar Gallo | |
| 04:10 | Syracuse | Peter Bad makes the 1st free throw | 31-27 |
| 04:10 | Syracuse | Peter Bad makes the 2nd free throw | 31-28 |
| 03:50 | Illinois | Tomas Wilde misses the jumper from close range but he's fouled by Stuart Ried - foul #2 on Stuart Ried, team foul #8 | 31-28 |
| Subs | Illinois | Wayne Foster (PG), Boris Zellous (SG), Terrance Riccio (C) Austin Coward, Carl Hartsock, Robert Fisher | |
| Subs | Syracuse | Derrick Fong (PF), Robert Woods (C) Peter Bad, Stuart Ried | |
| 03:50 | Illinois | Tomas Wilde misses the 1st free throw | 31-28 |
| 03:50 | Illinois | Tomas Wilde makes the 2nd free throw | 32-28 |
| 03:38 | Syracuse | Paul Bramblett scores on a 3 from the right corner on a great pass from Allen Midgette | 32-31 |
| Lineup | Illinois | PG - Wayne Foster (fresh) 2 ast. SG - Boris Zellous (fresh) SF - James Aguon (fresh) 1 ast. PF - Tomas Wilde (fresh) 9 pts. 4 reb. C - Terrance Riccio (fresh) | |
| Lineup | Syracuse | PG - Paul Bramblett (fresh) 3 pts. SG - Russell Jolley (fresh) SF - Allen Midgette (fresh) PF - Derrick Fong (fresh) 3 pts. C - Robert Woods (fresh) | |
| 03:14 | Illinois | Tomas Wilde connects on the floater from the left side on a great pass from Terrance Riccio | 34-31 |
| 02:58 | Syracuse | Allen Midgette hits the front of the rim on the fadeaway from the free throw line | 34-31 |
| 02:56 | Illinois | Tomas Wilde pulls down the rebound | 34-31 |
| 02:50 | Illinois | Terrance Riccio hits the finger roll on a great pass from Boris Zellous | 36-31 |
| 02:35 | Syracuse | Paul Bramblett clanks a 3pt attempt from the right corner | 36-31 |
| 02:33 | Illinois | Terrance Riccio grabs the board | 36-31 |
| 02:21 | Illinois | Tomas Wilde's floater is tipped away by Derrick Fong | 36-31 |
| 02:19 | Illinois | James Aguon grabs the offensive rebound | 36-31 |
| 02:11 | Illinois | Paul Bramblett is called for the reach on Terrance Riccio - foul #1 on Paul Bramblett, team foul #9 | 36-31 |
| Subs | Illinois | Austin Coward (PG) Wayne Foster | |
| Subs | Syracuse | Jeffrey Fuchs (PG), Peter Bad (SF), Stuart Ried (C) Paul Bramblett, Allen Midgette, Robert Woods | |
| 02:11 | Illinois | Terrance Riccio makes the 1st free throw | 37-31 |
| 02:11 | Illinois | Terrance Riccio makes the 2nd free throw | 38-31 |
| 01:55 | Syracuse | Derrick Fong scores on a turnaround in the paint set up by Russell Jolley | 38-33 |
| 01:48 | Illinois | Austin Coward makes the contested 3pt jumper from the left corner on a nice dish by James Aguon | 41-33 |
| 01:33 | Syracuse | Tomas Wilde blocks the short jumper by Stuart Ried | 41-33 |
| 01:32 | Syracuse | Peter Bad tips it home | 41-35 |
| 01:15 | Illinois | Tomas Wilde is wide open and slams it home on a nice dish by James Aguon | 43-35 |
| 00:50 | Syracuse | Tomas Wilde swats the layup by Peter Bad | 43-35 |
| 00:49 | Illinois | James Aguon grabs the board | 43-35 |
| 00:37 | Illinois | Austin Coward can't connect on a jumpshot from the right side | 43-35 |
| 00:36 | Illinois | James Aguon grabs the offensive board | 43-35 |
| 00:23 | Illinois | Austin Coward splits the doubleteam and buries a jumper from the right wing on a great pass from Terrance Riccio | 45-35 |
| 00:00 | Syracuse | Jeffrey Fuchs scores on a floater from the free throw line | 45-37 |