NORTH AUGUSTA - University of Illinois coach Bruce Weber was one of the few high-profile college coaches who stuck around for the championship game of the Nike Peach Jam Invitational on Saturday night.

Of course, he had more reason than most other coaches, and he had to have been pleased by what he saw from his seat behind the baseline at Riverview Park.

Illinois-based Mean Streets Express showed off its trio of Windy City talent en route to a dominant 72-52 victory over the SYF Players of Indiana in the tournament's main event.

In front of his future coach, Illini commit Eric Gordon, a top 10-rated national prospect, scored 25 points to lead the undersized Express in a game that got out of hand early.

"It's really big because they say this is the best tournament of the summer," said Gordon, who averaged 24.3 points per game in the 11th annual tournament. "We know we were one of the smallest teams in the country, so we used that to our advantage and took over games."

No. 3 national prospect Derrick Rose added 13 points, and Tim Flowers controlled the paint with 21 rebounds. Both have yet to commit.

"A lot of people don't think a 6-foot-4 player can play with an elite group like this," said Flowers, who took the tournament's rebounding title with 99 boards, 43 more than the second-ranked player. "We showed that we have the best players out here, no matter what."

Weber, who led Illinois to a 26-7 record last season, said the Peach Jam deserves its recognition as one of the summer's premiere showcase events and not just because of performances like those Saturday.

"Talking to the coaches, most say that this definitely one of the best events," Weber said. "Sure, Nike gets their best teams here and the top players, but the venue's great, and the community really seems to embrace it."

Greg Hill hit seven 3-pointers in the second half and finished with 23 points to lead SYF Players, who lost in the championship for the second consecutive year.

Chan Parsons of Team Florida finished as the leading scorer of the event in the elite 17U division with 25.4 points per game.

Reach Steve Sanders at (706) 823-3216 or steven.l.sanders@augustachronicle.com.