CHICAGO – Important business kept Lon Kruger from making a day of Big Ten media day, but no one was going to let Theresa Grentz split early.

While Kruger was back in Champaign seeing prized recruit Corey Maggette off Sunday, the self-described "6-foot blonde who talks like Rosie O'Donnell" was keeping writers writing and cameras rolling at the O'Hare Marriott.

"There should be a rule at my age about having this much fun in college," she said.

If the Big Ten media's right, the real fun's just about to begin for Grentz and the University of Illinois women's basketball gang, which was picked to win the league one year after sharing the honor with Purdue and Michigan State.

No shocker there. The Illini have popped up in Top 10 lists in every preseason publication worth a hoot.

"That's terrific for selling tickets, it's great for the alumni, it's marvelous for the community," Grentz said. "But for us, we can't get into that. Your press is like poison. It won't hurt you if you don't swallow it."

Grentz was the life of the party, drawing more of a crowd than some of the men's coaches. She spoke on everything from revenge ("A dumb thing") to Ashley Berggren's pro prospects (a lock).

A few sound bites:

– On Huff Hall crowds when she arrived at the UI three years ago: "Only 600 people came to the games. Four hundred were members of the families of the players, and the other 200 were homeless and wanted to get out of the wind down there."

– On the Illinois job back then: "A lot of people said when I took this job, 'If you take it, you'll ruin your career.' "

– On comparisons to last year's team: "It's like children. You never compare your children."

– On the Ubben Basketball Complex, set to open in less than a year: "Lon will have his floor, and I will have mine, and I ... can't ... wait. We won't have to worry about kinesiology classes, we won't have to worry about Sesame Street and Big Bird, we won't have to worry about the Ice Capades or Kris Kringle's craft show. We'll get to practice whenever we want."

She also had plenty of nice things about UI senior forward Berggren, who fielded a few hundred questions herself. Everyone wanted to talk to the 1996-97 Big Ten Player of the Year, who was picked to repeat the feat this winter.

Pull that off, as only two others in league history have, and Berggren's got a shot at first-team All-America honors, something no Illini's done.

Grentz hopes Berggren's rugged style doesn't work against her when it's time for ballots to be cast.

"Could, because she's so blue-collar," Grentz said. "That's why our team has to do so well, that's why we have to play against the best. What'll happen is the best player at Old Dominion, the best player at Stanford and the best player at Tennessee is going to go against her.

"And guess what? There's going to be some great footage ... no speculation. It'll be cut and dry."

Kruger had it tougher than the Broncos on Sunday. He caught a 6:45 a.m. charter at Willard Airport, touched down in Chicago an hour later, met the press from 8:15 to 9:30, caught a flight back and met back up with the recruits.

"You'd hate not to see them on their last day on campus," Kruger said.

No new news on weekend guests Cleotis Brown or Maggette, who had dinner with his folks at the Kruger home Saturday night.

"I've been around Corey for four years, and I don't anticipate there's going to be any rush to judgment," Oak Park Fenwick coach John Quinn said Sunday night. "I know that they enjoyed their visit immensely, though."