Penn (1-1) came close, but couldn't quite pull off a Thanksgiving miracle, as the Quakers fell to No. 2 Illinois (3-0) 78-71 Thursday night.
In a second round game of the Las Vegas International Tournament, Penn opened a 12-point lead midway through the first half when a David Klatsky three-pointer capped a 10-0 Quaker run for a 22-10 lead. The Quakers finished the first half with a 45-34 advantage.
But midway through the second half, the Fighting Illini came fighting back with a 10-2 run of their own to tie the game at 57. Illinois opened up a 5-point lead on a 6-0 run, only to see Penn close to within two points with 4 1/2 minutes remaining.
Illinois center Brian Cook, who played the entire second half in foul trouble, made back-to-back baskets to re-open a 6-point lead with 3:25 to go, and Penn was unable to close the gap down the stretch. Illinois shot 71 percent from the floor in the second half, after going 8-for-25 in the opening half.
Ugonna Onyekwe led the Quakers with 28 points on 10-for-17 shooting, which included four three-pointers. Koko Archibong added 12 points. Illinois Forward Frank Williams led the Illini with 22.
The Quakers had opened the 2001-02 campaign with a 79-74 win on the road Monday night in Atlanta against Georgia Tech in the opening round of the Las Vegas International Tournament.
Penn played Illinois at the end of the 2000 season, when the teams faced off in the first round of the NCAA Tournament. The Illini won that game -- as they have all six matchups with the Quakers in school history -- to advance in the tournament.
Penn continues in the round-robin tournament on Friday with another tough match-up against Eastern Illinois. Gametime is 8 p.m. (Eastern). The tournament concludes with playoff games on Saturday.
