Illini Tale of the Tape: Dayton Flyers vs. Illinois, NIT Quarters (3/24/2010)

With the final spot in the NIT Final Four on the line, two inconsistent teams linked together by one man – Trent Meacham – met at the Assembly Hall on March 24, 2010.

In what truly was a bad matchup for the boys from Champaign-Urbana, the athletic Dayton Flyers ran Illinois out of the Assembly Hall and pretty much led by double-digits the whole way through until a late Illini comeback made things somewhat interesting.

For Dayton, this convincing win would mark another step on its path to the NIT Championship.

For the Illini, this humbling loss was a fitting end to one of the most frustrating basketball seasons in recent memory.

In the last 40 days, I have revisited 32 Illinois basketball games from last season, watching every single minute and taking notes on each possession.

Exhausted but excited, I proudly present the final Illini Tale of the Tape for the 2009-2010 season.

Where I Was for This Game: Watching from home, very nervous about this matchup. I had the opportunity to see Dayton live in person at the Sears Center during the 2008-2009 season, when the Flyers absolutely ran over a senior-laden Marquette team with Jerel McNeal, Wesley Matthews and Dominic James. With that game in mind, I had a bad feeling that Dayton was going to be a very bad matchup for Illinois, which hadn’t seen a team with this type of breakneck speed and full-court action all year long in the Big Ten.

What I Remember from This Game:

● My fears were confirmed right away, with Dayton jumping out on the Illini and leading by 13 points at the break. Until the end of this game, Illinois was never really close against the Flyers. There was a reason I wanted Cincinnati to beat Dayton in the game prior to this one, as I felt the Bearcats would have been a better matchup for the Illini.

● I remember ESPN getting to this game a few minutes late due to the Rhode Island-Virginia Tech NIT game. As that game ended, I saw in the upper corner that Illinois had taken an early 3-0 lead. I seriously wondered at the time if that would be Illinois’ last lead in this game; it actually would be.

● Illinois making another furious comeback that was too little, too late. At this point of the year, I was of the opinion that these comebacks were getting a bit stale and frustrating to watch. To the credit of the Illini, Illinois had been playing much more consistent and focused in the 4 games prior to the Dayton contest.

● Marveling at Dayton going up and down the court. While Dayton’s frenetic style may have been its worst enemy at times last season, it sure is fun to watch when clicking on all cylinders.

● Illinois had a really frustrating evening. A lot of shots spun in and out and the Illini were also fighting the officials too much in this game. While there were a few bad calls against Illinois, Dayton was clearly the aggressor all night.

● Wondering how this Dayton team (with its athleticism and talent) didn’t make the NCAA Tournament but then understanding why in the last 2 minutes as the Flyers nearly coughed up the game with missed free throws and some turnovers.

● Dayton utilizing a deep bench, something that I would like to see Illinois do next season and beyond given the Illini’s depth. Not that I am saying that Illinois needs to make hockey-style line changes, but it would be great to see Bruce Weber have a consistent rotation of 10 guys. I think depth is going to be Illinois’ greatest strength in the next couple of seasons.

● Hoping after this game that Dayton would win the NIT, which the Flyers would do. It made me feel a lot better to see Dayton pretty much dismantle North Carolina in a very similar fashion during the NIT Championship Game at Madison Square Garden.

Some Things That Surprised Me/Stood Out Upon A Second Viewing:

● Dayton had 55 substitutions in this game after making 65 substitutions in the win against Cincinnati.

● Dayton senior forward Kurt Huelsman was making his 135^th straight start, a  school record.

● I knew that Illinois rarely got to the free throw line but was surprised to realize that the Illini were 331 out of 347 teams in terms of free throw attempts. That’s just awful.

● Was surprised to see that Dayton averaged only 6.8 threes per game during the regular season. The Flyers were 8/18 from three in this game and had 7 treys with 14:57 to go in the second half.

● Was a bit surprised to hear ESPN announcer Jimmy Dykes say that this was his first ever visit to the Assembly Hall.

Alright.

Let’s do this thing, the last Illini Tale of the Tape for the 2009-2010 season.

Dayton Flyers (22-12, 8-8 in the Atlantic 10) vs. Illinois Fighting Illini (21-14, 10-8)

Dayton Head Coach Brian Gregory starts London Warren, Chris Johnson and Marcus Johnson at the guards,  and Chris Wright and Kurt Huelsman at the  forwards.

Here is the Dayton roster: 33 Chris Wright, 45 Kurt Huelsman, 1 London Warren, 4 Chris Johnson, 32 Marcus Johnson, 00 Mickey Perry, 3 Rob Lowery, 22 Paul Williams, 23 Luke Fabrizius, 34 Devin Searcy, 44 Josh Benson (trust me – it’s needed when trying to sort out who is on the floor for this sub-crazy team).

Illinois Head Coach Bruce Weber goes with his usual starting lineup of Demetri McCamey and D.J. Richardson at the guards, Bill Cole and Mike Davis at the forwards, and Mike Tisdale at center.

Announcers: Brad Nessler and Jimmy Dykes

ESPN picked this game up at 17:04, due to a late finish in the Rhode Island-Virginia Tech NIT Game. Dayton leads 7-3 at this point. Dayton is on a 7-0 run after an Illinois three to open the game.

● Demetri McCamey: Loses his man off an inbounds play at 16:19, resulting in an easy Flyers’ layup and a 9-3 ILL deficit. Aggressive attack of the hoop at 15:47, drawing a shooting foul and leading to the under-16 timeout. Misses his first free throw and then hits the second out of the under-16, cutting the Dayton lead to 9-4.

