ESPN Men's Basketball

Illinois began last season with high expectations, a national ranking, and a 10-1 start that seemed to signal that it might have been its year in the Big 10. Things didn't work out that way, as the Illini played unevenly in conference games and endured frustrations with senior Demetri McCamey along with the eventual departure of McDonald's All-American Jereme Richmond.

This preseason, the team is trying to wash away what happened last season and starting off by openly discussing what happened. Center Meyers Leonard, coming off his freshman season and a summer spent with the USA Under-19 team in Latvia, even pointed the finger at himself, according to ESPN Chicago.

Leonard's first season didn't go as he hoped on the court, and he admitted he often allowed his anger to boil over.

"I got frustrated last year some with myself, some with the coaches," Leonard said on Tuesday. "I would talk back. I was pretty immature to be honest."

From Gatehouse News Service:

"It trickles down a lot," junior guard D.J. Richardson said Tuesday. "It messes up the team. We had problems last year. We were still able to win games. We were inconsistent.

"You couldn't really sense it until you go back and look at it at the end of the season. We were trying to win games. At the end of the season, that’s when you noticed how many problems you really had."

Consider those comments good news for Illinois coach Bruce Weber since the first step to correcting a problem is recognizing there was one in the first place and not shying away from it.

Illinois has plenty of talent returning in Leonard, Richardson and guard Brandon Paul. The 7-foot Leonard compiled a 63 percent shooting percentage in nine games in Latvia and was under the watchful eye of Weber during the team's training camp in Colorado Springs as the coach was on the USA selection committee.

Now it'll be up to Weber to rebuild a team with more of a winning attitude. He'll get a head start on it as the Illini head to Italy in August for a preseason tour and some much-needed bonding time.

Thus far, the signs have been positive.

"I think this whole group is coachable," Weber told ESPN Chicago. "I think the other guys ... it was misconstrued they weren't coachable. I think they had limitations. They could only do so much with strength and physicality.

"I think maybe that extra discipline, that extra toughness, that extra work ethic, maybe they learn from the others. I tell them all the time to learn from past experiences, from others' experiences, their failures, so you can have success."

TULSA, Okla. -- Thoughts on Kansas' 73-59 win over Illinois:

Overview: The Northern Iowa loss is now dead. Top-seeded Kansas got past the ghost of its shocking round-of-32 upset loss last year by beating stubborn Illinois at the same point in this tournament. The No. 9 seed Illini hung in the game most of the way but could not handle the inside strength of the Jayhawks.

Turning point: Illinois was down just five, 56-51, with less than six minutes remaining. That's when Kansas reeled off 10 straight points to get the game under control.

Key player: Let's go with two -- the usual two for Kansas. Twins Marcus and Markieff Morris combined for 41 points and 25 rebounds, punishing the slender Illini in the paint.

Key stat: Illinois coach Bruce Weber said his team needed another stellar game from point guard Demetri McCamey, and he could not deliver. Although the senior did have seven assists -- the Illini had been 15-0 this season when he reached that number -- he couldn't score against the Kansas guards. The Illini's leading scorer had just six points on 2-of-9 shooting.

Miscellaneous: Illinois did not play Jereme Richmond, who missed his second game for a violation of athletic department rules. ... KU coach Bill Self got the victory over his successor, Weber, who famously had a mock funeral for Self to help everyone at Illinois get over his departure to Kansas eight years ago.

What's next: Kansas' primrose path toward Houston next encounters 12th-seeded Richmond in San Antonio. It's possible that the Jayhawks will not face a team seeded better than ninth until the Final Four, if they keep winning.

TULSA, Okla. -- This has become the Bill Self Subregional.

The Kansas coach is everywhere or, more accurately, his past is everywhere.

He’s an Oklahoma native and Oklahoma State alum whose first two head-coaching jobs were in this city, at Oral Roberts and Tulsa. Then he went to Illinois, where he succeeded Lon Kruger and preceded Bruce Weber.

Kruger played Weber Friday for the right to face Self Sunday. Weber won, which pits Self and Kansas against Weber and Illinois. And that means the subject of the mock funeral Weber held for Self early in his Illinois tenure -- in an effort to get players and fans alike to quit talking about the departed coach -- came up Saturday.

This also marks the second straight year that Self has faced an underdog that defeated UNLV to get to the Jayhawks. Last year it was Northern Iowa, and you know how that turned out -- also in a game played in Oklahoma.

But despite all the Self connections, that’s only half the matchup here. And the potential exists for two excellent games at the BOK Center Sunday night.

No. 5 seed Arizona (28-7) vs. No. 4 seed Texas (28-7), 6:10 p.m. ET (TNT)

What to watch: Can the Wildcats’ efficient offense produce against the Longhorns’ relentless defense? Arizona shoots 51.6 percent from two-point range and 39.6 percent from 3. Texas allows opponents to shoot only 42 percent and 28.7 percent, respectively. Whoever gets the advantage in that strength-on-strength matchup will probably win the game.

Who to watch: Arizona forward Derrick Williams against Texas’ Tristan Thompson. Williams is the guy who makes Arizona go, an All-American who has cranked his play up even higher -- through four postseason games he is averaging 22 points and 8.5 rebounds. Williams also had the spectacular blocked shot that clinched the game against Memphis on Friday -- but Thompson is the guy who swats shots in bunches. The freshman rejected a career-high seven of them against Oakland, and he’s likely to get the first defensive call against Williams.

Why to watch: Arizona has been must-see TV its past two games, winning one (Memphis) and losing one (Washington in the Pac-10 tournament final) at the very end. Texas has at times looked like the best team in the nation, including for about 30 minutes against Oakland on Friday. And there will be plenty of future NBA players on the floor, whenever they decide to turn pro.

What they’re saying: “I’m coming back next year. I’ve already signed up for summer classes.” -- Texas’ Thompson, who projects as a lottery pick but delivered that news in the Longhorns locker room Saturday. Now we’ll wait and see whether he really means it.

“He’s not going to like this, but he took a lot of shots. That’s just his game. Any kind of shot is a good shot for him.” -- Williams on former AAU teammate Jordan Hamilton, volume-shooting forward for Texas.

“It’s overwhelming as a coach that’s getting ready to play against Texas to watch him offensive rebound. … He might be the nation’s best offensive rebounder.” -- Arizona coach Sean Miller on Thompson.

Of note: Both schools have demonstrated impressive recruiting reach. Arizona has two players from New York and one from St. Louis in its probable starting lineup, plus a pair of Californians. Texas starts one Texan, Gary Johnson, but otherwise fills out its first five with two Canadians, a Turk and a Californian.

