Plummer's late free throws lift Illini by Chattanooga 54-53
PITTSBURGH (AP) The result didn't make sense to Brad Underwood. For the better part of 39 minutes Friday night, the Illinois coach watched his fourth-seeded team chasing 13th-seeded Chattanooga.
The Southern Conference champion Mocs, with alum and Pro Football Hall of Famer Terrell Owens cheering them on, smothered Illini All-America center Kofi Cockburn. They took double-digit leads in each half. They responded every time the Illini made a push.
The Illini didn't panic. They dug in behind Cockburn and guard Alfonso Plummer, whose go-ahead free throws with 12 seconds to go helped them pull out a 54-53 NCAA Tournament win that maybe they didn't deserve but will certainly take.
''I told (Chattanooga coach) Lamont (Paris) they played better than us, and we just happened to have more points than them at the end, and we led at the right time,'' Underwood said.
The only time it mattered.
The Big Ten co-champions will play fifth-seeded Houston on Sunday after narrowly avoiding becoming the seventh team to fall to a double-digit seed.
''We just kind of hung in there,'' Underwood said.
Plummer scored 13 of his 15 points in the second half, including three 3-pointers that kept Illinois (23-9) within striking distance. The 7-foot Cockburn, fending off bodies left and right, finished with 17 points and 13 rebounds while absorbing 11 fouls. His putback with 45 seconds left gave the Illini the first of just two leads they held all night.
''It wasn't frustrating,'' Cockburn said. ''I've been going through that all year. Probably all my whole career. I think it was just another challenge. This is the NCAA Tournament, and things get tough.''
Chattanooga still had two chances to pick up its first NCAA Tournament win since 1997 in the closing seconds but sophomore star Malachi Smith missed twice. His runner with 4 seconds left was blocked by Coleman Hawkins. Smith chased down the rebound and pulled up from about 12 feet, but the ball clanged off the rim and into Hawkins' hands, capping a 4 for 20 performance for the Southern Conference Player of the Year.
''My mindset was, I just got fouled the last possession, so I tried to do it again, and just going too fast,'' Smith said. ''And then luckily got the rebound, and then got a shot that I felt like if you're gonna get a shot for the win, that's a shot you'll take.''
Unlike the Mocs' overtime thriller in the Southern Conference final - which ended with a game-winning 30-foot heave by David Jean-Baptiste - this time there would be no last-second heroics.
''And it's frustrating because it's a shot I work on a lot, and it didn't go in,'' Smith said. ''And that's all I can say. I just let my teammates down, and I just missed a shot that I usually make.''
Illinois didn't exactly light it up either. Senior Trent Frazer missed all six of his shots but did make two free throws with 3:37 to go. Andre Curbelo was 1 for 7. The Illini made just 3 of 17 3-pointers, turned it over 14 times - including a couple of baffling passes to nowhere that sailed out of bounds - and survived anyway.
''You're relieved, you're encouraged,'' Underwood said. ''And, again, I've been in this thing enough to know it's literally just every game is gonna be close, and there (are) very few blowouts, and it's `Survive and advance.' And literally, you take them any way you can get them.''
Paris promised to throw multiple bodies at Cockburn in an effort to keep the 7-footer in check. It worked early, as the Mocs harassed him nearly every time down the floor.
It led to a lot of pushing, a lot of shoving and - for a while - a lot of fouls. Josh Ayeni and Silvio De Sousa each drew three whistles in the first half alone. Cockburn struggled to take advantage, missing 5 of 8 free throws early before he and the Illini started to get into a rhythm after the Mocs were forced to go small.
''He got a couple (of) easy ones, but I think for the most part, he earned a lot of the stuff that he got,'' Paris said of Cockburn. ''And he's a good player.''
---
More AP coverage of March Madness: https://apnews.com/hub/march-madness and https://apnews.com/hub/ncaa-mens-bracket and https://twitter.com/AP-Top25
Copyright 2025 STATS LLC and Associated Press. Any commercial use or distribution without the express written consent of STATS LLC and Associated Press is strictly prohibited.
