Frazier: 'I just wish I was out there'
Check out all of our NCAA tournament coverage here.
PORTLAND, Ore. – Bruce Weber's wish was that one game in the NCAA tournament wouldn't define a season that offered so much promise.
So how does a first-round exit impact their memory of this season?
"It changes it right now," sophomore Mike Davis said, "But in a couple weeks we'll look back on it and see we had a great season."
Well, Weber's first wish was to play one more game, maybe two. But No. 12 Western Kentucky played with a purpose in a 76-72 upset of No. 5 Illinois late Thursday at the Rose Garden. For the first 34 minutes, Illinois seemed to play scared.
WKU, a trendy upset pick playing with the confidence of a favorite, advanced to face No. 4 Gonzaga on Saturday. In a quiet postgame locker room, Illinois was left with droopy faces and the realization popular seniors Chester Frazier, Trent Meacham and Calvin Brock had played their final game.
"I'm speechless," said Frazier, who assumed the role of player-coach while missing a third-straight game with a broken hand. "It's a hard one to swallow, just sitting on the bench. I just wish I was out there."
Illinois limped to the finish, going 1-4 over its last five games. Weber was more concerned with their start Thursday, where the Illini trailed by 14 in the first half.
"Somebody's going to have to become a leader to help the freshmen (next season)," Weber said. "Somebody has to show the other guys how hard you have to work in the offseason (something Frazier did last summer)."
The dramatic and unexpected turnaround Illinois (24-10) experienced over the course of the season almost was replicated in its final game. The Illini won eight more games than in the 2007-08 season (16-19) – 10 more in the regular season, the third-biggest turnaround in the nation – and nearly erased a 17-point deficit against the Hilltoppers.
Illinois went on a 19-5 run to sneak within 73-70 before WKU (25-8) iced its third tournament win in two seasons with free throws.
"We came into this tournament and we're just not happy to be here," said first-year coach Ken McDonald. "We want to be dancing as long as we can."
The Illini's bugaboos were exposed on the big stage. The Hilltoppers were more athletic (winning the rebounding battle 35-28) and Illinois was not as quick (24 fouls to Western Kentucky's 12). Weber said their offseason must be spent in the weightroom to plug those holes.
"Everybody had the desire last season to get better after the season we had (16-19). And this one should sting too," said sophomore Jeff Jordan. "There should be more desire to improve."
Jordan added, "Our chemistry's great."
And their chemistry – the fact these guys really like each other – might be a key reason the Illini never threw in a towel under a hefty deficit. The comeback Thursday mirrored a comeback win at Northwestern – except in the result – with Meacham leading the way.
Champaign's finest arrived at Illinois with not enough acclaim. He had 24 points in his final run, two shy of a career high, while playing through leg cramps.
"We didn't play with a sense of urgency," Meacham said. "We made a little run, but we just didn't have enough."
Western Kentucky advanced to the Sweet 16 last season, but the Hilltoppers that took the floor Thursday were on a relatively foreign stage. The largest crowd they had played in front of was 9,045. The attendance at the Rose Garden doubled that.
And Illinois was used to NCAA tournament-caliber competition, having gone 9-7 against NCAA qualifiers. The 'Toppers had only faced three tournament teams this season (1-2).
But WKU was the looser bunch and played carefree. Point guard Orlando Mendez-Valdez fired a risky behind-the-back pass in traffic – something you'd see on the playground more often than CBS.
Steffphon Pettigrew led the Hilltoppers with 17 points, but Mendez-Valdez, a senior, led the upset.
GAME 34 RECAP
What happened: The Illini’s late rally proved to be too little, too late. A sluggish start, hot outside shooting by the Hilltoppers and the absence of Chester Frazier were all too much for the Illini to advance.
What it means: President Obama was wrong. Everyone who picked against Illinois was right. The Illini were not the same without Chester Frazier, and they bowed out of the NCAA tournament on the first weekend for the third straight time.