No. 9 seed Illinois (20-13) vs. No. 1 seed Kansas (33-2), 8:40 p.m. ET (TNT)

What to watch: Last year at this stage, the top-seeded Jayhawks felt the pressure and played tightly against underdog Northern Iowa in a shocking loss. Self said he wants this year’s team to relax and enjoy the NCAA experience, but acknowledged that he thought Kansas was again tight for a half against Boston University on Friday. Illinois, meanwhile, should be afforded the chance to play with a relaxed attitude. The seasoned Illini are significant underdogs with nothing to lose, and a victory would redeem what has been a disappointing season. Kansas has the better team, but also the greater pressure.

Who to watch: Illinois point guard Demetri McCamey. Leading his team in both scoring (14.9 points per game) and assists (6.1), he’s vital to the Illini’s chances. Especially his distributing. They’re 15-0 this year when McCamey dishes out seven or more assists. For Kansas, the focal point of Self’s pound-it-in offensive approach is the Morris twins, Marcus and Markieff. They’ll take their muscular physiques and all-court games up against an Illinois front line that has an abundance of length but not the same amount of girth.

Why to watch: After what happened last year to KU in the round of 32, miss this game at your peril. But also because Illinois, if it plays the way it did Friday against UNLV, could have a legitimate chance to win.

What they’re saying: “Last year we were kind of No. 1 the whole season, and everyone had us picked as the favorite. I don’t know if that was more of a burden to us than a good thing. We’re not trying to hold onto anything this year. We don’t have anything to hold onto.” -- Kansas guard Tyrel Reed, on the (slightly) lesser pressure on the Jayhawks this season.

“When he plays and plays well, we’re a top team in the country. We can compete with anybody.” -- Weber on McCamey

“I wouldn’t say he’s one of my best friends, but we have a cordial relationship.” -- Weber on Self.

“I have total respect for him as a coach. … But we’re not close. We don’t talk.” -- Self on Weber.

Of note: One of the things that makes Kansas so hard to cover is the shooting ability of its guards. If defenses distort themselves too much to collapse on the Morris twins inside, they risk leaving Reed, Brady Morningstar and Tyshawn Taylor (among others) open on the perimeter. And lately, that’s been a bad trade-off. In KU's past two games, the Big 12 title game against Texas and the NCAA opener against BU, the Reed-Morningstar-Taylor trio has made 12 of 25 3-point shots. ... Weber had no update on the status of swingman Jereme Richmond, who was suspended for the UNLV game for what the coach termed a violation of "athletic department team rules." Weber said the school will discuss Richmond's status privately Saturday and make an announcement on his status Sunday.

TULSA, Okla. -- Better late than never, the Illinois team we thought we’d see this season showed up.

In force.

It’s been a disappointing slog of a season for the Illini, which began the year in the AP top 15 and ended it sliding close to the 68-team bubble. But with the season on the line Friday night against No. 8 seed UNLV, No. 9 seed Illinois played a spectacular game in a 73-62 victory.

“We’d been inconsistent,” coach Bruce Weber said. “But tonight we were definitely consistent, played at a high level.”

This is how high: Illinois shot 60 percent from the field, 54 percent from 3-point range, and got every shot it wanted thanks to a half-hearted UNLV defense. The final score was laughably deceptive, with a 13-2 closing run by UNLV making it look much closer than reality. Illinois led by 22 at halftime and was never threatened thereafter.

Now we’ll see whether the Illini can put together back-to-back stellar performances.

Illinois hasn’t won two straight games since early January. That doesn’t exactly engender confidence that this team is ready to take down No. 1 seed Kansas on Sunday in the round of 32, but there was plenty of optimism in the Illini locker room Friday night.

“It’s going to be a tough game, but they’re beatable,” said forward Mike Davis, who tore up the Runnin’ Rebels for 22 points and 10 rebounds.

The Illini can harbor optimism for a couple of reasons. One, they’ve played a rigorous schedule -- 18 games against teams in the NCAA tourney field, eight of them against teams with top-four tourney seeds. Two, they’ve come close to having a much better record than their current 20-13 -- they’re 1-8 in games decided by five points or fewer, or in overtime. Finish half of those games correctly, and Illinois is maybe a 5-seed.

But there’s no re-doing what’s already done. Instead, there is simply the chance to make good at the most important time of the year.

“It’s not what you do at the beginning of the year …” said guard Demetri McCamey. “It’s about what you do now. Everybody forgets about what you did at the beginning of the season or the Big Ten season if you go out and win in March.”

It’s been a long time since Illinois won in March. Since 2006, in terms of the NCAA tournament. For a team with four senior starters, getting at least one career Big Dance victory was a major incentive.

“Coming in, we just said we’re going to go as hard as we can,” Davis said. “If we lose and don’t play as hard as we can, I can’t live with that for the rest of my life.”

The one Illinois player who is living with regret right now is freshman swingman Jereme Richmond. One of the team’s top seven players, Richmond did not play Friday night for what Weber termed “a violation of athletic department team rules, nothing more than that.” Weber was non-committal when asked whether Richmond would play Sunday against the Jayhawks.

“It’s something we’ll talk about,” he said.

Friday night, there was finally something good to talk about with this Illinois basketball team. We’ll see how long the Illini can keep the positive vibes flowing.

TULSA, Okla. -- Thoughts on Illinois' 73-62 win over UNLV:

Turning point: From a 5-5 tie, Illinois went on a 24-9 run and was never again threatened.

Key player: Illini forward Mike Davis had 22 points and 10 rebounds, hitting an array of open jump shots from inside the arc and UNLV defenders had a difficult time locating him.

Key stat: Illinois shot 60 percent from the field and UNLV 39 percent. That's how you get a blowout.

Miscellaneous: UNLV observers thought this would be a problematic matchup, and they were right. Vegas was unable to get good 3-point looks, and its offense isn't very efficient without good perimeter play. ... Meanwhile, Illinois ran its offense crisply and got just about every conceivable shot it wanted. ... On-again, off-again senior guard Demetri McCamey had a big night for the Illini with 17 points and seven assists.

What's next: Illinois will take on No. 1 seed Kansas on Sunday. UNLV will fly home to regroup.