Nice dribble drive off a curl at 14:20, but his running layup goes in and then out. Dayton pushes off the miss and Mickey Perry hits a three to put Illinois in a 15-6 hole at 14:13. Good job of getting back on defense at 13:37, when he throws an errant Dayton pass out of bounds off of Huelsman. Gets posted on the next possession by Huelsman, who receives an easy entry pass and lays the ball in for a 17-6 Dayton lead with 13:15 to go.

Aggressive dribble drive and push floater rattles in at 10:22, cutting the ILL deficit to 26-13.  Nice push and feed after a missed Fabrizius three at 9:25, when he hits a wide-open Davis for a dunk on the baseline. Catches a break at 7:58, buying a head fake from Perry, who goes baseline and feeds Wright, who fumbles the ball and travels before going up for an uncontested dunk.

Nice job of dragging the screen (as Dykes says) before missing a good-looking pull-up jumper at 7:35. Great job of getting back at 7:30, when he strips a Perry layup attempt. Man, Dayton does a good job of going from defense to offense. Misses a runner at 6:54 with the shot clock down to two, and Dayton gets out and runs, with Marcus Johnson missing a layup but Chris Johnson stuffing in the miss for a dunk and 31-17 ILL deficit. Nice job at 6:11, sagging down and stealing an errant Lowry pass off the screen and roll and then going coast to coast for a layup that cuts the Dayton lead to 31-19. Beautiful hesitation move on that play. Great use of the screen, not committing either way at 5:07, and then firing a one-handed pass to an open Richardson under the basket for a layup.

Bad play at 2:52, when he leaves his feet and throws a pass that is easily stolen under the Dayton basket. Forces and badly misses a three that is knocked out of bounds to Illinois at 1:11.

After a Dayton missed three has the Assembly Hall getting a bit louder, McCamey is woefully short on a three off a curl screen at 18:27. That good look would have cut the Illinois deficit to 8. Nice job of coming off a screen at 17:57, hesitating with the dribble and then attacking the rim for a 40-31 ILL deficit. Too blasé and weak with the ball at 15:33, when Warren simply rips it out of his hands; luckily, McCamey gets back and forces Warren to miss a difficult layup. Catches a break at 15:23, taking an extra dribble and running over Fabrizius, who is called for a block. Beautiful spin move and give-and-go to Cole at 13:37, resulting in a layup for the small forward. Beautiful one-hand bounce pass to Cole for a dunk at 11:31, after a great hustle play from Griffey.

Good idea at 10:56, trying to hit the diving Keller off the screen and roll game; unfortunately, McCamey’s pass from the three-point line to the left block didn’t have enough steam. Dayton makes the steal and hits a leaking Chris Wright ahead for a dunk and 53-39 game.

Not his greatest effort at 6:46, failing to go after a loose ball following a missed Griffey three; Dayton wanted that 50/50 ball more and then pushed up court, where Chris Johnson missed a layup but followed with his own tap in. Dayton leads 61-45 with 6:42 to go as Illinois looks a bit defeated. Aggressive drive and layup at 6:20, cutting the Dayton lead to 61-47. Aggressive drive and layup at 4:40 cuts the ILL deficit to 61-51. McCamey can’t contain on the ensuing defensive possession, leading to a Dayton dribble drive, kick and drive against the collapsed Illinois defense. Griffey picked up the foul on that play and Chris Johnson makes one of two to put Illinois down 62-51.

Steals the ball from Warren off the full-court press at 2:02 and gets his layup to roll in, cutting the Dayton lead to 67-60. That’s the closest Illinois has gotten this game all half. Dayton will break the pressure on the next possession, with Marcus Johnson finding Chris Wright for a slam and 69-60 game.

Fouls Marcus Johnson at 39.4 seconds, with Illinois down 72-66. Johnson misses the first but hits the second to push the ILL deficit to 73-66. Gets fouled on an offensive rebound of a missed Paul three at 2.4 seconds, with Illinois down 6. Misses both free throws as the clock runs out. Illinois loses 77-71.

Overall: 10 points (6/19 from the field, 0-4 from three, 1-4 from the line), 10 assists, 8 rebounds, 1 block, 3 steals and 4 turnovers in 40 minutes. Didn’t realize that McCamey nearly had a triple double. A rough shooting night for McCamey, who couldn’t get anything going from outside. With that said, this game was a strong reminder of how McCamey had to do way too much for this team during his junior season. Dykes made some good observations about McCamey’s junior season: he got a lot better but could use one more year of college ball and conditioning before trying to make the NBA. Thankfully, McCamey will be back next year.

● D.J. Richardson: Struggles to contain the speedy Lowry at 14:49 and the Dayton guard gets into the lane, where he misses a shot; however, Huelsman gets the offensive rebound and kicks out to Lowry for a three and a 12-6 Dayton lead. Misses a difficult jumper off the bounce at 13:41. That shot was contested on the left wing, and Richardson panicked a bit after getting caught with the ball and dribbling too much. It’s key for Illinois to move the ball against Dayton, all the while working the shot clock and making the Flyers defend for a good 25-30 seconds.

Doesn’t contain Lowry at 10:11, resulting in a dribble drive and kick to Fabrizius for a three.

Back in at 6:17 for Jordan. Makes a layup to cut the ILL deficit to 33-21 at 5:07 after a beautiful find and one-hand delivery from McCamey. Nice dribble drive and find at 4:02, but Davis misses a one-handed floater in the lane.

Penetrates too deep at 2:31, leaving Paul out to dry with a difficult pass that goes out of bounds to Dayton. Misses a flat and quick corner three at 1:58.

Nice job at 18:48, passing up a three from the top of the key, attacking off the dribble and finding Tisdale for a two-hand slam. Can’t recover on a screen for Lowry at 17:38, and the Dayton guard hits a long jumper to put Illinois down 42-31.

