Check out photos from Friday's game here.
CHAMPAIGN – Midway through the second half at the Assembly Hall, a courtside observer discovered what the Illinois coaches have known for years.
"Watch that Brandon Paul. He could be pretty good."
It wasn't rocket science, or even figuring out the formula for Matto points. But Paul's natural gifts were evident during No. 23 Illinois' 95-67 exhibition win against Missouri Southern on Friday.
The 6-foot-4 freshman guard had 13 points, five rebounds and three assists. He used his bouncy hops to elevate above the defense, get to the rim, get fouled and make 7 of 10 free throws.
That aspect of the game – getting to the free throw line – was absent from the Illinois attack last season. That was an Illinois team that once played 40 minutes against Penn State without shooting a single free throw.
"I felt pretty good coming in," Paul said. "It was our first game. Obviously for freshmen we're going to have some nervous energy."
Paul wasn't perfect. Most of his gifts are still being refined. The four freshmen – and the Illini in general – committed a list of mistakes. But the potential and the ability are all there.
"You could tell we have talent. It's just practice right now," said junior Demetri McCamey, who led the Illini with 16 points and seven assists.
Fellow rookies D.J. Richardson (14 points), Tyler Griffey (six) and Joseph Bertrand (six) also gave an announced crowd of 14,454 plenty to anticipate over their respective careers. Richardson added a team-high seven points on the Matto chart, which measures hustle stats.
"I think they all played pretty well," senior Dominique Keller said. "I was really impressed with the way Brandon got to the free throw line."
The Illini were sloppy, maybe rusty, with 19 turnovers, including 15 in the first half. Weber said he also would like to see better shot selection from Paul, though the coach admired his drives through the lane.
"He's got to learn how to read it and we've got to learn how to get him open. He gets a little bit three-point shooting happy," Weber said. "I told those guys yesterday, 'If you don't shoot 35 percent (Illinois shot 20 percent on threes), you shouldn't be shooting them.' "
Jeff Jordan, who returned to the team two weeks ago, did not play. Weber said he had made an agreement with Jordan that the junior wouldn't play in the first exhibition game.
"I told him we'll kind of play it by ear this week (to decide whether he would return for the final exhibition game Nov. 10 against Quincy)," Weber said.
Stan Simpson, a redshirt freshman, also did not play. His issue is academics.
"It's not fair to the other guys if everybody else is taking care of business. We have high standards," Weber said, adding, "If you're struggling you better get your butt in that classroom and be in the front row and take care of business. That's where he's got to learn to decide it's important."
10:05 left in second half - Illinois 69, Missouri State 43
-Weber went to a zone at the 13:03 mark. It wasn't good, wasn't bad, was just kind of there. Missouri Southern seemed relieved to see a zone.
-D.J. Richardson found a way to beat Missouri Southern's zone: get to the rim. Peoria's finest is 4-for-5 for 12 points. Illinois has all four freshmen on the court, with junior Mike Tisdale. The 7-footer scored his first point - on a free throw - with 10:31 left in the second half.
-Don't get the feeling Weber is fired up about Mike Davis' performance. We'll probably hear about that in the post-game.
-Limited updates coming the rest of the way. Better get something for the paper tomorrow. New deadlines this season. Loads of hoops coverage coming in Sunday's News-Gazette. We'll list the Big Ten's top NBA prospects, top players, top arenas, top coaches, top recruits, top freshmen, etc.
Back in a few.
Halftime - Illinois 49, Missouri Southern 28
-Courier-Journal writer Brett Dawson informs me that super-guard John Wall will only have to sit out two games. Bodes well for my preseason No. 1. I thought Illinois at No. 21 was the right call.
-Sloppy, sloppy first half for Illinois. Twelve turnovers in the first 16 minutes. Fifteen for the half. Some of that is because Demetri only played 13 minutes. But that's far too many turnovers. Better hope fullcourt-pressing Clemson doesn't see this tape.
-Missouri Southern cut the deficit to 32-24 at one point.
-Written a few times I think Jeff Jordan has a long way to go before he's in the rotation. He's over on the bench in a warmup and hasn't played tonight.
-High scorer for Illinois: McCamey with 12. High rebounder: Keller with 5. High assist man: Keller and McCamey with two apiece.