TULSA, Okla. -- A brief breakdown of the two night games here Friday

No. 1 seed Kansas (32-2) vs. No. 15 seed Boston (21-13), 6:50 p.m. ET (TBS)

What to watch: Are the Jayhawks ready to take care of business? The No. 1 seed in the Southwest was handed a huge potential gift Thursday when the 4 and 5 seeds in the region, Louisville and Vanderbilt, both lost. That means Kansas will face either a No. 12 (Richmond) or a No. 13 (Morehead State) in the Sweet Sixteen … IF it gets there. Last year, as the overall No. 1 seed in the tourney, the Jayhawks were shocked by Northern Iowa in the second round, and there have been other early NCAA pratfalls in Bill Self’s time in Lawrence. Odds of a loss Friday to Boston U. are astronomical, so the question is whether or not Kansas passes the “look test” as a title contender against the Terriers.

Who to watch: The Morris twins are where it starts for the Jayhawks. Marcus and Markieff combine for 31 points and 15 rebounds and will be a major challenge for a Boston front line that is not overly long. The Terriers counter with America East Player of the Year John Holland, a 6-5 combo player who averages 19.2 points and 5.9 rebounds. Holland already has set the school record for points in a season and is No. 2 in school history in scoring.

Why to watch: If history is made and Boston becomes the first No. 16 seed to beat a No. 1, you’ll hate yourself if you miss it.

What they’re saying: Kansas guard Mario Little, on Self putting copies of the Sports Illustrated cover of Northern Iowa hero Ali Farokhmanesh in every locker: “Kind of got flashbacks. Couple of guys took the clippings and threw it in the garbage. I don’t think anybody laughed, but it brought back memories.” … Boston coach Pat Chambers, a former assistant at Villanova, where he saw the Morris twins play a lot growing up in Philadelphia: “I just saw them in the hallway and they gave me big hugs, so it was good to see them. They got bigger.” … Self, on his all-over-the-board tourney history: “If anybody has lived out all ends of the spectrum, we probably have, because we lost in the first round a couple times and we’ve cut down the nets. I don’t know if there are too many people that can say they’ve done all those things. So our guys understand that one or two possessions is the difference in advancing or going home.”

Of note: If you’re into omens, note that Kansas’ two recent first-round flameouts came against schools with the initials B.U. -- Bucknell and Bradley. Now comes Boston U. … If the Terriers are somehow in contention late, they should have confidence going to the foul line. They’ve made 73 percent of their free throws in the final five minutes plus overtime this year, and 81 percent in the final one plus plus overtime. … Boston’s only two NCAA tourney victories came in 1959.

No. 8 seed UNLV (19-13) vs. No. 9 seed Illinois (24-8), 9:20 p.m. ET (TBS)

What to watch: Who rules at the 3-point arc, the Vegas offense or the Illini defense? UNLV predicates its offense on driving and kicking the ball to open shooters. The Rebels have four players capable of shooting the 3 – but the rangy Illinois defenders have done a solid job this year covering the perimeter. Illini opponents have made just 30.5 percent of their 3-point shots. But it may be more complicated than the stats indicate; Illinois is susceptible to quickness, so it must concern itself with UNLV’s drivers and then try to recover to the shooters.

Who to watch: A pair of veteran guards who have had roller-coaster seasons. UNLV is led by Tre'von Willis, whose scoring and shooting percentages have dipped from last year. but who remains the most important Rebel. Illinois is led by Demetri McCamey, who went from first-team all-Big Ten as a junior to third team as a senior but nevertheless dictates the offense as the team’s leading scorer (14.8 ppg) and distributor (6.1 apg).

Why to watch: To see which disappointing team can help salvage its season with a first-round NCAA win. With seven experienced players back at UNLV and after a 9-0 start, more was expected of the Rebels than a distant third-place finish in the Mountain West Conference. The same can be said for Illinois, which starts four seniors and was ranked as high as No. 12 nationally in December. One fan base will feel a bit better Friday night, while the other will be left to ruminate on a season that got away.

What they’re saying: Illinois coach Bruce Weber: “We’re good enough. We’ve just got to find that new life and hope some balls bounce our way a little bit. Maybe March will be good to us.” … Vegas’ Anthony Marshall, on trying to bring the program back to prominence: “I think right now is a big platform for us to make a national statement.” … Illinois senior Mike Davis, on a sense of urgency: “It’s do or die. It’s our last game if we lose.”

Of note: UNLV is 2-7 against teams in the tournament, while Illinois is 8-10. … Illinois has lost its past four games away from home, while UNLV has won its past four. … They might as well name this place Reunion Arena for Illinois. Vegas coach Lon Kruger is a former coach of the Illini, and so is Bill Self. His Kansas Jayhawks could be next up for Illinois if both teams win Friday.

INDIANAPOLIS -- Three things I can't wait to see in Northwestern-Ohio State:

• Can Michael Thompson continue his roll? The spunky little Northwestern guard set a Big Ten tournament scoring record with 35 points against Minnesota Thursday. Theoretically, he'll be facing a tougher defense against the Buckeyes, so it will be difficult for a 5-foot-10 guard to dominate a game. But Thursday he very much looked the part of a senior who is driving to extend his career as long as possible, so we'll see what carries over to Friday.
• Can Jon Diebler continue his roll? The Ohio State senior sharpshooter has been ridiculous of late, making 17 of 20 3-point shots in the Buckeyes' last two games. Four words for Northwestern: get a hand up. And even that might not be enough.
• Can Northwestern shock the world? You may not remember, but the Wildcats just about had Ohio State beaten in Evanston in late January before letting it get away. Northwestern had the ball in a tie game in the last 20 seconds before turning it over, then fouling Jared Sullinger with three seconds remaining. He made one free throw for the victory. With that as a backdrop, Northwestern doesn't go into this game lacking hope the way most of us probably think it should.

Three things I can't wait to see in Michigan-Illinois

• Can the Wolverines sew up a bid? Actually, I think they probably already have, but with fellow bubble-dwellers such as Colorado, Boston College and Georgia winning, Michigan would enhance its peace of mind with a victory today. Nobody wants to spend all day Sunday dithering about whether they're playing in the Big Dance or the NIT.
• Does Illinois have a run in it? The likelihood of the Illini making a major statement in this tournament seems remote, because they haven't won consecutive games since early January. But even though they're seemingly in the NCAA tournament, there needs to be some reason for Illinois fans to expect something noteworthy next week. Time to give them some hope.
• Which guard shines brighter, Tim Hardaway Jr. or Demetri McCamey? Hardaway has been on fire lately, averaging more than 20 points per game in his last six -- and his famous father is in Indy to watch him this weekend. As for McCamey, the senior for Illinois has had a fairly disappointing senior season but has shot a higher percentage in the last four games -- he's 27-of-49 from the field in that span. In fact, McCamey's 18 points in Illinois' two-point victory last month triggered his return to form.