Time | Team | Play | Score | |
---|---|---|---|---|
20:00 | Silvio De Sousa vs. Kofi Cockburn (David Jean-Baptiste gains possession) | |||
19:44 | Silvio De Sousa misses two point jump shot | |||
19:42 | Da'Monte Williams defensive rebound | |||
19:17 | Alfonso Plummer misses three point jump shot | |||
19:14 | Mocs defensive rebound | |||
18:58 | +2 | Malachi Smith makes two point layup (Silvio De Sousa assists) | 2-0 | |
18:43 | Trent Frazier misses three point jump shot | |||
18:41 | Kofi Cockburn offensive rebound | |||
18:39 | Silvio De Sousa shooting foul (Kofi Cockburn draws the foul) | |||
18:39 | +1 | Kofi Cockburn makes regular free throw 1 of 2 | 2-1 | |
18:39 | Kofi Cockburn misses regular free throw 2 of 2 | |||
18:39 | KC Hankton defensive rebound | |||
18:21 | Malachi Smith misses two point jump shot | |||
18:19 | Silvio De Sousa offensive rebound | |||
18:12 | +2 | Silvio De Sousa makes two point layup | 4-1 | |
18:03 | Alfonso Plummer misses two point jump shot | |||
18:01 | Malachi Smith defensive rebound | |||
17:52 | Silvio De Sousa misses two point jump shot | |||
17:50 | Da'Monte Williams defensive rebound | |||
17:38 | Kofi Cockburn misses two point layup | |||
17:36 | Coleman Hawkins offensive rebound | |||
17:33 | +2 | Coleman Hawkins makes two point layup | 4-3 | |
17:15 | David Jean-Baptiste misses two point layup | |||
17:15 | Silvio De Sousa offensive rebound | |||
17:15 | Trent Frazier personal foul (Silvio De Sousa draws the foul) | |||
17:08 | +3 | Josh Ayeni makes three point jump shot (David Jean-Baptiste assists) | 7-3 | |
16:45 | Kofi Cockburn turnover (bad pass) (Darius Banks steals) | |||
16:39 | +2 | Darius Banks makes two point layup | 9-3 | |
16:31 | Josh Ayeni personal foul (Trent Frazier draws the foul) | |||
16:21 | Kofi Cockburn offensive foul (Josh Ayeni draws the foul) | |||
16:21 | Kofi Cockburn turnover | |||
15:53 | +3 | KC Hankton makes three point jump shot (Darius Banks assists) | 12-3 | |
15:40 | Coleman Hawkins misses two point jump shot | |||
15:38 | Kofi Cockburn offensive rebound | |||
15:39 | Josh Ayeni personal foul (Kofi Cockburn draws the foul) | |||
15:39 | TV timeout | |||
15:18 | Trent Frazier misses three point jump shot | |||
15:16 | Malachi Smith defensive rebound | |||
15:02 | +2 | Grant Ledford makes two point layup | 14-3 | |
14:38 | Avery Diggs shooting foul (Omar Payne draws the foul) | |||
14:38 | +1 | Omar Payne makes regular free throw 1 of 2 | 14-4 | |
14:38 | Omar Payne misses regular free throw 2 of 2 | |||
14:38 | Darius Banks defensive rebound | |||
14:16 | Grant Ledford misses two point jump shot | |||
14:14 | Avery Diggs offensive rebound | |||
14:06 | Malachi Smith misses three point jump shot | |||
14:04 | Da'Monte Williams defensive rebound | |||
13:54 | Andre Curbelo misses two point jump shot | |||
13:52 | Malachi Smith defensive rebound | |||
13:25 | Darius Banks misses two point layup | |||
13:23 | Jacob Grandison defensive rebound | |||
13:17 | Da'Monte Williams misses three point jump shot | |||
13:15 | Darius Banks defensive rebound | |||
12:54 | Andre Curbelo shooting foul (A.J. Caldwell draws the foul) | |||