Can’t contain Lowry at 7:53, as the Dayton guard easily penetrates the lane and hits Huelsman for a layup plus the foul (that’s five on Tisdale). Illinois trails 59-45 heading into the under-8.

Misses a difficult pull-up jumper with 4 minutes left; forced that shot and there was no one down low for the rebound attempt.

Gets his first field goal in the second half at 3:11 when his floater in the lane is goal tended by Searcy, thus cutting the Dayton lead to 64-53. Hits a quick three at 2:28 to cut the Dayton lead to 67-56.

Commits a blocking foul on Marcus Johnson at 1:15. Johnson hits one of two free throws to put Illinois in a 70-63 hole. Air balls a three at 1:05, but the ball is knocked out of bounds by Dayton. Fouls out at 55.5 seconds after a missed McCamey three. Marcus Johnson misses both free throws and Brandon Paul is fouled over the back on the rebound attempt.

Overall: 10 points (4/11 from the field, 2/6 from three), 2 rebounds, 2 assists, 1 block and 1 turnover in 30 minutes. A quiet end to Richardson’s very solid freshman season. Seemed to struggle a bit with this pace of the game, looking like a freshman at times. Struggled containing Dayton’s quick point guards, Warren and Lowry. Former Illini Chester Frazier recently said that Richardson needs to continue to make improvements on the defensive end. Quite honestly, he was probably Illinois’ best defender last season. I can see this kid winning Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year as an upperclassman and emerging as a big-time leader and all-time Illini favorite when all is said and done.

● Bill Cole: Starts the game and gets replaced by Brandon Paul at 16:19.

Back in at 9:55 for Paul. Nice job at 9:13, when he moves a feet and forces a travel on Paul Williams. Nice job getting his hands in the passing lane and coming up with a steal at 8:45; however, Cole can’t finish on the break as the ball is knocked away from him out of bounds during the course of a layup attempt. Misses a good look from three, set up by McCamey penetration, at 8:23; that shot was in and out.

Starts the second half on the bench, as Paul gets the nod. Back in at 15:33 (after an Illinois timeout) and comes up with a strong rebound of a missed Warren layup. Strong defensive rebound of a missed Chris Johnson three at 14:41. Misses a high-arching three at 14:06. Nice give and go with McCamey at 13:38, resulting in an easy layup and a 47-37 game in favor of Dayton. Nice back cut to the basket after a great hustle play by Griffey at 11:31, as McCamey finds Cole for a dunk and 51-39 game in favor of Dayton. Good hands at 11:14, knocking a pass to the diving Huelsman off the Dayton big man and leading to the under-12.

In at 2:18. Back in at 1:25 for Paul. Hits a corner three (set up by nice McCamey penetration) at 1:20, cutting the Illini deficit to 69-63.

Overall: 7 points (3/5 from the field, 1/5 from three), 4 rebounds, 1 steal and 1 turnover in 15 minutes. Had some nice energy plays in the second half but this probably wasn’t the best matchup for Cole, especially given Dayton’s quickness on the perimeter. With that said, I was a bit surprised that Cole didn’t get some more minutes in this game. All in all, Cole established a role as an energy guy and leader who did a lot of little things in his third season at Illinois; even with Jereme Richmond heading to Illinois next season, Cole will play an important role on this team, both as a leader and energizer. It will be interesting to see how long Cole is able to ward off Richmond at the three spot.

● Mike Davis: Misses a difficult jumper off once bounce over Huelsman at 16:29. Gets posted up and fouls Dayton’s Chris Wright on a pass off at 16:19. Gets replaced by Dominique Keller.

Back in at 13:13 for Keller. Poor job on the inbounds defense at 11:58, allowing an easy entry pass to Wright, who hits a turnaround jumper in the lane for a 21-9 Dayton lead. Rushes and misses a one-handed floater (1-on-4 there in transition) at 11:52. Dayton pushes off the miss, with Johnson getting fouled at the rim 4 seconds later by Tisdale, who now has 2 fouls heading into the under-12.

Nice job of setting a screen, popping out and diving to the rim at 11:29, when he receives a strong pass from Paul and finishes with a one-hand floater in the lane to cut the game to 23-11 in favor of Dayton. A bit slow to close on Luke Fabrizius on a pick and pop at the top of the key at 10:32, and the Dayton reserve hits a very deep three to put the Flyers ahead 26-11. A very nice job of running the floor at 9:25, getting down court and behind the Dayton defense after a missed Fabrizius three and then slamming home the ball off a good give from McCamey. Illinois now trails 29-17.

Poor job of getting a body on Chris Johnson at 6:50 as the Dayton wing dunks home a missed Marcus Johnson layup. Misses a baseline turnaround over Marcus Johnson at 6:24. Misses an open floater in the lane at 4:02 after a nice play by Richardson, who turned the corner with the dribble, drew the extra defender and hit Davis for the good look.

Poor defensive positioning at 3:37, as his body is turned sideways when Fabrizius caught a pass on the wing and hit a three. Dayton got away with a travel earlier in that possession and took advantage of the missed call to go up 36-21. Nice offensive rebound of a missed McCamey three at 2:57, but the Illini point guard will get the ball back and turn it over seconds later.

Catches a break at 18:25, getting caught on the high side of Wright off an inbounds play; luckily, Wright misses a twisting lefty layup and Davis does a good job of securing the rebound. Misses an open baseline jumper at 16:22 off the screen and pop with McCamey. Rushed that shot a bit, as he had a little more time to measure it. Dayton pushes off the miss and the 6’10’’ Searcy gets down the court for a dunk and 44-33 Dayton lead.