Three things I can't wait to see in Michigan State-Purdue

• Can the Spartans walk, much less play? Point guard Kalin Lucas had an ice pack on his right ankle Thursday night after re-injuring it against Iowa. Power forward Delvon Roe had ice on his chronically problematic right knee, and playing back-to-back games will be tough for him. The Spartans don't have the bodies to endure a lot of injuries, especially in the backcourt.
• Does Purdue bounce back? The Boilermakers have had a great season, but they ended the regular schedule with a brutal two-point loss at Iowa. A lot of people, including the NCAA selection committee, will be watching to see if that was a blip or the beginning of a negative trend. Getting a No. 2 seed could depend on the showing today.
• How Purdue-intensive is the crowd? With Indiana having a terrible year and already being eliminated from the tournament, will Conseco Fieldhouse be an ocean of old gold and black? It will be tough to rattle veteran Michigan State, but having the fans behind you never hurts.

Three things I can't wait to see in Penn State-Wisconsin

• Will Talor Battle ever sit down? The Nittany Lions point guard has played 238 of a possible 240 minutes in his last six games, including the full 40 Thursday night against Indiana. It will be tough to maintain that pace in Indy against a fresh Badgers team.
• Will Jordan Taylor ever get sloppy with the ball? The Badgers point guard leads the nation in assist-to-turnover margin, and his numbers in that area have only gotten better in recent weeks. He has 24 assists and three turnovers in his last five games.
• Can Penn State upset Wisconsin again? The Nittany Lions beat the Badgers in State College in late January and split the season series. Given their motivation level to keep winning and get into the NCAA tournament, expect the best that Penn State can bring to the table.

Five observations from the week that was:

1. Let’s call the whole No. 1 debate off. Thanks to Purdue’s collective toughness and E'Twaun Moore’s singular brilliance, Ohio State lost for the second time in eight days Sunday. But the Buckeyes weren’t the only likely No. 1 seed to lose this week, or even this weekend. On Saturday, Texas fell at Nebraska and Pittsburgh fell at St. John’s ... all of which was preceded by Kansas’ loss at Kansas State on Big Monday. In other words, the best four teams in the nation -- or what we thought were the best four teams in the nation -- all lost this week.

Naturally, this is likely to spark some discussion both before and after the polls are released Monday afternoon. Last week, yours truly spent too much time debating the various merits of the AP and coaches’ polls, but that’s because those polls deserved to be debated. (I didn’t think Kansas was a clear No. 1 over Ohio State and Texas, and I hate the fact that pollsters just automatically move a team up or down based on who lost most recently. Ugh.) This week? Try as you might, it’s pretty tough to argue that any of the top six teams in the nation -- OSU, Kansas, Texas, Duke, Pittsburgh, San Diego State -- are obviously better or more deserving of the current No. 1 ranking than any of the others.

Pick your cliche: “parity,” “no great teams,” whatever you prefer. Whatever overriding theme you think produces this top-tier equality, let’s just all agree that we’re not going to know which team is best -- or whether a “great team” does in fact exist this season -- until the Final Four is done and decided. In the meantime, we can probably find other stuff to argue about, yes?

2. Derrick Williams deserves more player of the year love. This is not a new thing. Williams has been touted here and elsewhere for his incredible efficiency since, oh, December. But it remains true, especially after the sophomore’s primetime coming-out party in Arizona’s huge win over Washington on Saturday. Williams scored 26 points and grabbed 11 rebounds, but it was his monstrous, out-of-nowhere block in the closing seconds that effectively sealed the win for the Wildcats. He wasn’t perfect -- he had seven turnovers, after all -- but all in all, Williams proved why efficiency-minded folks have been so high on him for months, and why NBA GMs are going to be drooling if they have the chance to select him this summer.

3. The Missouri Valley Conference is a one-bid league. We learned this Friday and Saturday, when the MVC went 3-7 in some crucial (and some not-so-crucial) BracketBusters matchups. Losers included the MVC’s top six teams – one-time at-large hopefuls such as Wichita State, Missouri State, Northern Iowa were all among the losers. Those losses at the top -- especially for the Shockers and Bears -- will almost certainly doom the Missouri Valley to one-bid status when the committee sits down to select and seed the field in March.

4. Michigan State could make a run. OK, OK, I know: We do this every year. But no season in recent Tom Izzo vintage has been quite the roller coaster this season has been, and given where the Spartans were two weeks ago -- getting blown out at Iowa and never competing at Wisconsin -- it’s hard to argue this team hasn’t turned some sort of corner. Michigan State has won two of its past three, including nice home wins over Illinois and Penn State, and the loss in that stretch was a close, hard-fought defeat to Ohio State in Columbus. After that game, Izzo told the media the Spartans “ain’t dead yet.” A few weeks ago, we wouldn’t have believed him. Now? We’ve learned to temper our expectations -- this team will never justify its No. 2 preseason ranking, and it probably isn’t going to the Final Four -- but it’s hard to disagree about there still being some life left.

5. Illinois still hasn’t figured it all out. The Fighting Illini were again underwhelming in the aforementioned loss to Michigan State on Saturday, scoring .93 points per possession thanks to some substandard shooting, lack of interior rebounding and an inability to get to the free throw line against MSU’s usually physical defense. In other words, Illinois lacked toughness, which has been one of Bruce Weber’s criticisms of this team throughout its struggles in January and February. The Illini have lost seven of their past 11, and if it wasn’t for a 54-52 squeaker over Michigan at home Wednesday night, that tally would look even worse. (And Illinois would be on the bubble.) As it is, the Illini are almost certainly going to get in the tournament, but if they want to go far, they’ll need to get more from their frontcourt. The good news is Demetri McCamey -- who faced his own criticism from Weber this week for letting “outside influences” distract him -- seems to have found his shot again. If Illinois wants to turn all that talent into something resembling what most of us expected, it will have to hope McCamey can put it all together sometime soon. If not, this team (like so many of the Big Ten’s middle-pack) may be doomed to disappoint. In many ways, it already has.

In the end, Illinois survived. Michigan missed two last-second shots, including Stu Douglass's desperation heave, and the Illini escaped with an ugly 54-52 win in Champaign, Ill. It wasn't an inconsequential victory: With a loss, Illinois would have faced serious questions about its at-large status for the first time this season, and the sturm and drang among restless and disappointed Illinois fans would have reached a fever pitch.

