Illini guard Brandon Paul will have to carry the load for Illinois college basketball next season. Especially now that Meyers Leonard is gone to the NBA (most likely the Milwaukee Bucks with the #12 pick). BP dropped 43 in the season's biggest win over Final Four team Ohio State, but he was still largely inconsistent, and committed way too many turnovers. Paul will need to … [Read more...] about Illini star Brandon Paul breaks jaw in open gym session
illini basketball news
Illini add big man in transfer Sam McLaurin
New University of Illinois head coach John Groce got his second recruit today. The Illini announced today Coastal Carolina’s Sam McLaurin has signed a tender of financial aid and will transfer to Illinois for his final season of eligibility upon earning his bachelor's degree in May. Because he will be enrolled as a graduate student at Illinois majoring in a major that … [Read more...] about Illini add big man in transfer Sam McLaurin
Illini officially remove Bruce Weber as basketball coach
We knew this was coming since February, so I'm not going to say too much about it. I've already written thousands of words about Bruce Weber's virtues and failures, what Illini fans will miss about Weber, why Shaka Smart is the right guy to replace him etc. So let's just get to the official University of Illinois statement: … [Read more...] about Illini officially remove Bruce Weber as basketball coach
Illinois Falls To Iowa In Big Ten Tournament, Likely Bruce Weber’s Final Game
When asked if he thought his team would accept an NIT bid, embattled Illinois coach Bruce Weber responded "I don't know, I don't know if we'll make the NIT to be honest." After falling to Iowa in the opening game of the Big Ten Tournament in Indianapolis, all signs seem to be pointing to Weber's imminent departure from Champaign and the University of Illinois. In his post … [Read more...] about Illinois Falls To Iowa In Big Ten Tournament, Likely Bruce Weber’s Final Game
St. Louis Cardinals postseason inspiration for Illini NCAA Tournament hopes
The St. Louis Cardinals are huge in Champaign-Urbana. They compete with primarily the Chicago Cubs, but also the White Sox to be the favorite MLB team in the community dominated by the University of Illinois campus. The Cards do come first though, and perhaps Illini coach Bruce Weber knew that when he made his appeal to Illini Nation that his team's post-season chances aren't … [Read more...] about St. Louis Cardinals postseason inspiration for Illini NCAA Tournament hopes
Embattled Illini avoid first winless February since 1907
The college basketball season is only five months long, so any time you're talking about a winless month, it's not a good sign. And in their seventh and final game of the year's shortest month, the Illini would not come up short. They picked up a 65-54 win over the Iowa Hawkeyes, avoiding the February donut, which hasn't happened to the program since 1907. The Illini also … [Read more...] about Embattled Illini avoid first winless February since 1907
Hoosiers Cody Zeller is Superior to Illini Meyers Leonard
In the Big Ten, there are two centers 0f attention that have separated themselves from the pack. And that makes sense as there are just fewer and fewer true centers these days; especially at the NBA level. And where would the NBA get such beings? When college basketball is seeing the decline of the big man too. The two main big men in the Big Ten are Cody Zeller at Indiana, … [Read more...] about Hoosiers Cody Zeller is Superior to Illini Meyers Leonard
Hoosiers’ rivalry with Illinois moving more towards Indiana’s Favor
Overshadowed this week by UNC-Duke, the best rivalry in college basketball and Syracuse-Georgetown, the greatest in the Big East, is Illini vs. Hoosiers, a great rivalry in itself. The all time series was tied at 83 entering tonight. However, Illinois was 5-1 in their last 6 versus IU. And that one loss in Bloomington last year was extremely fluky to say the least. After … [Read more...] about Hoosiers’ rivalry with Illinois moving more towards Indiana’s Favor
Just how shaky is Illini coach Bruce Weber’s Job Security?
The Assembly Hall crowd in Champaign called for Bruce Weber's head. Illini fans in B Section screamed "pack your bags" and "I can draw up a better offense." This has gone on for years, except this time there was one major difference- No one in the orange and blue crowd stuck up for Bruce. And this happened during one of this year's signature wins, a victory over a top ten … [Read more...] about Just how shaky is Illini coach Bruce Weber’s Job Security?
’11-’12 Illini Bare Disturbing Resemblance to ’98-’99 Team
Bruce Weber has his 2011-12 Fighting Illini in real good shape to make the NCAA Tournament, with his third big, signature win coming just the other night over Michigan State. Yet he's on both the hot seat and the bad side of Illini Nation. (Much more on this in a quickly upcoming post) Why? Style points. Illini basketball is "sexy" alright, sexy as Camryn Manheim or Kathy … [Read more...] about ’11-’12 Illini Bare Disturbing Resemblance to ’98-’99 Team