After a timeout, a pass was tipped out of bounds in front of the Illinois bench. The Illini had one last chance with 2.2 seconds left. Williams passed to Powell, but his hurried 3-pointer from the top of the circle was well short and off the mark.
Fans rushed the court after the buzzer sounded, snapping photos, jumping up and down and slapping the Buckeyes on the back.
Dee Brown led the Illini with 13 points, although he was rattled all day by chants of "air ball" after several errant second-half shots. He was 3-of-11 from the field and had only five points over the final 34 minutes. Powell and Head each added 12 points.
Williams, who came in averaging 12.8 points a game, was 1-of-7 from the field and finished with two points.
"They just outplayed us," Brown said. "They deserved it."
No. 2 North Carolina 75,
No. 6 Duke 73
North Carolina trailed by nine points with 3 minutes left, the kind of margin that might have been insurmountable for the Tar Heels in recent years.
"Last year, we would have probably given up," center Sean May said.
For this year's team, it wasn't an option.
Dynamic freshman Marvin Williams converted a three-point play with 17 seconds left to cap an 11-0 game-closing run and give the second-ranked Tar Heels a 75-73 victory over No. 6 Duke on Sunday.
North Carolina (26-3, 14-2), playing without the ill Rashad McCants for the fourth straight game, won its first ACC regular season championship since 1993, the same year of its most recent national title.
"It's been a long journey," said senior Jackie Manuel, one of three players left from an 8-20 team three years ago.
"To be honest, I didn't really know if we could do it. You really appreciate the highs when you've been at the bottom and seen the worst."
May had 26 points and 24 rebounds to record his eighth straight double-double for North Carolina, and his final rebound was the most important. After J.J. Redick missed a long 3-pointer that would have won it for the Blue Devils, teammate Daniel Ewing had a final chance from just inside the arc.
No. Florida 53, No. 3 Kentucky 52
Matt Walsh heaved the ball into the stands, David Lee jumped onto a courtside table and Anthony Roberson ripped off his jersey.
Florida's "Big Three" celebrated their first victory over Kentucky like no other.
"That was four years in the making right there," Lee said.
Roberson scored 21 points, including two free throws with 15 seconds remaining, and the Gators upset the third-ranked Wildcats 53-52 on Sunday.
Florida ended an eight-game losing streak against the Southeastern Conference bully and probably ended the Wildcats' hopes of getting a top seed in the NCAA tournament.
"It was the greatest win of my life," Walsh said.
Roberson, the league's leading scorer, stripped the ball from Patrick Sparks with about 12 seconds to play, trailing 52-51.
Sparks fouled Roberson as he headed the other way. Roberson stepped to the line and calmly made both ends of the 1-and-1.
Kentucky (23-4, 14-2) still had a chance to win it, but Kelenna Azubuike's 3-pointer just before the buzzer bounced off the left side of the rim and into Walsh's hands.
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