And if merely watching such a game sounds intense, imagine being one of the orange-and-blue-clad boys on the floor. Or, for that matter, Bruce Weber. From the Chicago Tribune's Chris Hine:

"I just thought if we lose this one, then you're going to die," Illinois coach Bruce Weber said he thought then. [...] "You just kept watching the clock," Weber said. [...]

Said senior Mike Davis: "I was like, 'No!' I was just hoping they missed." [...]

"You could feel the pressure tonight," Weber said. "Even the crowd, it just seemed like the air was thick."

That's not at all surprising. Illinois fans expect a lot from their basketball team in any year, but this one has been especially frustrating. It's not as if Illinois doesn't have talent. It's not like Weber's team is merely rebuilding. No, this team entered the season with designs on a Big Ten title and a deep tournament run, and it has at times displayed the talent to do so.

Lately, though, it's been easy to forget this team is the same one that nearly beat No. 2 Texas on a neutral floor Nov. 18. (Update: Yours truly forgot to include that all-important "nearly" in an early version of this post.) That result seemed to promise big things for this team. If anything, the Illini have regressed since then, and a near-loss to Michigan at home doesn't exactly portend a sudden revival in downstate Illinois. Weber has criticized his players for a lack of toughness; he's also criticized McCamey for allowing "outside influences" to interfere with his play.

But none of this is new; by now, most college hoops fans are well aware of the Illini's struggles. (After all, I just wrote about all this Tuesday.) No, the question isn't whether the Illini are struggling. It's whether those struggles have caused the same level of consternation in athletic director Ron Guenther's office as it has among the message board die-hards.

That answer? It all depends on whom you blame. Again, from Chris Hine:

As for the basketball program, which could miss the NCAA tournament for the third time in four seasons, Guenther said he understood the frustration of the fans.

"We have a senior class that probably hasn't played to their potential," Guenther said.

That's a pretty blatant indictment, but it's not off-base. Besides McCamey, senior forward Mike Tisdale and Mike Davis have been the subjects of criticism among Illinois fans -- if you need proof, check this post's comments in, oh, 15 minutes -- for most of this season and much of their careers. So if Guenther thinks the seniors share much of the blame, what does that say about Weber's job status?

Guenther added that if a staff change was necessary to "make this thing click," that decision would come from Weber and not above him.

"The question will be, with (him and me) as we talk about it. You can't be loyal to a fault, but everything from front to back has to be overturned," Guenther said. "So if he thought that there had to be a staff change to make this thing click, I believe Bruce will do that."

There are a variety of ways to interpret that statement, but at the risk of over-parsing a potentially innocuous quote -- maybe Guenther just means Illinois needs a new assistant coach, or new trainers, or whatever -- let's just say this: It would be pretty shocking to see Weber leave the Illini anytime soon. For one, it's clear Guenther lays much of the blame at the feet of this year's seniors. But Weber has also made huge strides in recruiting in recent years. Illinois has landed two straight heralded classes, both of which have included Illinois Mr. Basketball honorees (Brandon Paul and Jereme Richmond), and the 2011 class is again full of elite Chicago-based talent. Even if there are concerns about Weber's coaching and player development, Illinois might hesitate to risk losing out on that sort of recruiting momentum.

Bottom line: No, this has not been Weber's best season. No, the Illini aren't playing to their potential. But as bad as things have seemed, this team is still going to make the NCAA tournament, and if your team is still a likely tournament inclusion despite massive inconsistency, uneven play and increasing restlessness from a frustrated fan base ... then your program is still in pretty decent shape.

Bruce Weber is not having his finest season at Illinois. It's not just that the Illini are mediocre. It's that the Illini are mediocre despite having one of the most talented teams in the Big Ten, a team stocked with top-level recruits, three senior starters, a coterie of accurate outside shooters and a point guard who has at various times in his career looked like the best guard -- and arguably the best player -- in the country.

That point guard is Demetri McCamey. As you probably know, McCamey's senior season has not lived up to advance billing, especially during Big Ten play. The guard's overall season averages -- 14.4 points and 6.5 assists per game -- look solid, but they belie McCamey's ugly two-point field goal percentage (41.8 percent; by contrast, McCamey is shooting 47.2 percent from 3) and a recent midseason disappearing act. Since Jan. 11, Illinois has lost six of nine Big Ten games. In that span, McCamey has posted four single-digit scoring performances and a flurry of ugly shooting nights, including the following: 3-of-8, 3-of-13, 4-of-11, 2-of-11, 2-of-11, 2-of-9, 1-of-10. (His assist totals have also plummeted; McCamey hasn't posted most than five assists in any game since Jan. 18.)

That most recent effort -- four points on 1-of-10 from the field in a home loss to Purdue -- came just three days after Illinois had seemed to right its ship with a solid win at Minnesota. That's when Bruce Weber benched McCamey, freshman Jereme Richmond and senior forward Mike Tisdale for the start of the game in one of those last-ditch, "Well, I've got to try something!" coaching moves you see desperate coaches use every now and again. And it seemed to work! McCamey played well, Illinois got the win, and whatever it was that had been bothering this team for weeks seemed to be a thing of the past.

Then Purdue came to town, Illinois lost thanks to a meandering, weakly played second half, and the Illini were suddenly right back to square one.

What's the cause of all this? What mysterious factors have caused a seemingly talented team -- and its seemingly elite point guard -- to be so uneven on the court? Is it chemistry? Coaching? Playing style? Something else? As reported by ESPN Chicago's Scott Powers, in an interview Friday on ESPN 1000 (two days before the Purdue loss), Weber took a crack at his own version of an answer:

"It's disappointing, some of it is Demetri, obviously," Weber said Friday on "The Waddle & Silvy Show" on ESPN 1000. "But the outside influences, just kill kids, I'm just telling you. I feel bad. He was playing so well, and all of a sudden, the runners, the agents, the third-party people, they're all telling him he's an all-American and this and that.

"Then, he stopped coming in to work hard and spend extra time on his shot and all the stuff you need to do. Here, I'm saying give a five-month commitment, put more time in, and they're telling him how great he is. It just screws up kids. It's not just me. If you talk to our the football coaches, you can talk to other coaches in the Big Ten, it's one of the worst things we have to deal with in college basketball is the outside influences, the third parties, the agents, the runners, whatever. It's that honestly.

[...] "He's a kid," Weber said. "If you're a kid, would you rather hear Coach Weber say 'come in and work harder' or 'you're great?'"

