The University of Hawai'i men's basketball team played big, but still came up short of an upset against Illinois yesterday.

The Fighting Illini defeated the Rainbow Warriors, 68-58, before a crowd of 14,303 at Assembly Hall in Champaign, Ill.

Hawai'i lost despite out-rebounding Illinois by an astounding 43-14 margin.

"To be able to beat them that bad on the boards and still come out on the losing end of the scoreboard tells you that we didn't get the job done," Hawai'i head coach Bob Nash said. "It was something positive for us to dominate the boards against a good team like Illinois, but we also made way too many turnovers and gave them too many easy points and that's why we came up on the short end."

The 'Bows, who were playing their first road game of the season, dropped to 3-3 and ended a three-game winning streak. Illinois improved to 8-1, and 6-0 all-time against Hawai'i.

The 'Bows committed a season-high 22 turnovers, which led directly to 28 points for the Illini. Meanwhile, Illinois committed just five turnovers, which led directly to only four Hawai'i points.

"It wasn't just the turnovers, it was the way we made those turnovers," Nash said. "They got a lot of uncontested layups and dunks. Those are all easy points. That's the frustrating part, because when we were able to get back and play defense, we played solid defense and got rebounds."

Petras Balocka led Hawai'i with career-highs of 21 points and 10 rebounds.

"I hit my first couple of shots and felt good, and built on it the rest of the game," the 6-foot-8 junior said. "My teammates were doing a good job of getting me the ball."

Roderick Flemings added 14 points and 12 rebounds for his second consecutive double-double. Bill Amis contributed eight rebounds, and Kareem Nitoto had seven assists.

"Usually, if you win the rebounds like that, you win the game," Balocka said. "We just made too many turnovers. I wouldn't say their defense was particularly tough. It was too many errors on our part."

Illinois head coach Bruce Weber said: "To win the game and lose on the boards by that much has to be some kind of record. We pressured so much that our guys started to scramble trying to get a steal that we weren't in great position."

It was the fewest rebounds grabbed by an Illinois team in the 35-year history of Assembly Hall.

Hawai'i jumped to a 7-0 lead to open the game, with Balocka scoring all seven points. But Illinois responded with a 9-0 run, and it stayed close for most of the first half.

The score was tied at 22 with 4:12 remaining in the half, but Illinois went on a 17-2 run and eventually took a 39-26 lead at intermission.

Chester Frazier hit two 3-pointers during the Illinois surge. He finished with 14 points, including 4-of-6 shooting from 3-point range.

"They kept leaving me open," Frazier said. "I've been hitting my jump shot lately and working on it. When I'm open and I get the opportunity to shoot it, I'm going to shoot it."

The Illini led by as many as 21 in the second half, but the 'Bows out-scored Illinois 20-9 in the game's final eight minutes.

"We played hard, we just had too many mental errors, and you can't do that against a team of that caliber," Nash said. "I thought our post guys had a good game, with Petras and Rod getting double-doubles. Right now, we need our guards to play a little better and cut down on the turnovers."

Oddsmakers had Hawai'i listed as an underdog by anywhere from 21 to 24 points.

"We don't take any pleasure in losing," Nash said. "But if we can build off of this game, I think we can get better as this season goes along."

The announced attendance of 14,303 was the largest for a Hawai'i game since the 2002 NCAA Tournament, when 19,951 watched the 'Bows play Xavier at Dallas.

The last regular-season game to draw more was in 1999, when the 'Bows played in front of 14,665 at Utah.

"It was a big-time environment," Nash said. "It definitely gave us a good experience that we hope will help us as we travel in the (Western Athletic Conference)."

Balocka added: "We don't like that we lost this game, but I think it will still help our confidence. It was a hostile place, a great crowd. We'll be ready for anything now."

The 'Bows are scheduled to return to Honolulu today. Their next game is Saturday against Eastern Washington at the Stan Sheriff Center.