12:54 | +1 | A.J. Caldwell makes regular free throw 1 of 2 | 15-4 | |
12:54 | A.J. Caldwell misses regular free throw 2 of 2 | |||
12:54 | Andre Curbelo defensive rebound | |||
12:42 | +2 | Kofi Cockburn makes two point dunk (Coleman Hawkins assists) | 15-6 | |
12:20 | Jacob Grandison shooting foul (Darius Banks draws the foul) | |||
12:20 | Darius Banks misses regular free throw 1 of 2 | |||
12:20 | +1 | Darius Banks makes regular free throw 2 of 2 | 16-6 | |
12:11 | Silvio De Sousa shooting foul (Kofi Cockburn draws the foul) | |||
12:11 | Kofi Cockburn misses regular free throw 1 of 2 | |||
12:11 | Kofi Cockburn misses regular free throw 2 of 2 | |||
12:11 | Grant Ledford defensive rebound | |||
11:49 | Coleman Hawkins personal foul (KC Hankton draws the foul) | |||
11:49 | TV timeout | |||
11:44 | David Jean-Baptiste misses three point jump shot | |||
11:42 | Kofi Cockburn defensive rebound | |||
11:35 | Andre Curbelo turnover (lost ball) (David Jean-Baptiste steals) | |||
11:29 | +2 | Josh Ayeni makes two point dunk | 18-6 | |
11:18 | Andre Curbelo misses two point jump shot | |||
11:16 | KC Hankton defensive rebound | |||
11:04 | +2 | David Jean-Baptiste makes two point layup | 20-6 | |
11:04 | Josh Ayeni shooting foul (Kofi Cockburn draws the foul) | |||
10:51 | Kofi Cockburn misses regular free throw 1 of 2 | |||
10:51 | +1 | Kofi Cockburn makes regular free throw 2 of 2 | 20-7 | |
10:25 | KC Hankton misses three point jump shot | |||
10:23 | Malachi Smith offensive rebound | |||
10:18 | Malachi Smith misses two point jump shot | |||
10:16 | Trent Frazier defensive rebound | |||
9:35 | Alfonso Plummer turnover (lost ball) (Malachi Smith steals) | |||
9:11 | Darius Banks misses two point layup | |||
9:09 | Coleman Hawkins defensive rebound | |||
8:52 | Kofi Cockburn misses two point layup | |||
8:50 | A.J. Caldwell defensive rebound | |||
8:32 | Darius Banks misses two point jump shot | |||
8:32 | Darius Banks misses two point jump shot | |||
8:30 | Kofi Cockburn defensive rebound | |||
8:15 | A.J. Caldwell shooting foul (Kofi Cockburn draws the foul) | |||
8:15 | Kofi Cockburn misses regular free throw 1 of 2 | |||
8:15 | +1 | Kofi Cockburn makes regular free throw 2 of 2 | 20-8 | |
8:01 | Malachi Smith misses two point jump shot | |||
7:59 | David Jean-Baptiste offensive rebound | |||
7:53 | David Jean-Baptiste misses two point jump shot | |||
7:51 | Coleman Hawkins defensive rebound | |||
7:44 | +2 | Omar Payne makes two point layup (Andre Curbelo assists) | 20-10 | |
7:44 | Malachi Smith shooting foul (Omar Payne draws the foul) | |||
7:44 | TV timeout | |||
7:44 | Omar Payne misses regular free throw 1 of 1 | |||
7:44 | Silvio De Sousa defensive rebound | |||
7:16 | +2 | Silvio De Sousa makes two point layup | 22-10 | |
6:55 | Silvio De Sousa personal foul (Andre Curbelo draws the foul) | |||
6:55 | +1 | Andre Curbelo makes regular free throw 1 of 2 | 22-11 | |
6:55 | +1 | Andre Curbelo makes regular free throw 2 of 2 | 22-12 | |
6:42 | Avery Diggs offensive foul (Trent Frazier draws the foul) | |||
6:42 | Avery Diggs turnover | |||
6:22 | Kofi Cockburn misses two point jump shot | |||
6:20 | Coleman Hawkins offensive rebound | |||
