How long have we been waiting for this day? The tip-off of another season of Illinois basketball and fans couldn't be more ready to get going. How long have we been discussing the arrival of this freshman class? It seems like these kids have played for Illinois for years. And if you think you're excited, well I can promise you the feelings they are experiencing are only yours times ten. But let's remember something very important... this is still the upperclassman's team. If we are going to be a top 25 team all year then the juniors are going to have to step up and lead the talented youth. With that being said, here is what I am looking for in tonight's opening game against SIU- Edwardsville.
1. Get the big men their touches. I have no problem with the freshman leading the team in scoring in the pre-season, but the Mike's need to be getting their shots as well. In the exhibition game against Quincy, Davis only put up 4 points in 25 minutes. That sounds like an off night, but he only took 4 shots. Against Missouri Southern State, Tisdale only had 3 points. I expect that this is mostly due to an effort to get the young guys adjusted... let's see what happens when the lights come on tonight.
2. Keep going to the basket. You have to love the aggressiveness of guys guys like Richardson, Paul, and McCamey. Illinois was lucky last year to have two great assist men in McCamey and Frazier, but there was no one to take it to the hole. After work in the off season by McCamey resulting in a slimmer frame, and the addition of the two aforementioned freshman, the Illini are now filled with aggressive guards. In the two exhibition games, Paul went to the line 14 times. I know I've mentioned this before, but that's such a pleasant change! Don't forget that last year's team set a record in the 47 year old Assembly Hall by not shooting a single free throw in a 33-38 loss to Penn State. This offense is at its best when all of the pieces are there and have the big men who can step out, we have the distributor who can get them the ball in McCamey, and not we have the slashing ability to compliment them both. Just remember, Illinois is 88-11 under Weber when they shoot more free throws than the other team.
3. Show more emotion to start the game. In interviews this week, a couple of players mentioned that the lack of emotion was due to them looking forward to the real season... so now let's see the emotion. To their defense, the crowd has been a little bit disappointing this season... and most of them have used the same excuse. So now the real season is here and we have every reason to be excited. We have the second leading rebounder from the Big Ten last year in Davis, the leader in assists for Big Ten play in McCamey, and a whole slew of new guys. I hope we come out swinging against SIU-E tongiht.
4. Use careful shot selection while still staying aggressive. There's a tight line isn't there? This task isn't easy, and it probably won't be worked out until later in the pre-season when we have a better feel of how this team plays in a game. Weber has been preaching shot selection from the sidelines. The offense is pushing the ball this year which is leading to some fast break points, but if that isn't there, run the offense. One player in particular who Weber has been on is Alex Legion. We all know Legion can get hot, but in the Quincy game, he took 10 shots in 13 minutes... That's more than Tisdale, Davis, Jordan, and Semrau combined over 75 minutes.
5.Things to Watch for.
Who will start?
Can the Illini come out with more emotion?
SIU-E plays uptempo. What will the turnover numbers look like?
Will Stan Simpson make his Illini debut?
Can the Illini win the rebounding battle which they lost against Quincy?
Is Illinois going to keep playing around with the zone that they have been working on?
Can Bill Cole keep pushing for playing time?
Prediction
I think the Illini have it easy in this one against a team who would probably lose to the Quincy team which just gave us first half trouble. SIU-E lost to Division 3 Illinois College in an exhibition, so if this is anything less than a 15 point win, I'd call it disappointing. 90-67 Illinois
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