Nice job of going to the offensive glass at 14:32, slamming home a McCamey tap in try after the Illinois point guard aggressively attacked the lane and first missed a fading layup. Illinois trails 47-35 after that Davis put back.

Fouls Warren at 2:38, to stop the clock with Illinois down 66-53. Warren hits one of two free throws to put Illinois down 67-53. Gets fouled at 2:10 after a Dayton turnover. Hits both free throws to cut the Illinois deficit to 67-58.

Good work on the offensive boards at 29.6 seconds, putting in a one-hand floater after a missed McCamey layup. Illinois now trails 73-68. Fouls Paul Williams at 27.9 seconds. Williams hits both free throws to put Illinois in a 75-68 hole.

Overall: 10 points (4/10 from the field, 2/2 from the line) and 8 rebounds in 31 minutes. As Brad Nessler said, a very quiet night for Davis, who didn’t have much activity in a game that would have seemed to fit his strengths (going up and down). The 2009-2010 finale is a fitting symbol of Davis’ inconsistent junior season. For a kid who was second in the Big Ten in double doubles (just behind by Evan Turner), Davis still leaves some things to be desired in terms of consistent energy, activity and attitude. With that said, this kid logged a lot of minutes his junior season; with greater depth next season and reduced minutes, maybe Davis will be more consistent? One thing’s for certain: when this kid plays with activity, Illinois is a much different and better team.

● Mike Tisdale: Hits a nice baseline hook at 15:06 off a very patient and solid Illini possession marked by good ball movement from side to side. Illinois now trails 9-6 as Dykes says that he wishes Tisdale would go into the post more.

Gets posted by the much stronger and more physical Huelsman at 12:30, who catches the ball way too deep and is fouled. Hueslman hits both free throws to put Illinois in a 19-9 hole. Fouls a driving Chris Johnson at 11:48 , leading to the under-12. Tisdale with 2 fouls. Johnson hits both free throws to put Illinois in a 23-11 deficit.

Back in at 6:17 for Davis.

Two-hand slam at 18:48 of the second half is set up by beautiful Richardson penetration and cuts the ILL deficit to 40-29. Picks up his third foul at 18:16, getting posted by Huelsman and fouling him on the floor. Nice post up and beautiful turn-around jumper at 17:16, cutting the Dayton lead to 42-33. That was a highly skilled play by Tisdale, who dribbled in, reverse pivoted and scored a tough baseline fade away. Great post defense at 16:43, denying the entry pass over the top, tapping the ball away and drawing a foul on Huelsman. Is short on a bank shot at 15:53, created by a nice up-and-under move. Got bumped on the play (not enough for a foul), and is complaining to the official after the play. Dayton pushes off the miss (as Richardson fouls down in the back court) and hits Chris Johnson for a three and 47-33 game.

Nice post up out of the under-16, but misses a difficult right hand baseline hook at 15:12. Got pushed off a bit on that play, about a foot or two farther than Tisdale likes. Good hands at 14:17, knocking the ball away from a driving Marcus Johnson, who had gotten a first step on Bill Cole. Misses a wide-open layup at 14:04 after rebounding a missed Davis tap in of a rainbow Cole three. Had all day there but rushed it while going up too soft. Should have gathered and dunked that one. Too much finesse there. Follows up with a strong defensive rebound on the other end. Picks up his fourth foul at 12:57 when it looked like he cleanly blocked Paul Williams after the much smaller Williams outmuscled the Illini center for the board. Tisdale is clearly frustrated, voicing his displeasure to the officials. The replay shows that he clearly got all ball there. Anyways, Williams hits both free throws, putting Dayton up 49-37, as Tisdale is replaced by Griffey and Dayton subs in 5 players.

Back in with just a little more than 8 minutes to go. Doesn’t even last 30 seconds, fouling Huelsman at 7:53 off a nice penetration and dish from Warren. That’s five fouls for Tisdale as Illinois trails 59-45 at the under-8. Huelsman misses the free throw out of the break.

Overall: 6 points (3/6 from the field), 3 rebounds, 2 steals and 5 fouls in 20 minutes. Limited  by foul trouble and struggled at times with Dayton’s physicality down low. A tough way to end his junior season, where he made great strides in terms of consistency and conditioning but still went missing for far too long at times. While Meyers Leonard will take some minutes in 2010-11, Tisdale can be a great force next year. While his jumper is money, I’d like to see Tisdale go into the post and use his size more often (with that said, Illinois needs to get him more post touches). Fundamentally, this kid is spectacular; he needs to be tougher, have more diligence with his fouls, and assume even more of a leadership role in his last season. Considering Illinois’ depth next year, I look at Tisdale as a guy who can be a go-to guy against certain teams and then a jump-shooting specialist in other games. The really good news: the rail-thin Tisdale has packed on the pounds in the off-season and is currently scrimmaging against some of the NBA’s elite big men in Las Vegas. Tisdale has always meant well at Illinois; here’s hoping his senior season will be memorable, marked by team success and a good run in the NCAA Tournament.

● Brandon Paul: In at 16:19 for Cole. Handling some point guard duties early in the game. Nice job getting in the passing lane, breaking up a Dayton pass and knocking it out of bounds at 15:02. A bit slow to close out on Perry at 14:13, when the Dayton guard rattles home a secondary transition three to put Illinois down 15-6. Nice job at 12:49, making a pass to McCamey at the right elbow and then relocating/sliding along the three point-line for a step-in wing three that is buried, cutting the Dayton lead to 17-9. Air balls an open but quick corner three at 12:16. Ties up a driving Chris Johnson at 12:04; the possession arrow stays with Dayton.

