The University of Illinois football team won their first game in 12 weeks when they took down UCLA 20-14 at the Kraft Fight Hunger Bowl Game more ›

Michael Jordan's sons will be reunited on the basketball court for the first time since their days at Loyola Academy. Jordan's older son Jeff, a reserve player for the Illinois Fighting Illini and former walk-on, announced he's transferring to the University of Central Florida, where younger brother Marcus recently finished his freshman season. more ›

• The man charged with stalking and making those peephole videos of ESPN's Erin Andrews has been released on bail but ordered to home confinement.
• Chicago in 2040: still no jet-packs but more CTA.
• Those who fear the next Hamthrax outbreak can mark your calendars: the first shipment of the H1N1 vaccine are due to hit Chicago on October 15, but those first doses will be limited to certain demographics.

The Chicago Blackhawks recent skid continued Sunday afternoon with a 4-2 loss to the New York Islanders. Following a scoreless first act, the goals came easily for the Islanders in the second period, as they scored three times on only 10 attempts. In fact, it was the ‘Hawks who held a 23 shots-on-goal advantage, but they struggled to make the most of their opportunities. Kris Versteeg and Patrick Kane broke through for the Chicago, but New York’s Peter Mannino had an impressive, 40-save debut in net. On the other side of the ice Nikolai Khabibulin appeared a bit rusty in his return, after missing the last 14 games with a groin injury. The ‘Hawks take to the road for a Tuesday matchup with the Devils. more ›

Back in familiar environs, the Chicago Bulls palindromed the New Orleans Hornets, 97-79, on Saturday. Chicago led by as many as 32 and did not trail after the first quarter in a thorough beating of the Louisiana squad. The Bulls shot a steady 47 percent and held a 10-0 advantage over the Hornets in three-pointers made. Ben Gordon was red hot, going 11 for 17 and scoring 27 while John Salmons contributed 24 more for Chicago. The Bulls will hope to parlay their home-court advantage into a victory over the Boston Celtics on Tuesday. more ›

The Chicago Bulls did their best to spoil the festivities in Philly, but came up just short, losing to the 76ers 104-101. In the final game at the Spectrum, Philadelphia used a 15-2 run at the end of the third quarter to establish a comfortable 11-point advantage. The Bulls, seemingly unphased, began the final period with a barrage of three-pointers to once again make it a contest. Finding themselves down one with 22 seconds to play, Derrick Rose's attempt at a game-winner was rejected by Samuel Dalembert, and the 76ers added an easy basket at the other end to stretch their lead to three. The Bulls had one last chance to tie, but Ben Gordon's trey wouldn't go, giving Philly fans reason to celebrate. Rose led Chicago's efforts with 20 points, while four other Bulls scored in double figures. After dropping three straight on the road, the Bulls are hoping a home tilt tonight against New Orleans will reverse their fortunes. more ›

No. 23 Illinois surrendered to the Penn State Nittany Lions on Thursday, losing 64-63. Leading by a point with eight seconds to play, Illinois’ Mike Davis came up short on the front end of a one-and-one, and Penn State’s Talor Battle took it the length of the court for the game-winning basket. Battle’s heroic shot capped a 9-0 run for the Nittany Lions, who held Illinois scoreless for the final 3:30 of the contest. The Illini—coming off back-to-back losses to end the regular season—hope to right their ship in the Big Ten tourney next Friday. more ›

No. 20 Illinois' hopes for a Big Ten title vanished with their 74-66 loss to no. 9 Michigan State on Sunday. The Spartans established the lead early—opening the game with a 7-0 run—and maintained their advantage well into the second half. Illinois center Mike Tisdale rallied his team, however, scoring eight straight for the Illini as they tied the game at 58 with seven minutes to play. Michigan State answered by shoring up their D, and slowly re-established a two-possession lead going into the final minute. Illinois puts the wraps on its regular season at Penn State on Thursday. more ›

No. 20 Illinois earned a hard-fought win over the Minnesota Golden Gophers on Thursday, 52-41. Up by one with six minutes to play, the Illini D didn't allow Minnesota to score another basket. Demetri McCamey and Trent Meacham were also busy on the offensive end, sinking back-to-back threes to spark a 10-point Illinois run. The Illini now prep for a big one on Sunday against the no. 9 Michigan State Spartans. more ›

The Bulls may now have the pieces to make the playoff picture, but as evidenced by their 98-91 loss to the Indiana Pacers Sunday, still have some work to do putting the puzzle together. Trailing by 14 midway through the third, John Salmons, Tim Thomas and Kirk Hinrich sank consecutive three-pointers to make inroads on Indiana. The Pacers settled for outside looks and couldn't convert, while the Bulls steadily marched to a one-possession lead. Fortunes would fade for Chicago, however, as Indiana developed a hot hand early in the fourth and the Bulls struggled to defend the paint with big man Brad Miller on the bench. Ben Gordon led the scoring with 28, and new guys Salmons and Miller contributed 12 points and 10 rebounds, respectively. more ›

