Illinois and Oakland played the first 7:22 of the 1st half with a women's basketball

Before No. 16 Illinois outlasted Oakland 74-63 tonight at the Assembly Hall, the Illini and Grizzlies played the first 7:22 with a women's basketball. The "Nike Elite" sphere was 2 ounces lighter and 1 inch smaller than a men's ball.

It wasn't until Mike Tisdale expertly revealed the basketball's true identity - he went to the sideline and told Bruce Weber they were actually playing with a women's ball - that referee Mike Sanzere made the switch.



Klee