If you think Ohio State has problems, look at the way Illinois is stumbling into Columbus on Tuesday.
View full sizeBeleagured Illinois basketball coach Bruce Weber doesn't seem to have any answers for the stumbling Illini, who were routed by lowly Nebraska on Saturday and have lost eight of their last nine games.COLUMBUS, Ohio -- Ohio State, after two losses in three games, has some fires to put out. Illinois, after eight losses in nine games, is stepping onto a kerosene basketball court every night and embattled coach Bruce Weber is a match.
Since beating the Buckeyes on Jan. 18, the Illini are 1-8, their only win a 42-41 victory over Big Ten leader Michigan State. After Saturday's 23-point loss at Nebraska, Illinois' D.J. Richardson told the Champaign News-Gazette, "We really hit rock bottom tonight," saying the Illini looked as bad as they can look.
By the end of the loss, center Meyers Leonard, who was giving Jared Sullinger problems just over a month ago, was crying on the bench.
"Everyone was sad," Richardson told the News-Gazette. "That's good that you see a lot of people in there crying."
That came after Weber's post-game catharsis following Wednesday's loss to Purdue, when he questioned himself for the way he has coached his team this season. Weber said, among other things, that he and his staff should have challenged Leonard and leading scorer Brandon Paul earlier in the season.
"Instead of creating toughness and developing a team, I coach not to lose all year. And that's really sad, to be honest," Weber told reporters. It is. But it's also not a surprise for anyone watching the Illini the last few years. Weber frequently didn't seem to mesh with his players.
He looked to have a difficult relationship with former point guard Demetri McCamey. Freshman Jereme Richmond declared for the NBA draft after last season, was not selected and wound up with 18 months of probation after a weapons charge. Not winning to their talent level became a regular occurrence for the Illini.
"Many of the players he's recruited to Illinois haven't fit the profile of the players he succeeded with," the News-Gazette's Paul Klee wrote. "The same discipline that worked for decades isn't accepted anymore. And he went along with it, instead of sticking by his own rules."
It's hard to imagine the Illini getting it together now, but they will be a desperate team when they come to Columbus for Tuesday's 7 p.m. tip. They'll come with the confidence of knowing they've beaten the Buckeyes already.
If Illinois isn't already a defeated team, it could be dangerous, especially if Paul is close to as hot as he was in scoring 43 against Ohio State the first time. But if it's the Buckeyes who get back on track at Illinois' expense, have some fire extinguishers in the visiting locker room.
Tournament aspirations: Recently the number thrown around for potential NCAA bids for the Big Ten has been nine. If the conference isn't careful, it could be more like six.
The NCAA hosted a mock selection meeting for the media this week, and the mock bracket produced included seven Big Ten teams, with Illinois sliding in as a No. 12 seed and Minnesota and Northwestern left out. Since then, the Illinois freefall has continued.
Right now, Northwestern is 16-10 and 6-8 in the Big Ten; Minnesota is 17-10 and 5-9; and Illinois is 16-11 and 5-9. The teams don't play each other over the final two weeks of the season, but they do play the Big Ten's best. Illinois is at Ohio State and home against Michigan; Northwestern has both the Wolverines and Buckeyes at home; and Minnesota hosts Michigan State.
All three teams may need a win against one of the best three teams in the conference to get that bid.
Source: http://www.cleveland.com/osu/index.ssf/2012/02/illinois_appears_helpless_to_h.html
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