Coupled with our individual player previews, and given that the Ohio State bye week is so cleverly timed, we wanted to take the opportunity to break down the Big Ten teams going into this season. Up first is the Illinois Fighting Illini.
Last Season:
Illinois had a reasonably successful year, making the NCAA Tournament as a 9 seed and beating UNLV in the first round. Unfortunately, they ran into a top-seeded Kansas team who was not about to get upset by a 9 seed in the second round two years in a row.
In the Big Ten, Illinois was a middle-of-the-road team with a 9-9 record in conference. That put them in a tie with Michigan, Michigan State and Penn State, so it’s not like they weren’t in good company last year. Illinois ended up being seeded 5th in the Big Ten conference tournament, and fell in their first outing to Michigan 60-55.
Key Player:
With the graduation of Demetri McCamey and Mike Tisdale, the Illini are going to be looking to DJ Richardson to pick up the slack. Richardson was fifth on the team in scoring last season with 284 points and was known for his wicked three-point shooting. His 55 makes from beyond the arc was good for second on the team last season.
If Richardson can make people forget about the positives that McCamey brought to the Illini the last few years, Illinois will be in great shape moving forward.
New Player to Keep an Eye on:
Incoming freshman Mike Shaw could make waves in the Big Ten this season. A 6’8″ power forward from De La Salle High School in Chicago, he is capable of playing both inside and outside and can shoot facing the basket. He’s precisely the kind of bigman Bruce Weber likes to have, exactly in the vein of Mike Tisdale from last season. Expect to see Mr. Shaw earn some playing time this year.
Big Games on the Schedule:
Illinois has a relatively light preseason schedule this year, but does play games at Maryland (B1G/ACC challange), against Gonzaga, at UNLV – remember, they beat Wisconsin last year – and a neutral site game against Missouri in St. Louis. They also play an early pre-season game at Richmond, who is often a tough opponent to beat. If they can secure wins in a majority of those games, Illinois could be a tough out during the 2012 Big Ten season.
Outlook for this Year:
With critical losses to their scoring, including their top three scorers from last season, it’s hard to believe that Illinois could improve on last season’s record. A lot is riding on DJ Richardson and Brandon Paul to step up into a bigger role for this team and carry it on their shoulders. If they can do that, and get more consistent production out of some of the younger guys on the team, Illinois could be a team to beat in the Big Ten.
Where They’ll Finish:
I see Illinois standing still at around 5th or 6th in the Big Ten this season. They have the advantage of only having to play Michigan State once, and at home no less. However, they only get to play Penn State, Indiana and Iowa once a piece and two of those games are on the road.
Expect Illinois to pick up around 9 wins in Big Ten play – out of 18 total games – and sneak back into the NCAA tournament with a couple of quality preseason wins on their resume.
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