Nice feed in the screen and dive game with Davis at 11:28. Great job getting back immediately after this assist, cutting off a Dayton layup opportunity. Aggressive drive to the rim at 10:46, but his shot attempt is short. Looks like he stumbled on that contested move. Measures and misses an open three at 9:55, with the ball getting lodged between the rim and glass. The possession arrow stays with Illinois. That shot was way too mechanical.

Back in at 6:17 for Cole. Poor box out at 5:23, when Chris Johnson rebounds a Dayton miss and is fouled on the floor. Dayton is in the one and one, and Johnson hits the first and second free throws to put Illinois down 33-19. Catches a break at 4:26, driving and leaving his feet when dishing to Richardson in the corner. Could have been a charge but was called a block. Good hands at 3:55, knocking a Warren pass out of bounds. Catches a break at 1:01, going baseline and getting hung up in the air. Dayton is called for the blocking foul and Paul hits one of two free throws to cut the ILL deficit to 38-22. Nice job at 39 seconds, coming over to block a Huelsman shot at the rim. Nice steal of a Dayton inbounds pass after a Griffey three with 8 seconds left; unfortunately, Paul loses his dribble and holds the ball for a bit too long before finding Richardson, who badly misses a three at the halftime horn. That would have been huge for the Illini.

Starts the second half for Cole. Good closeout on a Chris Johnson shot that is missed at the start of the half, but Illinois can’t corral the rebound, resulting in a Chris Wright dunk at 19:34 and a 40-25 ILL deficit. Nice drive to the basket at 19:15, missing a left-hand layup but drawing a foul. Paul makes both free throws to cut the Dayton lead to 40-27. Nice rebound of a wild Marcus Johnson shot in the lane at 17:05, but then pushes the ball too aggressively up the court, going 1-on-4 and having the ball stripped away from him.

Back in at 10:11 for Bill Cole.

Aggressive drive at 7:34, when he misses a layup, sticks with the play, and gets fouled on a shot attempt after an offensive rebound. Misses the first free throw and the second. That hurts.

Poor effort at 3:52, failing to closeout on Marcus Johnson after a Richardson three; Lowry hit Johnson on the wing, and the Dayton forward blew by Paul and the rest of the lax Illini defense for a nasty baseline slam and 64-51 deficit.

Gets fouled on a missed Marcus Johnson free throw attempt with 55.2 seconds left and Illinois down 70-63. Paul unfortunately misses the front end of the one and one, and Chris Johnson is fouled on the rebound attempt. Johnson hits both free throws to put Illinois down 72-63 with 52.8 seconds left. Fouls Chris Johnson with 18.9 seconds left. Johnson hits both free throws to put Illinois in a 77-71 hole. Misses a three with 4 seconds left and Illinois down 6.

Overall: 6 points (1/7 from the field, 1/5 from three), 4 rebounds, 1 assist, 1 steal and 1 turnover in 26 minutes. Had a rough shooting night in the last game of the season but was much more stable at the end of the year, earning more of Coach Weber’s trust and taking some of Cole’s minutes. Finished out the season strong in my opinion, doing a better job of playing within the offense after too much 1-on-1 all year long. I’ll have more on this in the coming weeks, but I see Paul as the ultimate wild card on this team next season. I look at this kid and see NBA potential. With that said, he is still raw and needs to stay the course, conforming his game to the system and continuing to improve on the little things. I’m really interested in seeing Paul’s development next year, more than anyone else on the team to be honest.

● Tyler Griffey: In at 11:48 for Tisdale, who has two fouls. Nice offensive rebound of a missed Paul layup at 10:45, but he goes up a bit weak and misses an awkward-looking shot that was partially blocked. Was fading backwards instead of going straight up. A bit slow to recover at 10:11, when he helps to cut off the driving Lowry but then can’t get back to Fabrizius in time as the Dayton reserve hits his second-straight three for a 29-11 lead for the Flyers. A bit slow off a screen and dive at 8:59, who didn’t get to the rim quick enough as a McCamey passed sailed away.

In for Tisdale at 2:31. Very poor post defense at 1:35, allowing an easy entry pass to Huelsman, who simply goes around him for a sweeping layup and 38-21 game in favor of Dayton. Dykes says that play was good offense and terrible defense. Griffey was stiff-legged and there was no help. Gets fouled on an inbounds pass at 1:08, drawing a mock cheer from the Illinois fans. Dayton with just 4 fouls, compared to 8 for Illinois. Hits a big three from the top of the key with 8 seconds left in the half, cutting the Dayton lead to 38-25.

In at 12:57 of the second half for Tisdale. Good activity at 12:18, crashing the offensive board and nearly tip dunking a Keller baseline miss with two hands. Great hustle at 11:34, missing an open jumper on the wing but not giving up on the play as he dives out of bounds to tap the loose ball to McCamey, who penetrates the lane and hits Bill Cole for a dunk.

In out of the under-8 for the disqualified Tisdale. Hits a layup off the screen and roll with Richardson at 5:19, cutting the Dayton lead to 61-49. Haven’t seen that play from Griffey all year long, who used the dribble to jitter bug his way into the lane for the crafty score. Nice job at 4:58, recovering on Hueslman and blocking his shot out of bounds off the Dayton big man. Misses a corner three at 3:33.

Slow to close out on Chris Johnson at 2:52 , resulting in an open baseline and nasty dunk for a 66-53 game in favor of the Flyers. His ensuing inbounds pass is stolen by Dayton, which is playing like a buzz saw, getting on the floor and outworking the flat and dejected Illini.

Rebounds a missed Paul three at 41.9 seconds, and lays the ball up and through the goal (plus the foul), cutting the Dayton lead to 72-65. Griffey makes the free throw and Illinois trails 72-66. Hits a three from the top of the key with 19.5 seconds left, cutting the Illini deficit to 75-71. Misses a three with 10 seconds left and Illinois down six.

