NEW ORLEANS -- Illinois went into the Sugar Bowl hoping to prove it was among the nation's elite.

But the Illini could not slow down Louisiana State's offense or shake off its defense in a 47-34 loss on Tuesday night.

"I felt like we came in a little bit tight," Illinois coach Ron Turner said. "Maybe that has to do with not playing in a game of this magnitude."

Illinois, which came into the Sugar Bowl on a seven-game winning streak, fell behind early and trailed 34-7 at halftime. The Illini staged a late rally but never really threatened No. 12 LSU (10-3).

No. 7 Illinois (10-2), coming off their most successful season since 1989, had won its first outright Big Ten title since 1983 and 10 games for only the fourth time in school history.

The Big Ten champion would normally play in the Rose Bowl, but because that is the site of this year's championship game, Illinois accepted its first Sugar Bowl bid.

Turner and his players were miffed that they were not among the teams in the running for the national championship.

"I don't think this set Illinois back," receiver Brandon Lloyd said. "It's not how we wanted things to end, and we accept that as our fault. But we got the program on a national stage, now the key is to put together back-to-back seasons to be considered as a successful program."

LSU quarterback Rohan Davey set Sugar Bowl records for completions and yards, completing 31 of 53 passes for 444 yards and three touchdowns. The Illini also failed to stop the Tigers' rushing game which outgained them 151 to 51.

LSU went up 7-0 in the first quarter, then added three more touchdowns before Illinois finally found the end zone. Kurt Kittner hit Brian Hodges with a 2-yard touchdown pass with 3:47 left in the first half and cut the Tigers' lead to 27-7.

Illinois' defense could not hold LSU, which marched 73 yards to close out the half with a 7-yard touchdown pass from Davey to Robert Royal that put the Tigers up 34-7 at the break.

"We never let down, we just couldn't figure out what they were doing early on and fell behind," Illinois defensive end Terrell Washington said. "But we've given our young guys something to look forward to. They can take the next step."

Kittner won 12 come-from-behind games for Illinois, including five this season. He came up short against LSU, but not from lack of effort. After passing for just one touchdown in the first half, Kittner threw three in the second half.

The Illini began the comeback attempt in the third quarter when Kittner found Brandon Lloyd twice for touchdowns, a 17-yarder and a 10-yarder. But Davey connected with Josh Reed, and Illinois trailed 41-21 at the end of the quarter.

In the fourth quarter, Kittner threw a 17-yard pass to Walter Young in the corner of the end zone to cut LSU's lead to 41-28.

"This is a step we had to take to get on the level we wanted and to get the respect we wanted," Kittner said. "But we came out slow and couldn't take it."

The Illini scored one more time when Michael Clayton fumbled, and Illinois safety Bobby Jackson returned it 26 yards to the Tigers 40. Lloyd took the handoff on the next play, then threw a 40-yard touchdown to Young to make it 47-34.

Kittner, who averaged 272 yards a game this season, was 14-for-35 for 262 yards and four touchdowns. He was intercepted once.

Illinois averaged 32.4 points a game this season and allowed just 21.6.

LSU had 595 yards in total offense, compared to 363 yards for Illinois. The Tigers held the ball for 39 minutes, 16 seconds, while Illinois had it for 20:44.

"These guys are still champions," Turner said. "They are still winners and champions."