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Illinois Fighting Illini

2012 Illini Hoops Most Important Player? Meyers Leonard!

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Last night's 79-51 exhibition rout of Wayne State was expected for most Illini basketball fans. The most important number of the box score is found in the game's leading scorer, Meyers Leonard. He had 18 points, in just 16 minutes, that's a great sign for your Illinois Fighting Illini, because they'll really need Leonard to be good, if they're going to be good. … [Read more...] about 2012 Illini Hoops Most Important Player? Meyers Leonard!

Penn State Gets Gift Win From Pathetic Illinois’ Special Teams, Offense

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It was one of the ugliest college football games of all time. Certainly one of the ugliest Big Ten games. Not a good showcase of the conference on ABC's national game. (The national media are going to have a field day ripping the conference after this one). Call it the football equivalent of the infamous 38-33 college basketball game played by these two schools in Champaign … [Read more...] about Penn State Gets Gift Win From Pathetic Illinois’ Special Teams, Offense

#36 Illinois Fighting Illini: College Basketball 111 in 111

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Welcome to The Sports Bank’s second annual college basketball season preview series.  Last year we looked at 99 teams in 99 days.  This year, we are being slightly more aggressive and expanding to 111 teams in 111 days.  We will rank the 74 power conference teams and top 37 mid-majors in reverse power ranking order.  We’ll break down rosters, non-conference schedules, and pick … [Read more...] about #36 Illinois Fighting Illini: College Basketball 111 in 111

Steelers Troy Polamalu’s College Counterpart (Hair Wise): Illini RB Troy Pollard

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The similarities between Pittsburgh Steelers safety Troy Polamalu and Illinois Fighting Illini leading rusher Troy Pollard go further than just the amazing coincidence in names. There's the hair thing too! You've seen Polamalu's shampoo commercials, right? "Troy Polamolecules dude." You can go here for more. But let's learn more about the man nicknamed "bucket o' hair." … [Read more...] about Steelers Troy Polamalu’s College Counterpart (Hair Wise): Illini RB Troy Pollard

Illini Football All-Decade Team Announced: Part 1 Defense

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The University of Illinois announced their All-Decade Team this week. We'll start with the defense, and we'll open with the defensive linemen: Will Davis, Corey Liuget, Brandon Moore, Chris Norwell and Derrick Strong named to the 31-player team. The squad, which honors Illini who played between 2000-10, was compiled by a combination of fan voting and input from Division of … [Read more...] about Illini Football All-Decade Team Announced: Part 1 Defense

Fighting Illini Hoops Crush West Virginia in Scrimmage at Italian Air Base

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It is impressive that the Michigan State Spartans and North Carolina Tar Heels will take on each other in college basketball aboard the deck of an aircraft carrier. But don't sell the Illinois Fighting Illini and West Virginia Mountaineers short. The two basketball teams visited Aviano Air Base yesterday during their summer Italian tours. And it resulted in Illinois … [Read more...] about Fighting Illini Hoops Crush West Virginia in Scrimmage at Italian Air Base

Does Former Illini Star Dee Brown have a Future Coaching Basketball? (Videos)

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He's one of the most iconic players in recent college basketball history, and the face of Illini basketball for half a decade. Dee Brown, an All-American, and winner of the 2006 Cousy Award (given to the nation's best point guard) was the cover boy for SI's 2005 March Madness issue. During that Final Four run, his "poppin your collar" move became a national trend. He didn't … [Read more...] about Does Former Illini Star Dee Brown have a Future Coaching Basketball? (Videos)