Illinois survives scare, beats Gardner-Webb 63-62 on Griffey's 3-pointer, Illini now 7-0
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Tyler Griffey buried a long 3-pointer with 4 seconds left and Illinois survived a scare Sunday by beating Gardner-Webb 63-62.
After winning the Maui Invitational, the Illini (7-0) came home and needed to rally against Gardner-Webb. Griffey's 3 followed a banked-in 3-pointer from Tashan Newsome with 12 seconds left that gave the Runnin' Bulldogs (4-4) a 62-60 lead.
Griffey was one of four Illinois players to finish with 13 points Sunday with D.J. Richardson, Brandon Paul and Joseph Bertrand. Bertrand added six rebounds.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}The Illini overcame cold shooting. They hit just 33 percent of their first-half shots and led Gardner-Webb 24-23 at halftime.
Donta Harper led the Bulldogs with 16 points. Newsome finished with 11 points.