Battle's late heroics lifts Nittany Lions past No. 23 Illinois

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03/05/2009 - University Park, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Penn State is quickly turning into a basketball school, as Talor Battle's leaning bank shot in traffic with three- tenths of a second to play lifted the Nittany Lions to a resume-building 64-63 victory over No. 23 Illinois, capping a season sweep of the Fighting Illini.

Known for ages as the home of Joe Paterno and 110,000-seat Beaver Stadium, Penn State fans stormed the court at the buzzer of the school's biggest victory in the Ed DeChellis era. The Nittany Lions (21-9, 10-7 Big Ten) tied a school record with their 10th Big Ten victory and can take the No. 2 seed in the conference tournament with a victory over Iowa this weekend coupled with a Purdue loss.

Battle struggled to 15 points on 5-of-17 shooting, and seemed to squander the Nittany Lions' chance at victory by turning the basketball over near the top of the circle in the closing seconds.

Mike Davis was then fouled with just over eight ticks to go, but badly missed the front end of a 1-and-1, and Battle dribbled nearly the length of the floor only to find a forest of Illini defenders in the paint. He angled his body and laid the basketball off the glass with 0.3 ticks to go.

The Illini (23-8, 11-7) didn't get off a shot, dropping its second straight contest.

Stanley Pringle scored 20 points on this birthday, and Jamelle Cornley added seven points and seven rebounds in his last home game.

Demetri McCamey led the Illini with 16 points and seven assists, Mike Tisdale donated 12 points with six rebounds and Chester Frazier had 11 points in defeat.

While comparable in its competitiveness, the second contest between these two teams had a distinctly different feel than Penn State's 38-33 victory two weeks ago.

The Illini scored just 15 first-half points in that contest, but reached that scoring plateau with 12:45 left in the first half. Frazier's pullup with just under eight minutes to go gave the Illini a 25-15 edge.

The Nittany Lions battled back to a 31-29 deficit on Battle's layup, and Cornley's free throw just before the horn kept the margin at two points, 34-32.

Illinois scored more points in the first half (34) than it did the entire game in Champaign (33).

Another marvel was Illinois' absence at the free throw line. Illinois shot its first free throw in the season series with 14:27 left in the second half, a total of 65 minutes, 33 seconds until it shot free throws against Penn State.

Illinois led 60-50 on Calvin Brock's tip-in with just over five minutes to go, but the Nittany Lions dominated down the stretch.

Danny Morrissey was fouled on a three-point attempt and made all three on the next offensive possession. Pringle's baseline jumper moments later cut the deficit to 61-55, and Battle's two free throws matched Dominique Keller's layup for a 63-57 game with 3:41 to play.

Pringle's three with 1:49 to play cut the margin to a one-possession game, and David Jackson's free throws with 58 seconds left made the score 63-62.

The frantic finish ensued from there.

Game Notes

Penn State shot 43.4 percent from the field and scored 24 points in the paint...The Illini matched the Nittany Lions in the paint and shot 48.2 percent, however they hit only 2-of-7 free throws...Illinois still leads the all-time series, 21-11.

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In what should be an outstanding Saturday of March Madness betting action, the top four teams in the South and West Regions square off in what should be extremely close match-ups. Three of the four teams are coming off extremely close games on Thursday evening, only UCLA won semi comfortably over Pitt 64-55.

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Memphis vs. Ohio State

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UCLA vs. Kansas

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FOOTBALL BETTING : Cassel Signs Contract

Kansas City, MO - Kansas City has not officially named Matt Cassel its starting quarterback, but there can be no doubt now.

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After praising his leadership and work ethic through spring workouts, the Chiefs announced Tuesday they had signed the 27-year-old Cassel to a multiyear contract. Terms were not disclosed, but he will almost certainly be one of the highest-paid members of the team.
"We are excited to be able to reach a long-term agreement for Matt Cassel to be a Kansas City Chief for many years to come," owner and board chairman Clark Hunt said in a statement. "His proven leadership on and off the field will be a tremendous asset to the organization."
Patriots made him their franchise player, meaning his salary for this season will be about $15 million.
New head coach Todd Haley, taking over for Herm Edwards after a 2-14 season, refused to name a starter at any position during offseason workouts. But it was obvious to everyone the team belonged to Cassel.
"I go out there each and every day with that focus that I'm the starter," Cassel said during a June minicamp. "Competition brings out the best in everybody."
The signing will come as welcome news to Cassel's new coaches and teammates. Amiable and hardworking, online football betting he appeared to win over everyone at minicamp.
"I think he's got some unique leadership qualities. I think his teammates like him and have respect for him. I think he's doing a pretty good job on the field, too," Haley said last month. "He's doing everything that I'm asking him, that our coaches are asking him to do. I don't have one single complaint how he's carrying himself."
After one workout, wide receiver Devard Darling declared Cassel "a breath of fresh air."
"He has a lot of swagger, a lot of confidence. It's good for us," said Darling. "We trust in him that he's going to go out there and lead us all the way."
nse to accommodate his specific abilities.
Trapped on the bench behind Heisman winners Carson Palmer and Matt Leinart at USC and then unable to unseat Super Bowl MVP Brady at New England, Cassel seemed destined to be a backup all his life. As Brady was helped off the field last September, Cassel seized the opportunity he'd been waiting for since high school.
In his only sustained action since his teens, he hit 349 of 555 passes for 3,949 yards at New England. He had 23 touchdown passes and 13 interceptions as the Patriots, who had gone unbeaten through the regular season the year before, finished 11-5 and out of the playoffs.
Chiefs general manager Scott Pioli, who had been Bill Belichick's assistant in New England, engineered the trade after the Patriots became convinced that Brady would recover fully from his knee operation.
"Since Matt arrived in Kansas City, he has embraced the team and the community," Pioli said. "His work ethic, his ability and competitive presence is what we expect from our players."

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