As Illini basketball gears up for season opener, many questions remain
From here, Illinois coach Bruce Weber must figure it out on the fly.
Freshman forwards Bill Cole and Mike Davis were considered possible starters when Illinois hosts Northeastern in the season opener today at Assembly Hall. Freshman center Mike Tisdale is the team's backup behind senior Shaun Pruitt, but Weber hinted that Tisdale might sit against Northeastern while others get the first opportunity.
Junior-college transfer Rodney Alexander, reserve freshman point guard Demetri McCamey and junior walk-on Steve Holdren also attempt to grab a spot in the top nine or 10 as Weber pieces together a rotation with key games at the Maui Invitational a little more than a week away.
"Maybe one guy could start or could redshirt,'' Weber said. "It's two extremes. That's where we're at. That goes back to consistency. One day a guy needs to redshirt. The next day he's in our top five. I hope we can establish some kind of roles and know where everybody is, know what they'll give us each game.
"It might take a while. It might not come overnight. I might have to hold somebody out a little bit, see how guys produce. If they don't produce, then you give somebody else a chance.''
Weber has the largest group of newcomers in his 29 years of coaching.
At this point, "I would anticipate nobody would redshirt,'' Weber said.
Although he listed seven players as possible starters -- Cole, Davis and Alexander were options at one forward spot -- Weber felt solid with his top four players. Junior guard Trent Meacham joined Pruitt, forward Brian Randle and point guard Chester Frazier as Weber's nucleus.
"I feel pretty good about the first four,'' Weber said. "The next five or six guys have been surprises and showed they can play. Now which one plays what spot? When do they come into the game? Are they going to be consistent?''
After those seven possible starters, add McCamey, Holdren and Tisdale. That's 10 players without considering Jeff Jordan, who logged minutes in the Canadian exhibition trip. Veteran reserves Calvin Brock, Brian Carlwell and Rich Semrau battle for the scraps on the available minutes.
"The big word is consistency, especially with the young guys so we get a good feel of what to expect when we go out there,'' Weber said. "They won't be perfect every day.''
Weber's rotation won't go further than 10 players.
"I would say nine or 10,'' Weber said. "After that, it's pretty hard.''
Davis is Illinois' most improved since school began in August. Cole has been the most consistent among the freshmen, getting comfortable in the motion offense thanks to experience with it at Peoria Richwoods High School while showing Weber surprising toughness on defense.
The possibility of redshirting "has been kind of a crazy thing to deal with,'' Cole said. "I'm sure we all want to play, but we're all going to listen to the coaches.
"I just came in here and worked as hard as I could. I didn't know where that would take me. I went out there and played hard, played with intensity and did the little things like playing defense, taking charges, getting deflections. I'm ready to see where coach has me slotted to play.''
If McCamey keeps improving, Weber said, he could join Frazier as the two guards on the floor. Holdren's offense slumped over the last 10 days, thus limiting his playing time since he's considered an "instant offense'' player.
Tisdale fights a lack of strength, but Weber considered him Pruitt's top backup. Weber admitted "I've gone 360 degrees'' on his thinking with Tisdale.
Yet Weber might let Tisdale sit early while giving Carlwell another chance. To return to the level where he was a big contributor last season before missing the final eight games because of a head injury suffered in the February car crash, Carlwell must lose weight and spend extra time on his fundamentals.
"That's got to be his mindset right now if he wants to get back in the mix,'' Weber said.
John Supinie can be reached at Johnsupinie@aol.com. For more coverage, read Illini Talk blog at www.sj-r.com <http://www.sj-r.com> and www.pjstar.com <http://www.pjstar.com> .
Illinois (0-0) vs. Northeastern (0-0)
1 p.m., Assembly Hall, Champaign (ESPN360, Illini Sports Network)
ILLINOIS (0-0) ppg rpg
F Brian Randle Sr. 6-8 7.4 5.0
F Rodney Alexander Jr. 6-7
C Shaun Pruitt Sr. 6-10 11.4 7.5
G Trent Meacham Jr. 6-2 5.0 1.0
G Chester Frazier Jr. 6-2 7.2 4.5
NORTHEASTERN (0-0) ppg rpg
F Manny Adako So. 6-8 5.3 4.0
F Chris Alvarez Jr. 6-8
C Nkem Ojouboh So. 6-9
G Matt Janning So. 6-4 11.6 4.5
G Chaisson Allen Fr. 6-4
(NOTE: Alexander, Alvarez and Ojouboh didn't play Division I basketball last season.)
Noteworthy: Illinois defeated Northeastern 76-57 in the 1985 NCAA tournament's first round. The Huskies were led by current Connecticut coach Jim Calhoun. . . . Illinois tied with Florida and Duke for the most wins (112) during the previous four years. The Illini are 107-7 at Assembly Hall in the last eight seasons. . . Alexander is a transfer from Redlands Community College in Oklahoma. Alvarez is a transfer from Dayton, where he was a former teammate with Meacham. Ojouboh transfered from Texas-San Antonio.
Key for Illini: Settle on a rotation that may go 10 players deep.
Key for Huskies: Receive contributions from Alvarez and Ojouboh, a pair of key transfers.
Betting line:
Key quote: "He knows what he needs to do. Fighting screens and fighting around the post, he doesn't have the strength or explosion or quickness to do it. He has a little bit of frustration.'' -- Illinois coach Bruce Weber on freshman center Mike Tisdale.
Prediction: Illinois 74, Northeastern 60