Later in the interview, Weber extended that philosophy to his whole team, saying the Illini hadn't been playing hard because "outside influences" started to infect individual players with concerns over playing time, minutes, exposure and the like.

Weber's right: This is not a problem unique to the Illini, nor is it a problem that is easily solved from a coaching perspective. "Outside influences," like that weird ant parasite from "Planet Earth," have a way of insinuating themselves into the fabric of successful teams, and once they're there they're very hard to expel.

Still, as much as you might feel for Weber -- battling all these sexy "outside influences" with the unappetizing alternatives of "commitment" and "hard work" and "more hours in the gym," which is not a fair fight -- at some point, the coach bears the brunt of the blame here. Ultimately, it's the program's job to make sure its players are collectively focused. Ultimately, it's the coach's job to make sure his program is adequately equipped for that effort. There's an old-fashioned term for failing in this regard. It's called "losing your team." Has Weber lost his?

We'll find out the rest of the way. No, it isn't the Big Ten contender we thought it could be; the Illini don't have the interior strength they need to compete with big, athletic frontcourts, and no level of emotional commitment is going to change that. (Illinois also continues to be a victim of poor shot selection; based on its percentages, it would behoove this team to take a few more 3s, which is something we've been saying since the loss to UIC.)

Still, this team is -- or at least should be -- too talented to keep this up. Can Weber wrest control of his squad back from the nefarious outside influences in time for a late-season push? Or is it already too late? If so, how much blame will he face for this season's disappointments? How restless will the natives -- who have vacillated on Weber throughout his up-and-down tenure at Illinois -- become then?

Illinois might not be the most entertaining bunch to watch this season, but you can't fault it for lacking intrigue. This remains a fascinating team. And not always for the right reasons.

Welcome to Saturday. Or, at least for college hoops fans, Saturday as it should be. There's no baseball, college football, NFL playoffs, or any other popular-but-inferior (kidding!) sport to distract the casual fan from the hoopy goodness you and I have been enjoying for two months now. No, it's just college hoops, and what better way to welcome in the sports tourist than with two huge conference games featuring two ranked league contenders apiece?

Yes, I'm talking Villanova-Syracuse and Ohio State-Illinois, both of which deserve the recap treatment. So, without further ado:

No. 7 Villanova 83, No. 3 Syracuse 72: Well, this was a surprise.

It's not so much that Villanova's double-digit win was surprising in and of itself, though it was; at this point, any double-digit win at the Carrier Dome must be greeted with some measure of shock. Syracuse entered the game having lost exactly five home games in the past two and a half seasons, the last coming Feb. 14, 2010, when Louisville legitimately shocked Jim Boeheim's team in Syracuse. The Orangemen haven't lost often in recent seasons, and they certainly haven't suffered many of those losses at home.

But more surprising than the win itself was the way Villanova got it. Jay Wright's team didn't just solve Syracuse's famed 2-3 zone. The Wildcats shredded it. The Cuse entered Saturday's top 10 matchup with the stingiest zone in the Big East, one that was allowing a mere .95 points per possession to conference opponents. Villanova scored 1.58 points per trip on offense Saturday afternoon (per scacchoops.com). That's a crazy number for any game -- Villanova came into Saturday averaging 1.13 points per trip against Big East foes -- let alone one against this rangy, athletic Boeheim zone.

With the exception of some late press-break trouble and a 9-0 Syracuse run in the closing minutes, believe it or not, this Villanova team made Syracuse's elite defense look downright pedestrian. Impressed? Of course. Surprised? That too. A few more assorted thoughts follow:

• Syracuse's zone might have been shredded, but the Orange didn't play poorly on the offensive end. On a tempo-free basis -- Boeheim's team scored 1.39 ppp Saturday -- they were downright excellent. What was the difference? For one, Villanova simply made more shots. The Wildcats shot 50 percent from the field, including an 11-of-24 mark from beyond the arc. Syracuse, by contrast, was 43 percent from the field overall and made only 10 of its 26 tries from 3.
• And, as they so often do, free throws changed the game. Villanova got to the foul line at a much higher rate (48.0 percent to Syracuse's 19.4), which is an advantage in and of itself. But when you make 22 of 24 from the foul line, as Nova did, that advantage is exponential and difficult to overcome. (It should be noted that a chunk of those free throw attempts came late in the game when Syracuse needed to foul, but the Wildcats still made them count, and the free throw disparity existed before the game was in last-ditch-comeback mode.)
• Villanova might have the perfect blueprint for Syracuse's zone. The Wildcats are a balanced team with a host of capable ball handlers and big men who can comfortably operate from the high block. Syracuse loves to extend its zone, trap guards, force long skip passes, and jump in passing lanes. They collapse on interior passes and use their length to challenge post shots. But when you've got guys like Maalik Wayns and Corey Fisher -- who can not only handle those traps but split them, creating odd-man advantages and open shots -- as well as swingmen like Corey Stokes and forwards like Antonio Pena and Mouphtaou Yarou, you can get into the zone, break it down, get layups and open looks, and your life is that much easier.
• Syracuse's poor perimeter shooting continues to be an issue. The Cuse have been winning in spite of their low (32.6 percent) 3-point field goal percentage for much of the season. That's because Syracuse's defense is tough, its transition game is great, and its athleticism is such that it can get interior looks for Rick Jackson and Kris Joseph almost at will. But when an opposing offense is taking your defense apart, you have to be able to keep pace -- especially when you need to put together a late rally -- and if you can't hit shots from long range, it's hard to do that.
• What about the Big East? Where does this game put Villanova (which lost at Connecticut on Monday) and Syracuse (which lost at Pittsburgh) in the context of their conference? I think you might downgrade Syracuse just a notch; if this defense doesn't carry Boeheim's team, the Cuse will struggle to keep pace with Pittsburgh in the conference chase. You might also be inclined to upgrade Villanova (and maybe, by extension, UConn), because away wins against elite Big East teams are very difficult to come by.
• Overall, though, I'm not sure this game moves the needle much. We still have three bona fide contenders for the Big East crown -- Pittsburgh, Villanova and Syracuse -- a potential outside challenge from UConn, and a host of teams (Louisville, Georgetown and the rest) that will win their share of games against the top three before the year is out. Syracuse could use some work on offense, and it did not have the best pair of defensive outings in its past two games, but overall, the conference picture looks pretty constant for now.

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No. 1 Ohio State 73, No. 22 Illinois 68: If you pegged this game as the first loss of Ohio State's season, you weren't alone. Thousands of orange-clad Illinois fans -- and, as if you care, yours truly -- were right there with you.