College Basketball more ›

The Bulls' latest comeback bid was of the fast and furious variety, but Chicago came up just short Thursday night in their 95-93 loss to the Miami Heat. Facing a seemingly insurmountable 93-86 deficit with 1:12 to play, the Bulls rattled off seven straight to points to make it a game. Fate and the ball were in Miami's hands with six ticks left on the clock, but Kirk Hinrich secured a steal to give Chicago the chance to win outright. That chance never materialized, however, as Thabo Sefolosha's inbound pass was picked by Dwyane Wade, who subsequently set up Shawn Marion for the game-winning basket at the other end. Ben Gordon had a big night for the Bulls with 34 points, including three pressure free throws that tied the score late. Chicago gets an All-Star breather before heading north to face the Bucks on Wednesday. more ›

No. 21 Illinois defeated the no. 13 Purdue Boilermakers Sunday afternoon, 66-48. The Illini maintained a slim lead for most of the game, until a 14-4, seven-minute run midway through the second gave them the edge for good. A strong defensive effort was the deciding factor, as they held Purdue to their lowest point total of the season. Mike Davis had a big day for the Illini, scoring 14 and securing 16 boards. Illinois' next contest is on Thursday, when they come to town and take on the Northwestern Wildcats. more ›

No. 20 Illinois rebounded from their 36-point performance against Minnesota with a 62-54 win over the Iowa Hawkeyes. The Illini once again looked sluggish in the first half, but started the second period with 13 points before missing a basket. Leading by one with 8:30 left to play, Illinois scored six straight to extend their lead to three possessions. The Illini then froze offensively, however, recording two points over the next six minutes. Fortunately for Illinois the Hawkeyes only scored four during the same stretch, and with 39 seconds on the clock the Illini sank eight consecutive free throws to preserve the lead. Big man Mike Tisdale led all participants in scoring with 18 points. more ›

It was too little too late for the Blackhawks as they fell victim to the Los Angeles Kings Thursday, 5-2. Scoreless through the first 27.5 minutes and down 3-0, Chicago's Dave Bolland ripped a one-timer past goalie Jonathan Quick to cut LA's lead to two. A mere 37 seconds later, however, Alexander Frolov got it back for the Kings when the 'Hawks coughed up the puck in front of their own net. Chicago showed some fight when Patrick Sharp scored his own one-timer a few minutes later, but two more scores with less than nine minutes to play was too much to ask of the 'Hawks. Brian Campbell assisted both Chicago goals, and Cristobal Huet took the brunt of it in the 'Hawks net. more ›

No. 19 Notre Dame couldn't keep it alive against the no. 3 Connecticut Huskies Saturday, losing 69-61 and ending the nation's longest home winning streak at 45 games. more ›

The Bulls suffered another close defeat Wednesday, losing 105-102 to the Hawks from Atlanta (no, the hockey team didn't pick up a basketball, although...). With the game tied at the start of the fourth quarter, the lead would see-saw seven times in the next seven minutes. The advange then tilted in Atlanta's favor, however, as Mike Bibby led a quick 7-0 surge for the Hawks. This pushed the lead to two-possessions, and put the game out of grasp for Chicago. Ben Gordon led the Bulls in scoring with 21, and Luol Deng was good for another double-double. more ›

The Blackhawks beat up on the Buffalo Sabres 4-1 Wednesday night, but it may have been Chicago that was left with a limp. The Sabres struck first off the stick of Ales Kotalik, but Chicago quickly answered with scores from Patrick Sharp and Jonathan Toews. Martin Havlat and James Wisniewski would pile on two more to ensure the Chicago victory. The real blow, however, was landed when Buffalo's Drew Stafford laid a hard hit on defenseman Duncan Keith in the second period, who was visibly shaken and did not return to the ice. Keith's status is unknown, but encouraging words came from the 'Hawks locker room after the game. Chicago stays put to host the Atlantic-leading New York Rangers on Friday. more ›

Red Wings Stop 'Hawks more ›

This was not a good season for Bruce Weber's Illini squad. In his previous four seasons at Illinois, his teams had won at least 23 game and made the NCAA Tournament. His 2004-2005 team went 32-1 during the regular season before losing in the NCAA championship game. But this season, Weber's team finished below .500 at 16-19 and looked to have no shot at receiving an NCAA Tournament bid. more ›

Chicagoist knew there'd be plenty of surprises during Sunday's college football Bowl Championship Series selections, given the losses by the two top-ranked team on Saturday and then general tumult among the top ranked teams all season long. Among the biggest surprises was the Rose Bowl's selection of the Fighting Illini to play against the USC Trojans on New Year's Day. The Illini did knock off Wisconsin when they were ranked fifth, and they handed Ohio... more ›