Illinois Basketball: Andre Curbelo tabbed as “under-the-radar freshman”
By Collin Allen
Illinois basketball freshman guard Andre Curbelo just received some preseason love by college basketball analyst Jon Rothstein.
The Fighting Illini coaching staff was able to land the No. 17 ranked recruiting class in 2020. Included in this 2020 class is point guard Andre Curbelo.
Curbelo, a 6-foot, 170-pound point guard out of Long Island Lutheran High School, located in Long Island, NY, was ranked the No. 44 overall player in the 2020 class. Curbelo chose the Illini over schools such as Indiana, Florida, Dayton, Kansas, Louisville, and others.
The Puerto Rico native was just recently given some preseason recognition as CBS Sports analyst Jon Rothstein released his list of college basketball’s “under-the-radar freshmen for the ‘20-21 season,” which included Curbelo.
"“Adam Miller may be getting the sizzle when it comes to Illinois’ newcomers next season, but Curbelo will definitely get his taste of the steak. A table setting point guard, this floor general should be the perfect complement to Brad Underwood’s strong returning nucleus.”"
Curbelo’s arrival to Champaign comes at the perfect time, as the Illini lost 2019-20 key senior guard Andres Feliz. Curbelo should be able to fill that void as he can pretty much do it all.
As Rothstein said, Curbelo is a floor general. His film backs this claim up, as he has shown he is fully capable of finding the open man and dishing out dimes. He is also a prolific scorer, as he averaged
at Long Island Lutheran High School. Additionally, he has that same “bulldog” type of play-style Feliz brought to the table.
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Curbelo will bring loads of talent and relentless effort to Champaign. There is a reason he was ranked as a top-50 player in the 2020 class. He has all the potential to have a breakout freshman campaign.