What the Illini said: “They were good. We knew they were good. Probably better than we even thought. Sad for Chester (Frazier), but there’s nothing you can do about it.” — coach Bruce Weber
What the Hilltoppers said: “Illinois did a very good job. They hustled, they played their hearts out and you had seniors playing very, very hard. They didn’t want it to end.” — coach Ken McDonald
What’s next: A long earlier-than-expected plane ride back to Champaign before saying goodbye to four seniors and welcoming a freshman class that has generated a buzz around the program for the last 17 months.
yet another disgrace !!! and Tate writes a "fine season" because there is over 20 wins ( most of which were in November December against teams Illinois shouldnt even be playing in preparation for the Big Ten and post season).I have criticized Bruce when necessary and praised him as a decent guy who's players dont listen to him.At this point,it doesn't matter what the reason is : He has to go ! and take the non existent Tisdale and McCamey with him! God bless Meach for playing his heart out in the second half.Anyone who has watched this Illini team stink up the arena so many times this season,must realize its a combination of poor recruiting and the inability to get the players to execute ( "defense is the heart and soul" ???? ) what you teach them.How many times all season did you watch the other team blast right past our guys enroute to layups and dunks !? The offense is a nightmare to watch....with all the hoopla about next years recruits,it will mean nothing if the offensive scheme is not totally rebuilt ! We are either red hot with the 3 pt shot or we have no chance to win a game.I dont want to hear the boys played their hearts out and we are so proud of them BS !! They are receiving $125,000 worth of education for 4 years and embarrassing themselves,the coaching staff and the state, is unacceptable !
Lost 4 out of 5 to end the season, Loren Tate and Mark Tupper (Decatur-Herald & Review) can't be illini apologist anymore! We should be better than this and as an alumni member, who travels the state on my job there is a noticeable difference in how this program is looked at from a fan base stand point. The recruiting has caught up again. Please no more Class A players (Tisdale) and why is McCamey on the team?
It was a very nice season, better than expected, but unfortunately with a typical NCAA result for the Illini. Are we the most underachieving program in NCAA tournament play history in terms of fewest wins against higher ranked teams and most losses to lower ranked teams?
I am extremely conflicted about this season. The best way I can explain it is this: We overachived in terms of out players' capabilities, we vastly underachieved for the expectations that we as Illinois fans have for the program.
I personally don't see why expectations should not be high year in and year out. There are plenty of excellent basketball players out there capable of winning a national championship. We have a school that is rich in tradition and excellent in education. Why can we not get the same kind of performance as other similar schools?
Since the final four run in 2005 we have lost in the second round, one and done, no tourney, and a lackluster one and done. I love this team and the players on it, but it is quite safe to say this program has taken at least one step backwards, and that for true Illinois fans is unacceptable.
So, that means unless you are one of the 32 teams in the country that win in the first round of the NCAA Tourney, you are an embarrassment to the state? Come on guys...to be upset about losing is one, thing, but saying they are an embarrassment is another. Do you think Minnesota fans are saying the same thing because they lost?
Illini fans have this complex that they should be in the Final Four every year, and it burns me when I hear knee-jerk reactions. This is not a North Carolina or Duke caliber program. It never has been, nor ever will be. I don't see why fans think that this is a program that is "rich with tradition". This "win or else" attitude is a little tiring, and I'm sure the players are tired of hearing about it too. Yes, Tisdale and McCamey played a bad game, but to say their scholarships should be taken away is flat out ridiculous. This is the type of attitude that drives recruits away...don't tell me they don't read these things before coming here.
Leave the kids alone....they are probably feeling awful right now. Real fans show support...bad fans sit back and criticize like they think they know better.
It was a good year, not spectacular. Yes, there were games that weren't so fun to watch, and others that were pretty darn great. Let's leave it at that, and look towards next year.
Fans do not "deserve" a darn thing. Yes, we want our team to win, but a fan supports his or her team through both the good times AND the bad times. We don't deserve to have only good times.
And to say this crap after a season that exceeded everyone's expectations is just ludicrous. If you can't appreciate this overachieving team then you need to find someone else to root for.
I am proud of what Weber has done since he has been here; I love Illinois basketball and we have the right man for the head coach. Relax and enjoy the ride.
the real "crap" is people like you apologizing for one disgraceful performance after another....and please stop plagerizing the over used and inappropriately used "overachieving"...Who can blame Bill Self for wanting to leave for a place were everyone,including the fans,want to be the best and not settle for "crap" that this program has been displaying
I am not apologizing for anything. That was not a good performance last night, and nothing I said pretended it was. I understand when a team lays an egg, and they did last night.
My point is that fans don't deserve anything from a basketball team, and that I think Weber has done a good job since he has been here. It hasn't been all good times and there have been some really bad times, but that is the nature of the beast.