Overall: 11 points (4/9 from the field, 2/5 from three, 1/1 from the free throw line), 4 rebounds, 1 block and 1 turnover in 14 minutes. Struggled for most of the game, but came on late during the Illinois comeback. I really like Griffey’s potential at Illinois; I feel that he is the glue guy that Illinois has been missing in recent years. Has a good understanding and overall feel for the game, and isn’t afraid to take and make big shots. Needs to make big-time improvements defensively, which is the case for nearly all freshman.

● Dominique Keller: In at 16:19 for Davis. Misses an open three from the top of the key at 13:24.

In at 8:45 for Griffey.

Nice dive to the basket at 7:14, when he can’t handle a great bounce pass from Davis. Keller would have had a dunk there. Luckily, Dayton knocked the ball away after Keller lost it. That was an instance of looking up before securing the ball for Keller, similar to a wide receiver looking to run before making the catch.  Nice defensive rebound of a wild Dayton shot at 5:47. Does a good job of running the court and getting post position at 5:38, when he misses a baseline flip shot that went in and out. Good defensive box out of a missed Johnson three at 4:43.

In at 12:57 of the second half for Davis. Misses an open look from just inside the top of the key at 12:32. Another Illinois shot that spun in and out. Misses a bank shot from the right block at 12:18.

Poor defense at 10:11, failing to move his feet and resulting in a foul on the driving Wright, who hits two free throws to put Illinois down 55-41. Nice assist on a Jordan jumper at 10:23. Good post and catch at 9:07, but is a bit impatient, dribbling the ball into a Dayton double team and having the rock stolen away. Dayton pushes off that turnover with Marcus Johnson hitting a layup to put the Illini down 57-43. Great follow up of a missed Davis baseline jumper at 8:22, grabbing the offensive rebound and slamming the ball down for a 57-45 game.

In at 2:10 for defensive purposes.

Overall: 2 points (1/5 from the field, 0/1 from three), 4 rebounds, 1 assist and 1 turnover in 15 minutes. This game was a bit symbolic of his last season: a lot of shots that went in during his junior year were in and out as a senior. Final game as an Illini. I enjoyed Keller; he did a lot of good as a junior and struggled as a senior, but was generally a good teammate and a great ambassador for the program. Best of luck to Keller as he attempts to play overseas.

● Jeff Jordan: In at 9:55 for Richardson. Scores off a curl on an inbounds play at 9:53, cutting the ILL deficit to 29-13. Can’t contain Lowry from getting in the lane at 9:36, leading to a foul on Cole that Weber didn’t like. Looked like Lowry traveled on that play.

In at 12:57 of the second half for Richardson. Gets switched on Wright at 11:55 and allows too much dribble penetration, resulting in a corner kick out to Lowry, who buries a three to put Dayton up 51-37.

Aggressive dribble drive from the top of the key and right-hand layup at 10:23 cuts the Dayton lead to 53-41. Haven’t seen that move from Jordan all year long. Well done. Comes back and hits a corner jumper on the next Illinois possession, trimming the Dayton lead to 55-43. That play was set up by some nice passing from Paul to Keller to Jordan. Outside-inside-outside.

In at 2:10 for defensive purposes. Sloppy lob pass at 1:33 is stolen by Dayton; Illinois fouls Warren after the bad turnover. Warren misses the one and one as Illinois trails by nine.

Overall: 6 points (3/3 from the field), 1 rebound and 1 turnover in 9 minutes. Really strong game, which would be his last as an Illini. Jordan has transferred to Central Florida, ending a polarizing career at Illinois.

● Bruce Weber: Illinois trails 9-3 at the under-16. Dayton is on a 9-0 run and is shooting 4/6 from the field. Illinois is just 1/6. Dayton is extremely deep, typically playing 11 players and already sending 9 players in during the first 4 minutes. Illinois hasn’t faced a team like Dayton all season, one that can transition so quickly from the defensive end to the offensive end. Dykes notes how Dayton will get into you defensively and then push offensively. On one early possession, Dayton’s Chris Wright had a full-court sprint and dunk with 32 seconds still left on the shot clock.

Illinois takes a timeout at 13:15, down 17-6. Dykes has been talking about how Dayton and its breakneck game of full-court pressure, mass substitutions and run-and-go offense is a nightmare for a man-to-man team like Illinois, especially with only one day of preparation. It’s key for Illinois to get back on defense quickly, and so far the Illini haven’t been doing a good job in this area. Dayton has pushed its way to 3/3 shooting from three (and 70% overall from the field), and has an 8-2 rebounding advantage. Illinois with just 2 field goals thus far. The Illini certainly aren’t used to such a pace of play. Illinois needs to run its offense and make Dayton work defensively deep into the shot clock. That is, if the Illini don’t fall any farther behind.

Illinois trails 21-9 at the under-12. Dayton is successfully speeding up the Illini, which have forced some quick and undisciplined shots, resulting in long rebounds and easy push outs for the Flyers. Dykes notes how Dayton is like a mini Michigan State with 40 or so set plays in the half court. During the few times that Illinois has cut off Dayton’s up-tempo game, Illinois has struggled defensively in the half court, with the Flyers getting way too  many easy post touches. Huelsman has had his way with Tisdale, who has 2 fouls. Dayton’s bench has an 8-3 advantage thus far.

Dayton takes a timeout at 9:17 after a Mike Davis dunk cuts the Flyers lead to 29-17. Dayton hasn’t  been clicking as efficiently on the last couple of possessions with the Illini stepping up the defense a bit. Dayton did get two big three pointers from reserve Luke Fabrizius. Illinois is starting to do a better job of pushing the ball and attacking Dayton, which had a defensive breakdown on the Davis dunk. Still, the Flyers have totally controlled this game from the start, and Illinois has a lot of work to do. 5 Illini have scored compared to 9 Flyers. Dayton has already had separate 9-0 and 8-0 runs in the first 10 minutes and change.