-The freshmen had 20 points on 5-for-8 shooting. They also got to the free throw line, a good sign, and made 10 of 14 fouls shots. At the same time, Illinois had only six assists on 17 field goals. Nothing wrong with that, it's just that these guards have a different motive from Chester Frazier when they get into the lane. You can read about it here.
-Not a good start for Mike Davis. Weber went with McCamey, Paul, Richardson, Keller and Tisdale to start the second half.
Back in a few.
7:01 left in first half - Illinois 27, Missouri Southern 14
-Starters Tisdale, Davis, Legion were out of the game for about 5 minutes. Weber wants to give the reserves more minutes tonight.
-Free throw shooting hasn't slipped - Illinois was 7-for-8 to start the game.
-Weber just hollered at Mike Tisdale, "Stay down there (on the block) and get a catch." Tisdale spent much of the offseason refining post moves - particularly a lefty hook - but he'll go stretches without an entry pass that puts him in good position to score, or with good position to receive a pass.
-D.J. Richardson spending a lot of his time at the point. He's been fine so far, but Illinois is turning the ball over way too much, and this isn't Purdue. Handling defensive pressure is an area of concern for these guys. Last season you had three point guards (or ex-point guards) to handle ball pressure. Trent Meacham and Chester Frazier were especially careful with the ball late in games, in the last 4 minutes or so.
Back in a few.
12:27 left in the first half - Illinois 17, Missouri Southern 1
-Attendance guess from my go-to attendance guesser (he will remain anonymous): 8,800. Seems about right.
-Three freshmen on the court for Illinois: B. Paul, T. Griffey and D.J. Richardson. Richardson doesn't look nervous in the slightest. Made his first field goal and first two free throws. Reminds me of something a coach in Peoria told me: "That year away (at Findlay Prep) did wonders for his self-confidence."
-Illinois with 14 rebounds to Missouri Southern's 2. Not enough size in those green-and-yellow unis.
-Joseph Bertrand checked in at 12:47. I'm surprised.
-Bruce Weber has played 11 guys. Illinois just went to a zone press, and Brandon Paul picked off a steal.
Back in a few.
15:30 left in the first half - Illinois 9, Missouri Southern 1
-D. Keller made the most of his early minutes with Illinois' first six points points and three rebounds in the first three minutes. Played hard and physical, just what Weber wants from the lone scholarship senior.
-The first subs: D.J. Richardson, Bill Cole and Richard Semrau. As I wrote yesterday, don't look too far into these exhibition-game lineups or substitution patterns. More on that here.
"It might take a while. It might take until Christmas to figure it all out," Weber said of the playing rotation. "I hope it comes sooner. But that might take a little time this year."
Back in a few.
Live Report
Tipoff - No. 23 Illinois vs. Missouri Southern
-Joseph Bertrand was out on the court going through layup lines. He didn't practice yesterday, as I wrote here. He was on the sideline at yesterday's practice, his right knee wrapped in an enormous bandage. He looked bummed. The only way they were going to redshirt Bertrand is if the knee wasn't in good shape and he falls far behind the other guards. Otherwise, coaches felt he's shown enough to make them believe he could make an impact as a true freshman. So we'll see.
-Late-arriving crowd. The first exhibition last season drew an announced crowd of 13,370.
-Missouri Southern is a D-II program that went 19-12 last season. The Lions climbed as high as No. 10 in the D-II poll. They return four of five starters.
-Mike Tisdale wins the tip for Illinois.
Back in a few.
10 minutes until tipoff
Paul Klee joining you from the Assembly Hall. Missouri Southern and No. 23 Illinois both on the floor. Missouri Southern parents and radio guy posing for photos next to the court. Won't be an extensive Live Report tonight, but we'll keep you updated. Email me at pklee@news-gazette.com with any questions/comments.
-Missouri Southern coach Robert Corn is an old friend of Bruce Weber. He's the brother of Pinckneyville coaching legend Dick Corn. Former UI assistant Chris Lowery coached under Robert Corn at Missouri Southern as well.
-UI recruit Meyers Leonard just walked in. He's a regular.
-Here's your starting lineup: Demetri McCamey, Alex Legion, Dominique Keller, Mike Davis and Mike Tisdale.
Back in a few.
Klee
all that talent is p-ing off larue / brumby.
they head gonna explode!!!!!!
LMAO!!!!!!
your message board sucks
7 posts on a postgame thread?
news-gazete gotta be embarased.
Thank God for Paul Klee
Posted by on October 31, 2009 at 9:42 PM | Suggest Removal
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