Starting 5: Illinois 81, Iowa 61

​​CHAMPAIGN — Contributing to NBA All-Star Weekend doesn’t hasn’t gotten old for Illinois public address announcer Tim Sinclair.

Even if this year’s festivities in San Francisco — during which Sinclair served as the voice of the skills challenge, dunk contest and three-point contest — meant a two-game absence from his perch behind the microphone for Illinois men’s basketball games at State Farm Center.

“It was nice to go to a warmer place this year,” Sinclair said. “It’s always an honor to be asked because the NBA chooses, so if they’re going to ask me, I’m not going to say no.”

The versatile public address announcer — now an All-Star selection himself five times over — was eager to get back to work for Tuesday night’s game, which Illinois won 81-61 thanks to 22 points from Tomislav Ivisic, 15 points apiece from Kylan Boswell and Will Riley and 14 points from Tre White.

“It’s always good to be back,” Sinclair said. “I was really disappointed I had to miss two big games with Kofi (Cockburn) and Terrence (Shannon Jr.) and honoring them and their jerseys. It’s good to be back in Central Illinois. I had a fun week, though, away from here.”

Payton Block isn’t the first member of her family to watch games from State Farm Center’s lower bowl.

The Paris native — in her fourth and final year as an Orange Krush member — has watched her siblings take the same path during their time at the U of I. Her brother, Cooper, and her sister, Kaitlin, also participated in Illinois’ student section.

“I’ve been an Illinois fan since I was born,” Payton Block said. “So it’s just what I was born to come here to do.”

Block arrived well in advance of Tuesday’s game to stake out a seat on the front row of the east sideline, just behind Illinois’ bench.

“It’s just a whole different environment when you get here, especially the Big Ten games,” Payton Block said. “I think it’s great to get away from school and come here. There’s no other place like it, no other crowd.”

Her favorite memories during her time in Illinois’ student section include the organization’s road trips to rival schools.

“It’s just a great feeling when you rip off whatever (disguise) you’re wearing and it’s just orange and everybody’s so shocked,” Block said.

Block wasn’t the only Orange Krush member with plenty to cheer for on Tuesday night. Quinn Born connected on a layup, free throw and three-pointer within 30 seconds of a pregame promotion to claim a $250 contribution toward his scholarship fund.

“It’s electric,” Born said. “The atmosphere in State Farm Center is awesome. I was having a lot of fun.”

Born — originally from Arlington Heights — is also a longtime Illinois fan. And one of the four-year Orange Krush member’s favorite memories came during Illinois’ 83-78 win against UCLA on Feb. 11.

“Just the other day, the Kofi Cockburn (ceremony) game,” Born said. “Huge win for the program, it was so much fun.”

Gary Dolphin has been calling games at State Farm Center for more than three decades.

Champaign is a destination that Dolphin — the play-by-play voice of the Iowa Hawkeyes since 1996 — looks forward to.

“We stay at the I Hotel across the street and I’ve gotten to know Sam (Santhanam), the general manager over there, very well,” Dolphin said. “He’s a huge Dan Gable fan, therefore he loves Iowa wrestling … (Bret) Bielema is a good buddy of mine from his days at Iowa, those are the kind of relationships I cherish forever.”

Dolphin has seen a number of high-profile meetings between the Illini and Hawkeyes. Kris Murray and Luka Garza are recent names that the series brought to Dolphin’s mind.

Tuesday’s game, however, was decided relatively early on. Illinois carried a 37-30 lead into halftime and never looked back, leading by as many as 24 points en route to snapping a three-game losing streak.

“I’m a history buff, and I love the history of this series,” Dolphin said. “Always great players on both sides. The Illini have pretty much owned it in terms of wins and losses here of late, but they’ve been good games … it always comes down, typically, to rebounding and taking care of the basketball.”

Illness and injuries had plagued both of Tuesday’s participants. Illinois was without standout center Morez Johnson Jr. for the third straight game while Iowa’s Owen Freeman missed his seventh straight game.

But Iowa entered play with realistic fears of missing the expanded Big Ten tournament; the loss dropped the Hawkeyes to 6-11 in conference play, dangerously close to the cutoff of the 15-team invitational.

“This might be the goofiest year, and I’ve been covering the league now for 40 or 45 years,” Dolphin said. “I think it has a lot to do with the four new schools. There’s not an easy out.”

Fox Sports play-by-play announcer Brandon Gaudin was bullish about Illinois’ chance to turn its season around in the buildup to Thursday’s game.

The Illini’s health — or consistent lack thereof — was something Gaudin pointed toward.

“Particularly with Illinois, I think it’s one of those teams that if they get into the tournament, which they will, they can be a very dangerous six or seven seed,” Gaudin said.

“I know they’re trying to avoid that eight/nine line … if they can just get everyone back and healthy, there’s no question about the talent.”

Gaudin — who will begin his third season as the television voice of the Atlanta Braves on March 27 — also looks forward to trips to Champaign.

“I love it here,” Gaudin said. “The thing about the Big Ten is, truthfully, the venues that you get to go to, the atmospheres are unbelievable and this is near the top of the list. When this place is rocking and rolling, as it has been under Brad Underwood, it’s one of the best home court venues in the country.”

Devin Merritt hadn’t performed in front of many big crowds until a few years ago.

That changed when she responded to Illinois’ open audition for national anthem singers. Jump ahead to Tuesday, which marked the Catlin native’s ‘fourth or fifth’ time performing the Star-Spangled Banner before an Illini game.

“I decided to come over and try out and I told the judges I had never done anything like this before,” Merritt said. “I sang and I got done and they said, did you say you’ve never done anything like this?’

“It never gets old. It’s exciting to me every year, it’s one of my favorite days of the year. I look forward to it for months, so I’m so excited.”

Merritt wasn’t as nervous before her first performance as she thought she’d be. Her most recent rendition went off without a hitch.

But she knows the stakes are high every time she steps onto the floor.

“It is an honor to be able to sing this song,” Merritt said. “It is not an easy song to sing and everyone knows it. And they know if you make a mistake, so it is a little nerve-racking in that aspect. But I’m honored to be able to do it.”