Illinois is still down 29-17 at the under-8. It finally seems as if the Illini are starting to adjust to Dayton’s speed. Illinois was much more active on both ends in the last couple of minutes in that segment. Defensively, the Illini are starting to get into Dayton, which has 6 turnovers. The Flyers are still shooting a blistering 67%. The Illini offense has been a little better with McCamey starting to control the flow; unfortunately, Cole has missed two attempts and Griffey was slow to a McCamey pass that would have been a lay in. Got to take advantage of those opportunities, especially with Dayton struggling on its last 3 or 4 possessions. A big stat early: Dayton is 5/7 from three; Illinois 2/9.

Illinois trails 33-21 at the under-4. Amazingly, Dayton has just 4 points (2 free throws and 1 dunk) in the last seven minutes. Unfortunately, Illinois has only scored 10 points during that span, thus making up no ground since the last television timeout. The Illini just aren’t hitting some open looks. Given Dayton’s explosive ability to score in bunches, these 4 minutes heading into halftime will be key. This has been one of those games where you realize that McCamey has to do everything at times for Illinois even to be competitive. The Illini are getting killed on the boards thus far (22 to 11 in favor of the Flyers), while Dayton has had 25 substitutions. Weber is doing a lot of chirping with the officials; would like to see the Illini worry about putting the ball in the hole. Dayton is +9 from three and +9 from the bench.

Illinois trails 38-25 at halftime after getting taken to the woodshed in the first 20 minutes. The Illini were very frustrated offensively at the end of the half, forcing a lot of quick shots and getting away from any movement. It was as if Illinois was trying to get the 14-16 point deficit back all in one shot. With the exception of a deep Griffey three with 8 seconds left, the Illini offense sputtered big time, scoring just 6 points in the last 9:25. Defensively, Illinois was more active in the last 10 minutes of the half, holding Dayton to just 9 points in that period of time. But the Illini aren’t scoring, hence the 13-point deficit compared to a possible 6 to 8-point deficit. Illinois hasn’t been able to slow down Huelsman in the post when the Dayton big man has gotten the ball. The Assembly Hall hasn’t been too happy about the officiating, but Dayton has clearly been the more aggressive team. Illinois led for just 43 seconds in the first half.

In the first half, Dayton shot 13/26 from the field and 6/12 from the three. Five of those threes came from bench players, and Dayton had 17 total bench points. Illinois was just 3/13 from three. McCamey led the Illini with just 5 points on 2/9 shooting. Mike Davis had 4 points on 2/6 from the field. Dykes says Illinois better play much harder in the second half, and notes how a long-time Assembly Hall security official told him at halftime that Dayton is the fastest team to play in Champaign in the last 20 years. Dayton with 32 substitutions in the first 20 minutes.

Wow. Illinois takes a timeout at 15:47 as Dayton has taken a 47-33 lead. Dayton is on an unbelievably quick 5-0 run just after Illinois had cut the lead to 9. Illinois has come out with great energy and much more toughness in the second half, doing a nice job of attacking off the dribble and actually making a concerted effort to get the ball inside to Tisdale. However, the Illini have missed a couple of open shots on the last two possessions, and Dayton has made Illinois pay with extremely quick buckets. Just like that, Illinois seemed to have the momentum only to have Dayton steal it away in the blink of the eye. Poor transition defense on two straight defensive possessions hurt the Illini big time. The score will not trail at the under-16, with Illinois down 14. Dayton is shooting 46%; Illinois 33%.

Illinois trails 51-39 at the under-12. The Illini are playing really hard but just can’t break through. Illinois missed several in-close buckets that would have cut this to an 8-point lead. This game definitely feels like it should be a little closer than it is. The Illini have to be a bit frustrated, as Dykes says, by the fact that they seemingly are in this game before Dayton scores a quick bucket or two. Illinois has adjusted to the speed of this game, but it is still too quick they what the Illini are used to. Bill Cole has been providing great energy off the bench in the second half. A big difference is this: Illinois isn’t hitting shots. Dayton is 8/16 from three; Illinois 3/15. As a perimeter-based team, the Illini must hit from the outside. The Assembly Hall has been excited by the style of play in the second half and is waiting to blow the roof off. McCamey has been dropping some nasty dimes, but Illinois still trails by double digits.

Illinois takes its third timeout of the game (two left) at 8:22 after Keller slams home a Davis miss. The Illini trail 57-45 and have gotten a nice spark from Jeff Jordan and some decent contributions from Keller (with the exception of a recent turnover that led to a Dayton layup). Still, the Flyers have matched all of Illinois’ buckets in this stretch, and the Illini just can’t seem to get the game down past 12 points in the last few minutes. Dykes notes one thing that he doesn’t like about the Illinois team: there isn’t a former high school football player on the roster (i.e. the Illini aren’t tough enough). The Illini have been tougher in the second half but just can’t string together a substantial run, which is hard against the run-and-shoot Flyers. Dykes has Dayton scoring 6 times in this game with 32 seconds left on the shot clock; talk about a team that knows how to get up and down. Illinois comes out with full-court pressure but it doesn’t faze the Flyers.

Illinois trails 59-45 at the under-8, with Huelsman heading to the line for a three-point play after Lowry burned Richardson off the dribble. Despite all of the effort in the second half, Illinois will likely be down 15 with 7:53 to go. Remember, Illinois was down 13 at the break. Tisdale has been disqualified with five fouls.