And I will continue to use the term overachieving when it is appropriate like it is for this team. There was no one I talked to at the beginning of the season who expected this group of players to be a 5 seed in the tournament. I saw a lot of good things that I did not expect this team to be able to do this year. I believe that overall for the season they played better than they were expected to. If you can't see or acknowledge that, then you have not really been watching this season with anything but an agenda to be critical.
I am a fan of Illinois basketball, and I would love for them to win a NC, and I don't think this program should shoot for anything less. However, that is going to take some time, probably more than you want to wait. However, if you want to continue to be a fan of this program, you will probably have no choice but to be patient and try not to let the performance of a bunch of young men playing a game run your life. I want the best for this team, but that does not mean that I throw everyone under the bus every time they lose a game they should have won. I have been in sports long enough to know that the players and the coaches are more disappointed with their performances than any of the fans. It really does no good just to criticize and call for the coaches head or wish players weren't in the program. That just shows your self-centeredness and immaturity.
GO ILLINI!!!
oh I have been watching...I saw them run up the wins that you love to discuss,against teams like Hawaii and Lewis College,who they beat by 6 pts in Assembly Hall,and speaking of Assembly Hall..I believe they scored 30 points for the entire game against a football school in there didnt they,enroute to losing at home?...I could care less you have "been in sports"...maybe you ought to have been in Williams Arena when they were destroyed or the Kohl Center humiliation or slaughtered by Purdue in Canseco when they had all their players back...enough debating you...gbrew you go give your poor little boys some milk and cookies and tell them you are protecting them from the self centered immature mean bully FearTheChief !!!
wow, fear. I really don't think anyone needs any protecting from you although apparently you have an over-exaggerated sense of your own importance.
I thought I already said that I know there were bad times during this season. In fact, my exact quote was, "It hasn't been all good times and there have been some really bad times, but that is the nature of the beast." That has not only applied to the history of the Illinos BB program, but to this season as well.
One of my points still remains that this team overachieved this year. I will also add that the future looks pretty darn bright. In all your ranting, you never address that point. Apparently, you can't help but to focus on everything negative that happened during the season to appreciate the positive step this year's team (made up of pretty much the same players) took toward becoming a NC contender.
I don't know if they will make it; I hope they do. I think the pieces are there -- good coaching staff, good players, and for the most part a good fan base. I prefer to focus on those positives while still acknowledging that the team has a ways to do which was demonstrated this year in some of the examples you pointed out. I just don't see the need to constantly dwell on those negatives without also seeing the positive things this team has done.
I do really wish that Illinois fans would get over their belief that they are entitled to something just because they root for a particular team. Doing that only makes you sound like an Indiana fan.
This team certainly exceeded my expectations going into the season. After seeing a couple of games, it became obvious to me they were likely good enough to make the NCAA tourney. Much of it was attributed, I think, to Chester's leadership.
Someone will need to step-up next year to fill that leadership role if the Illini are to repeat a 24 win season.
After next season, the FUN and EXCITEMENT will be there again with the arrival of 2010 recruiting class.
the"positive steps this years team took toward being a National Championship contender" !!!???????????? Ok gbrew you are now officially an idiot !!! I don't argue my point with ignorant people because they drag you down to their level and then win with experience...
Here's the deal. Did the Illini overachieve this season? YES! Did they play any differently last nite than they have all season? NO! Here's reality - Weber is an excellent teacher/coach at the D1 level. He, however, cannot recruit the 4-5 star HS players. We will, and always will, only attract the 2-3 star talent that he had success with at SIU. So we'll continue to make due with them while the state's best talent call Kansas, Indiana, Memphis, Louisville, Gonzaga, and Duke home! Should Weber be dismissed as coach? NO! Should we make our expectations more realistic (i.e. win 20+ games and exit in first round of NCAA)? ABSOLUTELY YES!!
It's our reality - DEAL WITH IT.
I agree that there are a lot of people crying needlessly. Yes, I do think we took a step toward a national championship this season. We went from a 16 win season to a 24 win season and captured a 5 seed in the tournament. That is already closer to a NC than we were last season.
