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Welcome to “Good Morning, Illini Nation,” your daily dose of college basketball news from Illini beat writer and AP Top 25 voter Scott Richey. He’ll offer up insights every morning on Brad Underwood’s team and college basketball at large:
Orlando Antigua's influence on the recruiting trail continues to be felt early in his second stint at Illinois. A Pittsburgh native with ties to a prep program based in the Bronx, N.Y.? Yeah, that's right in Antigua's wheelhouse.
Illinois added to its 2025 recruiting board over the weekend with an offer to Amari Evans. The 6-foot-5, 204-pound guard has played in Overtime Elite the past two seasons, and played for Our Saviour Lutheran (that NYC-based program) as a sophomore.
Evans was with City Reapers this year in OTE and averaged 10.6 points, 6.1 rebounds, 3.1 assists and 2.2 steals during the regulars season. He also put up 11.8 points, 4.8 rebounds, 2.9 steals and 2.3 assists per game during the OTE playoffs.
Evans is ranked as a four-star recruit by both On3 and ESPN, while 247Sports has him as a three-star prospect. Nationally, On3 puts Evans as the No. 72 overall prospect. He has other offers from Ole Miss, Texas A&M, Old Dominion, Pittsburgh, Sam Houston State, Tennessee, Villanova, Manhattan, Xavier, Providence, Cal Poly, Penn State, Marquette, Long Island and Robert Morris.