It certainly had that feel, didn't it? A tough environment. A ranked conference opponent. An apparently vulnerable No. 1 coming off a couple weeks of unimpressive performances, including a four-point escape at Michigan and three-point home wins against Minnesota and Penn State. All the warning signs of a No. 1 upset -- which would have been only the third in Illinois hoops history, a stat I had trouble believing when CBS put it into my brain -- were there.

Instead, we got another impressive performance from Ohio State, another comprehensive game from freshman Jared Sullinger, and another example of why this Buckeyes team is now your undefeated No. 1 in the first place: They're really, really tough to beat.

• For all of OSU's perimeter weapons, that toughness starts in the post, which means it starts with Sullinger. The freshman put up another classic line Saturday, scoring 27 points and grabbing 16 rebounds in a full 40 minutes on the floor. But perhaps most impressive was Sullinger's free throw shooting. The big man, who is shooting about 73 percent from the line this season, made 13 of his 15 foul attempts Saturday. You probably don't need me to tell you just how lethal that is. Sullinger is so good at getting early position on the block, and so strong once he's there, that you practically have to foul him if you don't want him to get two easy points. But what good is fouling if Sullinger makes his free throws? Big Ten coaches of the world: You are now free to slam your heads repeatedly against your desks. (As if you weren't already.)
• Sullinger isn't the only player that played 40 minutes for Ohio State on Saturday. That honor also went to Jon Diebler and David Lighty, both of whom played every available minute at Illinois. Buckeyes coach Thad Matta appears to have already settled on a seven-man rotation. Forward Dallas Lauderdale is still a starter, but he's averaging 18.7 minutes per game. Instead, Matta goes early and often to freshman Aaron Craft, whose 31 minutes also cut into the playing time of William Buford, arguably OSU's best all-around perimeter scorer, because Craft is the only thing resembling a point guard that the Buckeyes have.
• This rotation also features spot duty -- Saturday, that meant 12 minutes -- for highly touted recruit Deshaun Thomas. Thomas is like a secret weapon: He doesn't get on the court all that often, but he's dangerous when he does. Unlike a lot of bench players, Thomas isn't remotely hesitant to shoot the ball; he has the highest usage rate of any Buckeye when he's on the floor, which basically means "he takes a lot of shots." You saw that in the second half Saturday. With the game tied at 50-50 and 9:34 remaining, Thomas hit the first of two quick 3-pointers -- one of which came on a wide-open fast break -- and then scored on a nice post move over Illinois freshman Jereme Richmond with 5:35 remaining. By the time he left the game, Thomas had scored a quick eight points, Ohio State built a six-point lead, and the Buckeyes would never trail again.
• If you're a particularly positive Illinois fan, you might actually be encouraged by this home loss. Why? Because your opponent -- the ruthlessly efficient No. 1 team in the land -- played relatively well. Your best player, Demetri McCamey, did not. And not only did you lead for much of the second half, you had a chance to win the game in the final seconds. That's not so bad, is it?
• And boy, did McCamey ever play poorly. It's safe to say that Illinois won't win too many games when McCamey goes 2-for-11 from the field, 1-of-5 from 3, and has nearly as many turnovers (four) as assists (five). It was fitting, then, that Illinois' final chance to tie the game came on a poor decision by McCamey, when the guard passed up a long three to enter the ball to Mike Tisdale in traffic. Tisdale lost the handle, and the game was over. McCamey has been brilliant all season long, so this is nothing to worry about. Everyone has bad games. Unfortunately for Bruce Weber's team, McCamey picked this day -- with a winnable upset of the No. 1 team on the table -- to have his ugliest game of the season. (And yes, as a few commenters below have pointed out, much of the credit for McCamey's bad day goes to Aaron Craft, who played a stellar on-ball defensive game.)
• Another encouraging sign for Illinois: After facing transfer rumors last week, freshman forward Richmond continues to play well. Richmond scored 18 points on 9-of-12 shooting from the field and added 10 rebounds, three of which came on the offensive end. Richmond is one of the few players on Illinois who can bang down low and get easy buckets in the paint; unlike Illinois' guards and true forwards, he's not really an inside-out player. If Richmond can add that sort of offensive production to a team that is still a bit too reliant on the long two-point jump shot, he could change the face of Illinois' attack. This loss was not without its silver linings.

Hey, wait a second. Did I just spend 1700 words recapping two games? Yes. I did. The day's first fixtures were just that good.

But here's the best part: This day isn't even close to over yet. I hope your couch groove is ready. Mine certainly is.

A small gesture from the Illinois coaching staff recently made a big impression on a local high school basketball player.

Cameron Reicheneker's father reached out to the Illini last week to see if his son, who is scheduled to begin chemotherapy this week, could meet the team. The coaching staff did better, allowing Reicheneker to listen in on Bruce Weber's pregame speech and chalk talk before Sunday's match against Wisconsin.

From GateHouse News Service:

Diagnosed with Hodgkin's lymphoma in December, the 16-year-old Reicheneker and his family planned to sit in the seats bought by his parents, Scott and Dianna. Those tickets were in row 20 in Section C.

After the Illini coaching staff learned of Reicheneker’s plans, the tickets were upgraded, and the family moved courtside. Reicheneker met briefly with the team, then spoke with Weber prior to the game.

"He told me that life has speed bumps, and we all have to get over them," Reicheneker said. "I can make it through this tough time."

Reicheneker, who came to the game wearing a Demetri McCamey jersey, left with some autographs and his spirits lifted.

The Illini ended up beating Wisconsin to stay undefeated in Big 10 play after a big performance from McCamey, who was named the U.S. Basketball Writers Association's national player of the week on Tuesday.

What goes around, comes around, as Illinois came to find out.

Yes, the Illinois-Chicago Flames beat the Illinois Fighting Illini. This happened Saturday. It's pretty hard to believe, all things considered, but it's right there, 57-54, etched in pixels forever, and no matter how hard you rub your eyes, that scoreline doesn't change.

How did it happen? How did a team with losses to Akron, Valparaiso, Central Michigan, Charleston, Illinois State, and Northern Illinois beat a loaded Illini machine expected to compete for the Big Ten title and a spot in the Final Four? According to coach Bruce Weber and guard Demetri McCamey, it's because the Illini haven't been practicing hard lately. From the Chicago Trib's Chris Hine:

The Illini skirted by Oakland and Northern Colorado before the house of cards crumbled Saturday in a stunning 57-54 defeat to Illinois-Chicago at the United Center.