We have two great recruiting classes coming in with the talent when combined with BW's coaching can take us back to the top tier of teams in the country. We have already seen what BW can do when he has the right players on the floor, and we are getting players of that caliber. What was demonstrated again this season was that the coaching staff has the ability to get players to play as a unit so that the whole is greater than the sum of the parts. Weber did the same thing in 2004/2005; he just had more talented players to work with. The players are coming that, when combined with improving existing players, can get us back to the FF and be a NC contender.
And, before you rant about recruiting, let me say that I think Weber could have and should have done a better job on that front, and he has fixed whatever problems he had in that areas.
I just wonder what kind of pleasure people get from ranting about their team rather than remaining hopeful and calling people "idiots" who choose to be optimistic about the future of this program. I see nothing idiotic about seeing and pointing out the positive path that this team is on.
However, apparently no one here is going to take off the blinders of some people who choose to only see the negative.
if you dont like name calling scroll up to your unprovoked " Immature" and "self centeredness" and see why you can dish it out and then whine like a baby when you get it back...the positive path if getting blown out by a mid major....wonderful...and all of you ranters about the fabulous recruiting class next year # 1 the 2010 class seems like it may have value with Richmond from Waukegan # 2 Weber wanted to make Legion sound like the second coming for a year and half and then kept him on the bench all year while McCamey failed 90% of the time # # You prophets of all things great act like no other team in the Big 10 will have strong incoming classes....Im sure Izzo and Tubby will surprise you if their players are outstanding,,,enough with you every thing is beautiful people,,,watch Purdue and Michigan and Kansas and Michigan State and.....this weekend! Enjoy yourselves and your overachieving season
Evaluating this season only by looking backwards at last season's mess and saying we improved is irrelevant. Some good new directions emerged this year (Matto Chart, more heart from a few players, etc.) but overall the team is far from where this University is -- a consistent National leader and getting better. The jury on this team and BW is pretty clear across all kinds of internet sites, and RG needs to pay attention.
First, there is a big difference between calling someone an idiot and saying that their comments demonstrate self-centerdness and immaturity. Calling someone an idiot is making a judgement about that person. Saying that comments demonstrate self-centerdness and immaturity is making a judgement about the comments, not the person. While you may think this is a fine line, most people will agree that the two are vastly different. However, I do apologize for the ambiguity of the comment. I should have made it clear that I was referring to your comments which sounded immature and self centered.
Second, I was not whining about you calling me names. You can do what you want in that respect. My point was that it says a lot more about you and your attitude than it says about me. Basically, you called me an idiot because I am hopeful about the future of this program. I just don't understand why that would be your measure of idiocy.
Third, you keep putting words in my mouth and changing the argument. I certainly don't think that the rest of the Big 10 or the the rest of college basketball is not improving as well. I believe that our recruits combined with what I think (and many other people who know more than I do) is a very good coaching staff and a solid base of current players will make us very competitive with other top teams. I do believe we will contend for the title in a few years, and that is mainly because I don't dwell on the negative things that happened this season like you seem to.
I also never said that everything is beautiful. The game the team played last night was ugly as hell. The PSU game where we scored 33 points was ugly from an offensive standpoint (but we still held PSU to 38 points). The MN game was ugly. However, the Missouri game was pretty darn good along with wins that no one was expecting against Purdue. We also were very competitive in games against MSU, and Clemson.
I have acknowledged that the negative aspects of this season show that this program has a lot of work to do to get back to where I am sure all fans want to see them. I really wish you and other fans who dwell on these negatives would also acknowledge that there were a lot of positives during this season and that it at least doesn't look like this team will regress to anything like last season.
I guess I really just don't like all the negativism that is sprayed forth every time some fans feel that they don't get what they deserve from the team. Like I said before, no fan deserves anything from the team. If they make you feel that badly, then please for your own sake, find some other team to root for that is more to your liking.
Some of our fans would still be having this conversation even if we were playing today. It might be delayed for awhile, but the sentiments are there and won't change no matter what improvements are made.
I am convinced that it is in the nature of some people to focus on the negative aspect of anything and complain when they don't get what they think they deserve. If people want to live their lives spewing negativity, that is their option; I would rather look at the world in a positive light and be optimistic.
Comments
IlliniHQ.com embraces discussion of Illini sports. We welcome you to contribute your ideas, opinions and comments, but we ask that you avoid personal attacks, vulgarity and hate speech. we reserve the right to remove any comment at its discretion, and we will block repeat offenders' accounts. To post comments, you must first be a registered user, and your username will appear with any comment you post. Happy posting.