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CHAMPAIGN, Ill. -- For three quarters at Nebraska last week, Illinois looked like the winner.But the team couldnt finish in the fourth quarter of the 31-16 loss. Its something Illini coach Lovie Smith said his team is still learning how to do, and he hopes can do Saturday against Purdue.Yeah, we were wore down a little bit, Smith said. Were making game improvements, just not that 60 minutes yet.The Illini (1-3, 0-1 Big Ten) dont face quite the same test in the Boilermakers that they did against No. 12 Nebraska. Purdue (2-2, 0-1) is coming to Illinois after a 50-7 conference-opening loss to Maryland. The Boilermakers were down 29-0 at halftime and gave up 400 rushing yards.Boilermaker coach Darrell Hazell acknowledged during the week that pressure is building on him and his team. And he defended at least part of his defenses effort.As crazy as that sounds, they were playing good defense to create plays, creating sacks, and then all of a sudden, bang, a big one would hit us for 50-plus yards, he said.Some things to watch for Saturday as two of the three teams at the bottom of the Big Ten West (Minnesota is the third) match up in Champaign:WHATS AT STAKEA win moves one of these two out of the Big Ten West cellar. Both teams have to look at this as one of the more winnable contests on their schedules, and a must if either has hope of getting to six wins and bowl eligibility. Theres also the Cannon , the trophy the teams have played for each season since 1943.CHANGES IN LUNTAgainst Nebraska, Illinois turned the clock back to run more of the no-huddle, spread offense quarterback Wes Lunt and the Illini were accustomed to the past few years. Offensive coordinator Garrick McGee said he was adapting to the personnel he has.But McGee also pushed for changes in Lunt, saying the quarterback needed to do whatever it takes to win, including running. Lunt almost never runs. His career high is 5 yards in the Nebraska game.McGee guessed that somewhere along the line Lunt was told he isnt a runner, something the senior quarterback said was essentially right.I think just kind of growing up and playing, Ive never been told to run. I was basically kind of labeled as a passer, Lunt said.KEY MATCHUPPurdue quarterback David Blough is second in the Big Ten in passing yards at 269.5 a game, and he doesnt take many sacks. The Boilermakers have allowed just seven sacks in four games. Purdues pass protection should be tested by the Illini, who are third in the Big Ten with 13 sacks. Carrol Phillips, who leads Illinois with four sacks, left the Nebraska game with a knee injury. Smith this week would only say it isnt long term.ON THE GROUNDIllinois moved redshirt freshman Reggie Corbin to a starting running back role against Nebraska and he responded with nine carries for 72 yards. But the man he replaced might like his chances against Purdue. KeShawn Vaughn had a big day in Illinois 48-14 win last season over the Boilermakers, carrying the ball 16 times for 180 yards and two touchdowns.PURDUE GROUND GAMEWhile the Boilermakers have a habit of giving up big rushing yards, theyve found the going tough when they have the ball. Purdue had just 10 yards rushing against Maryland and is averaging 135 yards a game on the ground.---Follow David Mercer on Twitter: (at)davidmercerAP---Online: Associated Press college football coverage: http://collegefootball.ap.orgWholesale NFL Jerseys China . With their top three point guards and Kobe Bryant all sidelined by injury, the Lakers signed Marshall out of the D-League on Friday before their home game against Minnesota. Fake Nike NFL Jerseys . This should be celebrated because it will not always be this way. With the amount of money given to players by their clubs these days, it is a wonder that so many of those teams allow the sport to continue to take away many of their assets so they can play for a different team in the middle of their season. https://www.chinajerseysnfl.us/ .C. -- Glenn Howard needed an extra end to move into the Masters Grand Slam of Curling final. Cheap Nike NFL Jerseys Free Shipping . -- Charline Labonte couldnt have asked for a better homecoming. Cheap NFL Jerseys China . Perhaps Carroll was so prepared for a break because he believes there is very little the Seattle Seahawks need heading into the off-season. "I dont see anything that we need to add. We just have to get better," Carroll said.SAINT PAUL, Minn. -- The fact that the Minnesota Wild have scored just one goal in the last seven periods of hockey at home would be a cause of great concern for most NHL teams. And while theres always a desire for more offense, when youre getting goaltending on the level of what Devan Dubnyk is doing lately, you can keep your head above water.The Wild head into their Saturday night home meeting with the Colorado Avalanche as Dubnyk is coming off his NHL-best fourth shutout of the season -- a dramatic 1-0 win vs. the Boston Bruins on Thursday -- and leading the league in all the statistical categories. So the recent lack of goal support is less concerning for a goalie thats allowed nine goals in his past nine games.Its not my job to score, Dubnyk said after blanking the Bruins for the second time this season. Its my job to work with the guys and defend. I have zero complaints with how the guys have been defending for me and playing. You take pride in that. This is a fun group to be out on the ice with right now in our end. You enjoy that time while theyre playing as well as they are for me. I got no question in here that these guys can put the puck in the net.Although when they played the Avalanche in Denver two weeks ago, it was one of only two times this season that the Wild didnt score, suffering a 1-0 loss when Colorado goalie Calvin Pickard stopped all 32 shots he faced. The Avalanche are just 2-4-1 since then, and aare coming off a loss in Dallas where they fell behind 3-0 early, rallied to pull within a goal, but fell short anyway.dddddddddddd The nearly-complete comeback didnt draw many words of praise from Colorados first-year coach.I loved our guys effort for the final 40 minutes, but unfortunately 40 minutes doesnt get the job done on many occasions, he said. Especially when youre that poor in the first, that was frustrating to watch.The frustration is starting to show for Avalanche star forward Nathan MacKinnon as well, who has just three goals after 16 games. That lack of offense comes after his star turn for Team North America in Septembers World Cup games which had expectations raised among the Colorado faithful.While both teams are battling nagging injuries, the Wild are possibly getting closer to full health, as defenseman Marco Scandella has returned to skating with the team and may be cleared to return to the lineup soon. He has missed the last eight games with a high sprain of his right ankle. The Avalanche were without two offensive stalwarts -- Gabriel Landeskog and Matt Duchene -- in the loss at Dallas, but that did free up ice time for others, and rookie A.J. Greer notched his first NHL point versus the Stars after having been recalled from Colorados AHL team in San Antonio on Thursday. ' ' '