Sunday Morning: Illinois Fighting Illini Hoops Headlines for Sept. 26-Oct. 2
By Editorial Staff
De La Salle senior forward Mike Shaw watched the Illini football team fall 24-13 to Ohio State yesterday during an unofficial visit to campus while former Illini recruit Josh Oglesby committed to Iowa early last week.
Those developments headline this Sunday’s week in review of the Illinois Fighting Illini basketball program.
ILLINOIS BASKETBALL PLAYER NEWS
#12 Meyers Leonard, Freshmen Center, and #54 Mike Tisdale, Senior Center
Illinois senior center Mike Tisdale now has another 7-footer to go against during individual workouts in the presence of freshman Meyers Leonard, who described himself as a “Birdman” type player. Not sure if that’s a good thing or a bad thing.
→ TISDALE AND LEONARD PUSH EACH OTHER
#32 Demetri McCamey, Senior Guard
Illinois senior guard Demetri McCamey has landed on the preseason Top 50 Wooden Award list of college basketball writers Gary Parrish and Andy Katz.
→ GARY PARRISH’S PRESEASON TOP 50 FOR THE WOODEN AWARD
→ ANDY KATZ: LACK OF STAR POWER, BUT STILL PLENTY OF TALENT
#42 Tyler Griffey, Sophomore Forward
Belated birthday wishes to Griffey, who turned 20 on Friday. Here’s hoping that the promising Griffey can get about 20 minutes per game as a sophomore. By the way, FightingIllini.com updated its basketball roster page with new headshots of the 2010-2011 Illini. It’s good to see Leonard, Crandall Head and Jereme Richmond arrive on the site after years of waiting for these guys to be in Illini uniforms.
→ HAPPY BIRTHDAY TYLER GRIFFEY
ILLINOIS BASKETBALL TEAM NEWS
As expected, Illini Madness has been officially moved from the Assembly Hall to Huff Hall on October 15th. The festivities are scheduled to start at 10 p.m., with admission free to the general public. Illinois recruit Chasson Randle will be at Illini Madness and hopefully committing afterwards if all goes right.
→ ILLINI MADNESS MOVED TO HUFF HALL
→ ILLINOIS MEN’S BASKETBALL HOSTS ILLINI MADNESS
→ ILLINOIS PLANS TO PUMP UP STUDENT VOLUME AT ILLINI MADNESS
→ ILLINI MADNESS PLANS ANNOUNCED
The News Gazette’s Paul Klee is expecting Randle to land at Illinois, as detailed in this week’s basketball chat.
→ ILLINOIS BASKETBALL TEAM CHAT
ILLINOIS BASKETBALL COACHING NEWS
Illinois Head Coach Bruce Weber
Weber continues to be all over the place, offering scholarships to Whitney Young freshman Jahlil Okafor and Paul White and traveling to Congress last Tuesday to lobby for more funding for cancer research. Weber is also hosting a basketball coaching clinic on Saturday, October 16th, the morning after Illini Madness.
→ WEBER AGAIN SHOWS AGGRESSIVE RECRUITING
→ WEBER GOES TO WASHINGTON, D.C.
→ BRUCE WEBER ADDRESSES CONGRESS
→ REGISTRATION OPEN FOR ILLINOIS BASKETBALL COACHES’ CLINIC
ILLINOIS BASKETBALL RECRUITING NEWS
Mike Shaw, Chicago De La Salle Senior Forward
Shaw was in the stands for an unofficial visit during the Ohio State – Illinois football game yesterday. Here’s hoping that this competitive game further sold Shaw on attending Illinois. The De La Salle senior forward is currently considering Illinois, Marquette, De Paul and West Virginia. An announcement would seem to be coming this month but could linger until the spring, due to a report that Shaw has yet to take the ACT or SAT.
→ ILLINI RECRUIT MIKE SHAW EXPECTED TO VISIT THIS WEEKEND
→ THE TRUTH BEHIND WHY MIKE SHAW’S RECRUITMENT IS BEING HELD UP
Josh Oglesby, Cedar Rapids (IA) Washington Senior Guard
A bit disappointing but expected, Oglesby committed to his home state Iowa Hawkeyes last week. Certainly more concerting, Illinois apparently pulled its scholarship offer to Oglesby a couple of days before the guard’s announcement. According to Oglesby’s AAU coach, Illinois was suddenly concerned that the 6’5’’ Oglesby wouldn’t be able to play point guard in the Big Ten. Whether or not Illinois thinks it has Chasson Randle coming on board, the coaching staff shouldn’t have pulled Oglesby’s offer, even if it was unlikely that he was going to wind up at Illinois, at least in my opinion. No offense to the Illinois coaching staff (whom I respect and believe generally recruits the right way), but it shouldn’t have made an offer to Oglesby back in July if these concerns existed. Maybe I’m naïve to college recruiting, but I don’t believe in the philosophy of offering and then withdrawing scholarships. It’s a tricky business that sets a dangerous precedent. My guess is that Illinois needed an excuse just in case Oglesby committed to Illinois prior to Randle, whom I’m not certain is a lock to end up in Champaign-Urbana. Whatever the case, Oglesby seemed like he would have been a good fit at Illinois in terms of supplying some outside shooting, although he was a long shot to join the Illini. With all that said, here’s wishing Oglesby good luck at Iowa.
→ “LESSONS OF LOYALTY” LEAD OGLESBY TO IOWA
→ AAU COACH: OGLESBY’S ILLINI OFFER PULLED DUE TO POINT-GUARD CONCERNS
→ JOSH OGLESBY: THE INSIDE STORY
Larry Austin Jr., Springfield-Lanphier Freshman
Weber continues to use his relationships with USA Basketball as a platform to benefit and coax Illinois recruits. Austin Jr., Okafor and Simeon’s Jabari Parker have all been invited to try out for Team USA’s under-16 team in Colorado Springs, Colorado on October 9th and 10th. Randle played for the U-17 team this summer, and Illinois freshman Jereme Richmond won gold with the U-18 team in June.
→ LARRY AUSTIN JR., OTHER ILLINOIS RECRUITS INVITED TO U-16 CAMP
→ AUSTIN, ILLINI TARGETS HEADED TO U.S. DEVELOPMENTAL CAMP
BIG TEN/COLLEGE BASKETBALL NEWS
Here’s an assortment of college basketball news worth knowing about.
→ MSU BASKETBALL PLAYERS ACCUSED OF SEXUAL ASSAULT, BUT NO CHARGES WILL BE FILED
→ THAD MATTA KEEPS OSU ON TOP DESPITE STEADY NBA ATTRITION
→ OLIVER PURNELL’S HOUSE SHOPPING
→ AUSTIN RIVERS COMMITS TO DUKE
FORMER ILLINOIS BASKETBALL PLAYER NEWS
#22 Kiwane Garris, Point Guard
It seems like it was just yesterday when Garris was coming out of Westinghouse High School to play for the Illini. Makes you feel old, doesn’t it?
Alright.
Until next week.