"I have been alarmed by last week, after the Gonzaga game, how we played and our approach to practice," Weber said. "It caught up with us."

"We just lost our sense of urgency as far as how practice was," senior guard Demetri McCamey said. "Guys were earning minutes, pushing each other and going at it. Now it's a little bit soft and relaxed."

To be sure, practices are important, and lackadaisical practices can often lead to lackadaisical games. But a team as talented and experienced as Illinois shouldn't need good practices to beat a team like UIC. The Illini should be able to spend practice time playing NBA2K11 and still roll vastly inferior programs at the United Center.

The reason they didn't is far more disconcerting, at least if I'm an Illinois fan. It has less to do with nebulous concepts like "intensity" and much more to do with how Illinois approaches scoring on the offensive end: The Illini take way, way too many mid-range jump shots.

Despite the constant punditized bleating over the "lost art" of mid-range play, statistically, you're much better off taking interior shots and 3-pointers; those shots are either higher percentage attempts (layups, dunks, etc.) or reward you proportionately for the difficulty of the shot (3-pointers). This is something most coaches have by now figured out. (Speaking of NBA2K11, there's even a little piece in the game from digital Doris Burke, which quotes Magic coach Stan Van Gundy, who says this exact thing. Man, NBA2K11 is awesome.) The Illini, running Bruce Weber's old-school screen motion offense, end up taking a lot of 18-foot catch-and-shoot jumpers. Those should either be 3s, or the beginnings of dribble penetration. Far too often, those possessions end with jump shots.

This does two things. It robs the Illini of more attempts at the free throw line; Illinois ranks No. 317 in the nation in free throw rate. It also wastes points. Illinois shoots 40.6 percent from beyond the arc, the 19th-best mark in the country. But Weber's team only shoots 3s about 30 percent of the time the ball goes in the air, which is 245th-best. The calculus is simple: Shoot more 3s, score more points. Those shots are going to go in.

This is all somewhat worrisome, of course, but the good news is that this would seem relatively easy to change, at least as easy as demanding more intensity and competition from your players during practices. Illinois has loads of talent, but until they start to maximize it intelligently on the court -- and, yes, some stronger interior play from Mike Davis and Mike Tisdale wouldn't hurt, either -- the Illini are going to live and die by the least statistically accurate shot on the basketball court. That's suicide by a thousand cuts. This team is too talented, and its coach too smart, to let this go on much longer.

Tuesday night, amid all the Missouri-Vanderbilt fun, the Chicago Tribune's Chris Hine informed the world of an unbelievably strange occurrence at Assembly Hall in Champaign, Ill., the type of thing that makes you stop right in your Twitter tracks. Hine tweeted the following:

This could be a reason for the bad shooting, it appears they may have been using a women's ball for the first 7:22. ... They took that ball out of the game and put in a new one.

Wait ... what?

How does this happen? For one, how do the referees pick up the ball and not feel the difference in size and weight? Anyone who's ever touched a women's basketball knows how small it feels relative to the men's regulation size. It's immediately noticeable.

And then, when the game starts and the players notice something feels wrong with the ball, how do none of them say anything or do anything about it? How does that ball stay on the court for seven minutes?

Turns out, there is a reason. Bruce Weber didn't believe his players' complaints:

Illinois coach Bruce Weber did his best Robert Stack impression to explain the unsolved mystery and said the ball was on a game-ball rack from a recent women's game at Assembly Hall. Somebody grabbed it off the rack.

"Our kids said something right away, but I said 'You guys are just missing shots, shut up and play,' " Weber said.

"I wanted to keep it. We were ahead," Oakland coach Greg Kampe said. [...]

"I never had that happen before," senior guard Demetri McCamey said. "I don't even know what to say about that. It felt like a Nerf ball."

During the first 7:22, when the women's ball was in play, Illinois missed its first five 3-pointers. Oakland went on an early 15-4 run and took a 28-24 lead into the half, but a large portion of the first half was played with a men's ball, so the switch wasn't an immediate cure-all for the Illini. The Golden Grizzlies were genuinely outplaying Weber's team. (And hey, both teams have to play with the same ball, right?)

Still, the Illini found their shooting touch in the second half -- it helps when you play with a regulation basketball, huh? -- and eventually won the game 74-63. Illinois got a win, Oakland got an impressive road nonconference performance, and we got one of the stranger college hoops stories of recent years. And, if as many NBA marketing executives read this blog as I hope (hint: they don't), a potential Wacky Basketball Night NBA promotion at your local struggling franchise. Hornets fans, on your feet! Which ball will the refs choose today? So zany!

Who knew college basketball players were so good at holding a grudge?

Illinois fans have one big reason for hating North Carolina, and it goes beyond the school's hiring of Roy Williams from Kansas, which in turn caused Kansas to nip rising star Bill Self from Illinois. No, this one happened on the floor: North Carolina beat Illinois in the 2005 NCAA tournament title game, a game that was supposed to be the culmination of Illinois' brilliant 37-1 season. Instead, the Illini finished 37-2, and Illinois fans long desperate for a national title banner were left to rebuild yet again. (Hanging Final Four banners -- Illinois has five in the rafters at Assembly Hall -- isn't nearly as fun as the alternative.)

So, sure, Illinois fans probably don't like North Carolina. But who knew Illinois' players -- none of whom were around in 2004-05 -- would be feeling the hate so acutely? Via excellent Chicago Tribune Illini beat reporter Chris Hine, the Illini are taking this one personally:

"We have to stick up for the guys that came before us and try to steal one back for us," senior Bill Cole said. "Because we feel like they stole one from the program in 2005, so we're going to go try and hit them right back."

Senior guard Demetri McCamey said the game was "personal."

"Looking back, knowing that's the school you were going to, seeing them lose the championship, you get the feeling, 'If I was playing, we would have won,'" McCamey said.

One quick correction for Demetri: You're awfully good, but that team had Deron Williams, Dee Brown and Luther Head. You wouldn't have been playing. If you had, Illinois wouldn't have won. Just so we're clear.

Still, for those living outside the Champaign-Chicago Illini hoops nexus, be advised. Apparently, Tuesday night's ACC-Big Ten Challenge matchup is about more than the ACC-Big Ten Challenge. It's about more than a quality nonconference win. Heck, it's about more than this season. Apparently, there's an old score to settle, and while I'm not sure how winning a game against a young, unranked North Carolina team in November of 2010 counts as revenge for a runner-up finish, whatever. If it means even more intensity inside Assembly Hall, I'm all for it.