GAME 12

UI men vs. Missouri, 8:30 p.m. today

LINEUPS

ILLINOIS (8-3)

Probable starters

P Name HT. YR. PPG

G Demetri McCamey 6-3 Jr. 14.2

G D.J. Richardson 6-3 Fr. 10.8

G Brandon Paul 6-3 Fr. 10.4

F Mike Davis 6-9 Jr. 12.5

C Mike Tisdale 7-1 Jr. 10.8

Top reserves

F Dominique Keller 6-7 Sr. 7.0

F Bill Cole 6-9 Jr. 3.5

G Jeff Jordan 6-1 Jr. 2.3

MISSOURI (7-3)

Probable starters

G Kim English 6-6 So. 16.1

F Keith Ramsey 6-9 Sr. 5.9

F Laurence Bowers 6-8 So. 10.2

G Michael Dixon 6-1 Fr. 8.2

G Zaire Taylor 6-4 Sr. 9.0

Top reserves

G Marcus Denmon 6-3 So. 10.5

F Justin Safford 6-8 Jr. 7.6

G Miguel Paul 6-1 So. 4.2

FACTS & FIGURES

Site: Scottrade Center (22,000), St. Louis.

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: ESPN2. Beth Mowins is on play-by-play duties, and Steve Lavin provides the expert analysis.

Series: Illinois leads 27-12. The Illini have won a Braggin' Rights series-record nine straight meetings. Four of those wins were by double digits; two were by a point. Bruce Weber is 6-1 against Missouri, including a 6-0 record as the coach at Illinois.

Coaches: Weber (160-60 in seventh season at Illinois, 263-114 in 12th season overall); Mike Anderson (72-38 in fourth season at Missouri and 161-79 in eighth season overall).

KLEE'S STORYLINES

Football mentality

UI coach Bruce Weber said this week he's in search of ... a football player. "One thing we don't have is somebody that's played football," he said. Actually, he recently had two ex-football players (C.J. Jackson, Brian Carlwell), but neither made an impact on the court at Illinois. Weber's point was that there's a physical mind-set missing from the Illini. He said Tom Izzo's better teams had ex-football players like Mateen Cleaves and Charlie Bell. "All those years at Purdue we had some guys that played football," Weber said, adding that he has attended high school football games in the past to watch basketball prospects. By their own admission, the Illini aren't a bruising bunch. "Our team is not based on physicality. I think we're more of a finesse team, not as much through brute force but just get the job done," said forward Richard Semrau. "I think we need it. I know the Big Ten is a physical conference with tough players." It's been clear for a while that Illinois lacks a physical presence, a banger that prefers contact. "I just don't know where they are," Weber said. "I've talked to Jerrance (Howard) about it. Sometimes as a young coach (he says), 'You can never have too much talent.' Yeah, but you need the other things, too." The issue isn't a size thing, though, as much as it's an attitude thing. These Illini play pretty. If you're playing the Illini, the first thing you should do is commit a hard foul or block their shot. After Georgia blocked an Illini shot on Saturday, the Illinois frontcourt wasn't the same. Missouri isn't a physical team, but it plays with passion – the same formula used by Bradley and Western Kentucky in recent Illinois losses.

Homecoming

Look for the Griffeys today at Scottrade Center. You probably won't miss them. "My dad bought somewhere in the 30s," Tyler said. That's a lot of tickets for the St. Louis-area native's family and friends. And though he's a freshman, Griffey is more familiar with the Braggin' Rights rivalry than most. He attended the last five matchups – sometimes as a guest of the Illini, sometimes as a guest of the Tigers. "Missouri and Illinois both recruited me, so whichever team had the home game, they would give me the tickets," said Griffey. "So I would rotate and sit behind each bench." More than half of his graduating class at Wildwood (Mo.) Lafayette attended Missouri, so he's liable to get an earful if the Illini's nine-game winning streak ends today. The freshmen had individual meetings with Bruce Weber before practice Monday to get a midseason appraisal. "Offensively he's fine," Weber said, adding that Griffey's understanding of "defensive concepts" is partly what has limited his minutes to 8.1 per game. But that's fine with the rookie. He entered the season with a mature perspective, knowing that his time probably will come as an upperclassman. "He said I just need time to learn my defensive concepts. If I keep doing that, keep getting better every day, keep working my tail off, I should see improved minutes," Griffey said. "My goal is to get better and help this team win, in any way possible."

Tiger stripes

Missouri's leading scorer, Kim English, has unique insight into the Illini. "I actually worked out with Chester Frazier every morning in the offseason," English said Monday. "That's my guy. He talked a lot of trash this summer, how they were 4-0 against us. I could say, 'You were just 1-0 against me.' " The daily workouts also allowed English to pick Frazier's brain on the Illini. He said Frazier was particularly high on Brandon Paul. English said it doesn't matter Paul and D.J. Richardson are freshmen. The two rookies are a big part of the Missouri scouting report. "Today in college basketball, your class doesn't really mean anything," English said. "I thought I was pretty solid last year as a freshman, so I'm not looking at their class as an advantage (for Missouri). If you can play, you can play." As for the Tigers, who raced into the NCAA tournament's Elite Eight last year, there has been a transition process from a team that scored with its forwards to a team that has better guards. "I think they're different," Weber said. The Tigers still use fullcourt pressure to disrupt opponents. Missouri plays at the 29th-fastest pace in the country, according to statistician Ken Pomeroy's numbers. To replicate the chaos  Monday, the Illini practiced with more players on defense than players on offense. "I think we're faster this year. We're more guard-oriented than we were last year," English said. "I think we're just still trying to find our identity. We seem to be a blue-collar team that can lock down and play fast. When teams have gotten us out of that fast-paced game, we've struggled."

PREDICTION

Illinois 76, Missouri 73

Prior to the annual Braggin' Rights game, Bruce Weber's staff often compiles a "montage" of previous highlights against Missouri, he said. In the past he's also asked former Illini to call current players to remind them of the importance of beating their border rival. Guys like Stephen Bardo have given game-day speeches to the Illini. "If anything, for us, it's bigger for us, because of what just happened (a loss to Georgia)," junior Bill Cole said. On the other side of the border, Missouri coach Mike Anderson largely avoids talk of the streak. "It's an added incentive to win to give our fans a merry Christmas," said Missouri guard Kim English. "All I want for Christmas is a win against Illinois. That's all I want, seriously." Weber had their attention in practice Sunday and Monday – a loss to Georgia will do that – and has a history of getting his teams to bounce back when there is practice time after a loss. Illinois stops its neutral-court losing streak at five games, dating to last season, and makes it a decade of dominance against Missouri. (News-Gazette prediction record: 7-3)