The Illinois basketball season came to an end in the NIT with a loss to the UCF Knights.
Illinois won two games in the NIT, which is two more than I thought they would. They played tough and I greatly appreciated that.
This team was led by the senior class this season. They had some experienced players that helped get this program to a better place than it was a year ago.
I have memories of each of the seniors. Some memories are good ones and some are bad. There have been a lot of ups and downs over the past four or five years.
The hard part about all of this is the fact that some of these players never had a chance to play in the NCAA tournament. Some of them had the talent to get there but they just didn’t have the help and that hurts me to think about.
No matter what, though, I will always remember the good times with these players the most. The heart they brought to the games, the development over the years and the ability to put the team on their back.
They all brought something different to the table and I wanted to say thank you to all of them. Here are my thoughts on each of the six seniors.