Some key stats: Dayton shooting 47%; Illinois 35%. Dayton is 8/17 from three; Illinois still 3/15. Dayton has a 10 to 2 advantage in fast break points and a 25 to 17 lead in bench points. Dayton is 9/11 from the free throw line; Illinois 4/8. Dayton with 13 turnovers; 8 for Illinois.

Dayton leads 61-47 at 6:06 as Gregory takes a timeout after a McCamey layup. Illinois looks like it has lost some pep in its step,  as if realizing that this is going to be a very difficult mountain to climb. Dykes makes a fantastic point: Dayton is a really bad matchup for Illinois. That may be the understatement of the year. Illinois hasn’t seen a team with this speed all year.

Illinois takes a timeout at 3:51 after Marcus Johnson gets an uncontested dunk to put Dayton up 64-51. Just a possession earlier, Illinois had the chance to cut an 11-point game to 8 or 9, but the Illini hung their heads after a forced Richardson shot, allowing Johnson to get down court, catch the ball on the wing and blow by 3 players for a dunk. Just bad defensive effort there for Illinois, which looks defeated. All night long, just when Illinois seemed to be making a push, Dayton would rip out the heart with a quick score. Illinois has played harder in the second half, but Dayton is the grittier team, at least in this game. Man o man, Dayton has some athletes. The score does not change going to the under-4.

Dayton takes a timeout at 2:18 after good Illinois full-court pressure following a Richardson three. Illinois trails 67-56. During the timeout, Dykes talks about McCamey, whom he says is much better than when he saw the point guard play against Clemson earlier in the year. With that said, Dykes says that McCamey is not ready for the NBA yet.

Illinois takes its last timeout at 1:20 after a Cole three cuts the Dayton lead to 69-63. All of a sudden, the Illini have some hope, due to full-court pressure that has forced a couple of Dayton turnovers. Dayton has also missed a couple of free throws. Illinois is doing a good job of attacking offensively. Another late Illinois comeback. Illinois comes out in the full-court and Marcus Johnson pushes the ball, drawing a blocking foul on Richardson.

Illinois loses 77-71. Amazingly, the Illini had this game down to 75-71 at one point in the final 30 seconds as Dayton missed a lot of free throws late in the game. Ultimately, Dayton would get two big free throws from Chris Johnson and Illinois would miss several threes in the final 10 seconds. The last two minutes summed up both team’s seasons quite well: for 38 minutes, Dayton dominated; in the last 2 minutes, Dayton almost coughed up the game (the Flyers couldn’t hold onto a lot of late leads during the season, thus the reason they played in the NIT). As for Illinois, it made another crazy comeback just when the game seemed over. Ultimately, such comebacks left you wondering how a team could look so good in such spurts after playing so bad for most of the game. Yet another comeback symbolizing an inconsistent Illinois team that was up-and-down during a difficult 2009-2010 season.

Some final stats: Dayton shoots 48.1% from the field and 44.4% from three (8/18); Illinois shoots just 37.7% from the field and 23.1% from the three (7/14). Illinois was just 50% (7/14) from the foul line while Dayton got there 29 times, hitting 19 times (65.5%). Illinois actually came back to outrebound Dayton 43-40 and scored 7 more points in the second half. However, the Illini were -13 in the first half.

Overall: A frustrating end to a frustrating season for Weber and his team. Illinois never got fully comfortable against Dayton’s style and the Illini just didn’t hit enough stops. This game was symbolic of a lot of Illinois’ problems this year: inconsistent effort, not enough post touches, too perimeter-oriented, difficult containing the dribble and guarding the three, etc. If there ever was a season where Weber could draw on a lot of areas to improve (both for his players, coaching staff and himself), this was it.

Overall: Illinois loses 77-71 to Dayton, which controlled this game from the get go. Not using this as an excuse, but this game was just a flat-out awful matchup for the Illini. This was a fitting end to a season during which Illinois just wasn’t consistent enough in terms of effort and execution. Dayton executed its style while Illinois was reactionary rather than proactive. Would have loved to see Illinois make the NIT Final Four for the experience, but Dayton was the better team and deserved this game, which really wasn’t even close. Enough said.

Player of the Game: From the Dayton side, it would be Chris Johnson. From Illinois, really no one stood out. I’ll give it to McCamey, who struggled shooting but was two rebounds shy of a triple double. McCamey gets it solely for logging another 40 minutes.

Play of the Game: This is purely superficial considering that Dayton absolutely controlled this game. With that said, Griffey missed a three in the second half but hustled down the rebound, diving out of bounds to tap a loose ball to McCamey, who then attacked and made a beautiful one-hand pass to Cole for a dunk and a 51-39 game with 11:31 to go.

Some Things I Liked:

● Griffey’s fight late in the game.

● Better energy in the second half, but it was already too late.

Some Things I Disliked:

● Pretty much got dominated for 38 minutes.

● Davis was not active enough.

● Tisdale fouling out again.

● Quite simply, a bad matchup for the Illini, which could never recover after Dayton went up early.

● Couldn’t connect from the outside.

● Not enough post touches.

● Poor job getting back really killed the Illini at times, especially in the first half and at key points in the second half.

● Dayton wanted this game more and was much tougher.

● Too much looking at the officials.

● The need for another comeback.

● Another home loss.

Here are the best highlights I could find for this game.

Well, that’s it for the final Illini Tale of the Tape from last season.

Hallelujah.

It’s been a long month or so revisiting these games, but I learned a lot.

Some opinions were bolstered while others changed, all of which I’ll share in the coming days and weeks.

Ultimately, I will use these game reviews to break down individual and team areas for improvement entering the 2010-2011 season.

Look for that starting later this week, though I will certainly take a few days to decompress.

Until tomorrow.