Illini fall after 2nd half struggles

Stocco, Wisconsin comeback to top Illinois Madison, WI (Sports Network) - John Stocco passed for 217 yards and also threw two second-half touchdown passes, as 17th-ranked Wisconsin erased a 14-point halftime deficit to down Illinois, 30-24. Stocco completed touchdown passes to Andy Crooks and Luke Swan to lead the Badgers (8-1, 5-1 Big Ten) to their fifth straight win. Crooks finished with five catches for 54 yards while Swan hauled in four passes for 85 yards. P.J. Hill was limited to a season-low 50 yards on the ground and Lance Smith added 46 yards rushing in the win. Isiah Williams threw for 171 yards on 13-of-29 passing with a touchdown throw and was also intercepted once for the Illini (2-7, 1-4), who have lost four straight. Williams also ran for 47 yards. Derrick McPhearson made a 52-yard reception while Pierre Thomas caught a TD and rushed for another in the loss. The Badgers were down 24-10 at the half before scoring 20 unanswered points. The Wisconsin defense did its part as well as it kept Illinois off the board in the final two frames. Wisconsin`s Mark Zalewski picked off Williams to halt Illinois` opening drive of the third quarter. Stocco then capped the resulting possession when he found Swan in the front of the end zone for a 17-yard TD pass that made it 24-17 in favor of the Illini less than five minutes into the stanza. Following an Illinois punt, the Badgers pulled within 24-20 when Taylor Mehlhaff booted a 22-yard field goal with 3:57 left in the third. The big play on the nine-play, 62-yard sequence came on the march`s first play as Stocco connected with Swan for a 33-yard reception. The Badger defense quickly forced Illinois to go three and out and Stocco completed the comeback with a 22-yard pass to Crooks, who got down to the one before fumbling. Crooks recovered his own miscue, though, to put Wisconsin ahead 27-24 just five seconds into the fourth. After a series of punts, Mehlhaff gave the Badgers some breathing room with a 33-yard field that came with just under 4 1/2 minutes to go. Then, McPhearson fumbled the kickoff, but Brit Miller was there to recover. However, after a 23-yard pass by Williams to Thomas, the Illini failed to move the ball and Williams` pass attempt on 4th-and-10 was incomplete. That allowed Wisconsin`s offense to take time off the clock before punting with just over 1 1/2 minutes remaining. Illinois took over at its own 17 after the punt and Williams guided his squad to the Badger 47 with one second left. However, he never got off his long pass attempt as he was sacked by Matt Shaughnessy with no time left on the clock. It was the Illinois defense that put up the first points on the game after Stocco was intercepted by Travon Bellamy, who took the turnover 41 yards into the end zone for a 7-0 Illini lead with 3:34 left in the first quarter. Wisconsin got on the board early in the second on Mehlhaff`s 21-yard field goal three seconds into the frame. Illinois had an answer though to extend its lead. On his own 41-yard line, Williams hit McPhearson for a 52-yard reception to the Badger seven and three plays later, Williams found Thomas for a two-yard TD pass that made it 14-3 with 10:42 left in the second. It only got worse for Wisconsin as Stocco was hit and fumbled on the Badgers first play from scrimmage following the score, and Chris Norwell recovered at the Badger 24. That led to Thomas` eventual one-yard TD run with 5:45 to go before halftime. The Badgers did find the end zone before halftime as Smith finished off an 11- play, 76-yard march with a one-yard TD run with 1:44 left, pulling Wisconsin within 21-10. The Illini struck back quickly as Williams broke off a 20-yard run and added a 22-yard pass to highlight an Illinois march to the Badger three. However, three straight incomplete passes led to a 20-yard chip shot by Jason Reda with eight seconds left until the half. Game Notes: Illinois still leads the all-time series 35-33-7, but Wisconsin has won the last four meetings...Hill`s previous low for rushing this season was a 54-yard performance against Michigan on September 23. He had run for 574 yards over his previous three games...The win gave Badgers head coach Bret Bielema his eighth on the season, surpassing the previous record for first-year wins held by both Phil King (7-1-1 in 1896) and William Juneau (7-0-0 in 1912). (Copyright 2005 by The Sports Network)