It was the type of reaction that might have come after an opponent beat Illinois four or five years ago. The Illini fans were so ready to unleash Saturday night that they couldn't be stopped from flooding the floor at Assembly Hall after a 78-73 win over No. 5 Michigan State.
What is it they say (whoever they are)? "Act like you've been there.''
Well, for this group of Illinois students, many never have seen a win this big. The last time the Illini beat a top-five team they were in the Final Four in St. Louis, taking down No. 4 Louisville. They were 2-9 against top-10 teams since that national semifinal victory.
So, while coach Bruce Weber wasn't sure what to think of the storming of the court, he understood. Especially with all of the hype surrounding ESPN's GameDay, which led to a day full of activities.
"I don't think we needed to do it,'' he said. "But I think the whole day with the build up this morning and having kids there at 7:30 (a.m.) and now it's 10-something at night, they probably had a bunch of Red Bull and so much energy they didn't know what they were doing. I don't know, but the players loved it too. We got back in the locker room and half of them were still out there.''
Demetri McCamey capped his celebration by jumping onto the scorer's table.
"I just said 'This is my house and let's keep getting wins,' '' he said.
The crowd hit a level that hasn't been seen at Assembly Hall in quite a while. Radio play-by-play man Brian Barnhart commented at halftime that he hadn't heard the arena so loud in five years.
The danger now is avoiding a letdown after a night that had been talked about for weeks. Illinois must travel to No. 16 Wisconsin on Tuesday, and the Badgers might be playing better than any team in the Big Ten. After that comes No. 13 Ohio State at home. Then No. 8 Purdue on the road.
But there were a lot of encouraging developments for fans on this one night.
McCamey continued his surge in play with 22 points and 11 assists with only two turnovers. Michigan State coach Tom Izzo said he told McCamey he was a completely different player than the day the teams played in East Lansing on Jan. 16.
Ditto for Mike Davis who hit some huge shots -- seven of 13 overall -- and capped the game with a blocked shot on the attempted game-tier and then received a pass for a dunk as time expired.
Both players have gone through some tribulations this season and lost their starting jobs.
"Bruce has mix-matched it all season a little bit,'' Izzo said. "What he did with McCamey early (in the season) and Davis late is the reason you win games. You have to be a little controversial and make tough decisions. Bruce, he's a friend, but he's one of the best coaches in the country. He sits guys. He doesn't put up with stuff. He changes things.''
The freshmen were also a bright spot and gave Weber some hope for the rest of the season. Tyler Griffey started again and was part of the team's fast start. D.J. Richardson scored 14 points and made three of four free throws down the stretch. Brandon Paul put the Illini ahead for good with 1:21 left with his drive to the basket. He also had six rebounds.
Paul and Richardson were involved in a sequence of plays in the second half that had the crowd as loud as it was all night. Paul made a steal and went the length of the floor for a dunk during a 9-0 run. And moments later he made another steal and fed the ball to Richardson for a dunk.
On the down side, the schedule only gets tougher. The Illini will try to avoid a letdown after the immense buildup that surrounded the Michigan State game. Rebounding was a problem much of the night and Weber continues to wait for Davis to return to the form that made him one of the best in the country early in the season. And what is up with Mike Tisdale's knee. He tweaked it at Iowa and then had to leave the game with 1:51 remaining after crumpling to the ground. He returned but isn't likely to do much in the next couple of days, Weber said.
Those things aside, the Illini are now one game out of first place in the Big Ten and picked up a big win for their NCAA Tournament resume. They woke up Sunday at No. 72 in the RPI.
