UI men: Game 2 preview

GAME 2

Texas A&M-CC at UI men,

4:30 p.m. Sunday

 

LINEUPS

Texas A&M-Corpus Christi (1-0)

Probable starters

P Name HT. YR. PPG

G LaMarr Drake 6-1 Jr. 6.0

G Kevin Palmer 6-6 Jr. 13.0

F Horace Bond 6-8 So. 6.0

F Demond Watt 6-7 So. 13.0

F Justin Reynolds 6-9 So. 11.0

Top Reserves

C Jawan Nelson 6-9 Fr. 14.0

G Tim Green 6-3 Sr. 11.0

C Filip Toncinic 7-0 Jr. 9.0

Illinois (1-0)

Probable starters

P Name HT. YR. PPG

G Demetri McCamey 6-3 So. 11.0

G Chester Frazier 6-2 Sr. 13.0

G Trent Meacham 6-2 Sr. 18.0

F Mike Davis 6-9 So. 6.0

C Mike Tisdale 7-1 So. 8.0

Top reserves

G Calvin Brock 6-5 Sr. 1.0

C Richard Semrau 6-10 So. 3.0

F Jeff Jordan 6-2 So. 4.0

 

FACTS & FIGURES

SITE: The Assembly Hall, 16,618.

RADIO: Brian Barnhart and Jerry Hester call the action on WDWS 1400-AM, WHMS 97.5-FM, WDAN 1490-AM, WDNL 102.1-FM and WPXN 104.9-FM.

TV: None.

ONLINE: www.bigtennetwork.com

SERIES: Illinois leads 1-0. The Islanders, who are actually located on the mainland, came to C-U on Dec. 1, 2001. The Illini secured an 81-50 win.

COACHES: Bruce Weber (129-47 in sixth season at Illinois, 232-101 in 11th season overall); Perry Clark (10-20 in second season at TACC; 260-219 in 16th season overall).

STORYLINES

1

Big Ten pioneer

To a lot of people, Billy Garrett's father was a hero. "He's my hero, too," Garrett said Saturday. His father was Bill Garrett, who played center at Indiana from 1948 to '51. "The same year that Jackie Robinson broke the color barrier with the Brooklyn Dodgers, Indiana University's Bill Garrett became the first African-American to play Big Ten basketball," the Washington Post wrote. Bill Garrett passed away in 1974. His son is an assistant coach with Texas A&M-Corpus Christi, which visits Illinois today. "Some of the struggles that he went through to make lives better, I can't describe how proud that makes me feel," Billy Garrett said. "My mother tells me stories about what he went through. It was awful, some of the things people did. And he did that for people like me." A former Chicago-area high school coach, Garrett pointed out that his father was "a catalyst" for societal changes witnessed today. "Barack Obama just got elected," he said.

2

Not an island

Illinois high school basketball fans will recognize much of the Texas A&M-Corpus Christi roster. It features six players from the Chicago area, from schools like Bloom, Simeon, Leo and Thornton. "You know how Chicago is," said Garrett, the TAMCC assistant with Chicago ties. "Those kids are tough." Bloom product Jawan Nelson, a sophomore, had 14 points in their season opener. "He's not a finished product, but he can score the ball," Garrett said. TAMCC beat Texas A&M-Kingsville 83-64 on Friday. Tim Green (Simeon) added 11 points, and Demond Watt (Thornton) had seven. "For our level, we do have some big wings," Garrett said. Illinois coach Bruce Weber said TAMCC presents a different challenge than their two exhibition foes and Eastern Washington. "It will be aggressive, gambling and physical," he said Saturday. "That should be even better for us, another thing to deal with."

3

Illinotes

Stan Simpson won't play in a game unless Weber decides there is a need for the freshman in the frontcourt. That will allow Simpson the option of a redshirt. "I think he understands," Weber said. "As I told him (Saturday), 'Right now you're not going to play in games. But in practice you've got to give 200 percent because those are your games.' " ... Weber said Saturday he had not decided whether he will return Demetri McCamey to the starting lineup today. McCamey came off the bench in the season opener. Weber also noticed that Purdue coach Matt Painter took his best player, E'Twaun Moore, out of the starting lineup in the Boilers' season opener. ... Today's game is the first of at least seven games the Illini will play on Sundays. ... Today's game is not televised. The next three Illinois games will be televised. ... Illinois held Eastern Washington to five field goals in the second half of a 66-50 win Friday. Sophomores Mike Davis (28) and Mike Tisdale (22) set career highs in minutes played.

PREDICTION

Illinois 73, Texas A&M-Corpus Christi 60

You now how they say it's never as bad (or as good) as it seems? In the case of Texas A&M-Corpus Christi, it might be that bad. An NCAA investigation into the athletic department found eight major rules infractions, including recruiting sins committed by the men's basketball program. The NCAA is expected to rule on the case in December. The Illini will force enough turnovers to get the win today before playing at Vanderbilt on Thursday. (News-Gazette prediction record: 1-0)

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