6:16 | +2 | Coleman Hawkins makes two point layup | 22-14 | |
6:00 | Avery Diggs misses two point jump shot | |||
5:58 | Kofi Cockburn defensive rebound | |||
5:52 | +2 | Coleman Hawkins makes two point alley-oop dunk (Andre Curbelo assists) | 22-16 | |
5:35 | +2 | Malachi Smith makes two point reverse layup | 24-16 | |
5:16 | Kofi Cockburn misses two point jump shot | |||
5:14 | Avery Diggs defensive rebound | |||
5:08 | +2 | Avery Diggs makes two point jump shot (Malachi Smith assists) | 26-16 | |
4:48 | Kofi Cockburn turnover (lost ball) (Avery Diggs steals) | |||
4:43 | Trent Frazier shooting foul (Malachi Smith draws the foul) | |||
4:43 | Malachi Smith misses regular free throw 1 of 2 | |||
4:43 | +1 | Malachi Smith makes regular free throw 2 of 2 | 27-16 | |
4:23 | +2 | Andre Curbelo makes two point layup (Coleman Hawkins assists) | 27-18 | |
4:04 | Malachi Smith misses two point jump shot | |||
4:02 | Malachi Smith offensive rebound | |||
4:01 | Malachi Smith misses two point layup | |||
3:59 | Da'Monte Williams defensive rebound | |||
3:58 | Darius Banks personal foul (Andre Curbelo draws the foul) | |||
3:58 | TV timeout | |||
3:58 | +1 | Andre Curbelo makes regular free throw 1 of 2 | 27-19 | |
3:58 | Andre Curbelo misses regular free throw 2 of 2 | |||
3:58 | Darius Banks defensive rebound | |||
3:28 | David Jean-Baptiste misses three point jump shot | |||
3:26 | Kofi Cockburn defensive rebound | |||
3:15 | +2 | Kofi Cockburn makes two point jump shot (Andre Curbelo assists) | 27-21 | |
2:54 | David Jean-Baptiste misses two point jump shot | |||
2:52 | Alfonso Plummer defensive rebound | |||
2:40 | +2 | Kofi Cockburn makes two point jump shot | 27-23 | |
2:23 | Kofi Cockburn blocks Darius Banks's two point layup | |||
2:22 | Fighting Illini defensive rebound | |||
1:59 | KC Hankton personal foul (Kofi Cockburn draws the foul) | |||
1:59 | +1 | Kofi Cockburn makes regular free throw 1 of 2 | 27-24 | |
1:59 | +1 | Kofi Cockburn makes regular free throw 2 of 2 | 27-25 | |
1:47 | Da'Monte Williams personal foul (Malachi Smith draws the foul) | |||
1:47 | +1 | Malachi Smith makes regular free throw 1 of 2 | 28-25 | |
1:47 | Malachi Smith misses regular free throw 2 of 2 | |||
1:47 | Kofi Cockburn defensive rebound | |||
1:31 | Andre Curbelo turnover (lost ball) | |||
1:26 | Malachi Smith misses two point layup | |||
1:24 | Grant Ledford offensive rebound | |||
1:24 | Grant Ledford misses two point layup | |||
1:24 | Darius Banks offensive rebound | |||
1:24 | +2 | Darius Banks makes two point layup | 30-25 | |
1:24 | Alfonso Plummer shooting foul (Darius Banks draws the foul) | |||
1:24 | +1 | Darius Banks makes regular free throw 1 of 1 | 31-25 | |
0:57 | +2 | Alfonso Plummer makes two point layup | 31-27 | |
0:04 | David Jean-Baptiste defensive rebound | |||
0:47 | KC Hankton turnover (bad pass) (Andre Curbelo steals) | |||
0:42 | +2 | Kofi Cockburn makes two point dunk (Andre Curbelo assists) | 31-29 | |
0:28 | +2 | Malachi Smith makes two point layup | 33-29 | |
0:06 | Andre Curbelo misses three point jump shot | |||
0:04 | David Jean-Baptiste defensive rebound | |||
0:03 | David Jean-Baptiste turnover (lost ball) | |||
0:00 | End of period |