The Illini are 1-3 after another upset loss.
Illinois fought back from a first-half deficit as large as 15 and led by nine with six and a half minutes to play in Saturday night's game against Chattanooga. But the visiting Mocs closed the game on a 21-12 run to send the Illini to their third loss of the young season by a score of 81-77.
Trailing by eight at the start of the second half, Illinois watched the gap get as big as 12 a little more than two minutes into the period. But an 18-6 Illini run tied the game at 53 with a little less than 13 minutes to play. Malcolm Hill had seven straight points to kick off that stretch, and Khalid Lewis hit a 3-pointer and got a game-tying bucket to knot the score.
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After Hill tied the score at 55 a little later, the Illini went on a 14-5 run to grab a nine-point edge. Hill and Mike Thorne Jr. scored 12 of those points.
But from there the Mocs went on their big run, tying the game at 74 with about three minutes to play. The Illini went more than three minutes without a made basket and trailed by five with a minute to play. Michael Finke's 3-pointer in the final minute brought Illinois within a basket, but Finke missed a 3-point attempt with 12 seconds left, allowing Chattanooga to put the game away with a pair of free throws.
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While the Illini shot 51.7 percent from the field and forced 19 turnovers, the defense failed again, allowing the Mocs to shoot 50 percent from the field and hit 12 3-pointers.
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Hill led the Illini with 25 points, while Thorne turned in another double-double with 18 points and 11 rebounds. Aaron Jordan and Maverick Morgan each had eight points, and Lewis and Finke each had seven.
This is the first time Illinois has started a season with a 1-3 record since 1965-66. It's the program's fourth 1-3 start in 110 seasons.
Next up for the Illini is a Monday-night game against Chicago State, also in Springfield.