Illinois coach not satisfied with team’s progress

Victoria Sun

Friday, Nov. 23, 2001 | 10:55 a.m.

Up until a week ago, Illinois men's basketball coach Bill Self said he watched his team during practice and he didn't like what he saw.

Well, then he must have been looking at Eastern Illinois instead of his No. 2-ranked team, right?

That would be a reasonable conclusion, except the self-effacing coach was dead serious.

"I thought we practiced like a team that has been reading the press clippings," Self said between chuckles. "But for the most part, I don't know if we are a press clipping type of team.

"They like to read, but I certainly hope they haven't been reading the articles, positive or negative. They've been pretty grounded with their words and body language, but they didn't play with a chip on their shoulder."

Gonzaga and Eastern Illinois learned firsthand what it's like to face the Fighting Illini (3-0) when the team is focused the way Self expects it to be.

The Zags lost by 18 points and the Panthers lost by 40.

Self is eager to see how Illinois will react to a tougher challenge and is certain the team will be tested during the Las Vegas Invitational tournament being played at Valley High School.

The Illini passed its first test Thursday night, but it wasn't easy. Illinois rallied to hold off gritty Ivy League challenger Penn 78-71 in second-round action.

Other notable teams in the eight-team field include Iowa State, Georgia Tech and St. Louis.

Illinois will play Georgia Tech in a third-round game at 7:30 tonight.

"I think we will play a game or games where we have to make all the right decisions in the last five mintues to give us a chance to win," Self said. "I think games like that are very helpful and we certainly anticipate that in Las Vegas."

Self's latest visit to the valley as a head coach will be different than in the past when he coached Tulsa (1998-2000) in the WAC.

For one, he won't be playing against UNLV, a former WAC team.

Two, Self has gone from an up and coming young coach P.I. (pre-Illinois) to a household name in the college ranks.

After guiding Illinois to a 29-8 record and the Elite Eight of the NCAA Tournament in his first season, Self was a finalist for the Associated Press Coach of the Year and a nominee for the Naismith College Coach of the Year.

Not since Lou Henson guided Illinois to the Final Four in 1989 has there been this much excitement about the basketball program.

This year's team returns last year's Big Ten player of the year and preseason AP first-team selection Frank Williams along with shooter Cory Bradford, who set the NCAA record for most consecutive games with at least one 3-pointer (88).

Solid-but-not-flashy big men Brian Cook and Robert Archibald are also back to try to fill the holes left by gritty Sergio McClain and Marcus Griffin.

Combine the veterans with newcomers including Damir Krupalija and Luther Head, and you get one very tough team.

"I don't think it's either a blessing or curse," Self said of being ranked second. "I think it's nice for recruiting, things like that, but how can anyone determine this early in the season who's No. 2 or No. 1?

"We're happy. It means our highlights make SportsCenter just like every other top 25 team, but the reality is we're probably a week or two away from finding out where we stand."

* NO. 2 ILLINOIS 78, PENN 71: llinois misfired with regularity and played like anything but a ranked team in the second round of the Las Vegas Invitational.

By the time its game against Pennsylvania was over Thursday night, the Illini had justified their No. 2 rating.

Frank Williams scored 22 points and second-ranked Illinois shot 70 percent in the second half en route to a 78-71 victory over Pennsylvania.

The Illini (3-0) trailed 45-34 at the half and didn't take the lead until midway through the second half.

Damir Krupalija scored to give the Illini a 61-60 lead with 10:23 remaining. The teams traded baskets until Illinois took the lead for good with 7:06 left.

Nick Smith and Robert Archibald each added 11 points, and Brian Cook had 10 for Illinois, which shot 71 percent from the floor in the second half. Krupalija had 11 rebounds as the Illini outrebounded the Quakers 34-26.

Illinois shot 32 percent (8-for-25) in the first half and trailed by as many as 12 points.

"We played better defense in the second half," Williams said.

The Illini limited the Quakers to 33 percent (9-for-27) shooting in the second half after allowing 57.1 percent in the first half.

Ugonna Onyekwe led Penn (1-1) with 28 points, including four 3-pointers. Koko Archibong added 12 points.

Onyekwe had 19 points on 7-of-10 shooting in the first half, while Illinois was 8-of-25. Archibald was particularly cold, missing three shots under the basket.

Penn also made 7-of-13 3-pointers in the first half, led by Onyekwe and Jeff Schiffner with three apiece.

The Illini stayed in the game by shooting 15-for-20 from the line.

"We knew they would be tougher and tighten up defensively in the second half," Penn coach Fran Dunphy said. "We had some open looks. I thought we weathered the storm once.

"We didn't take enough advantage in the first half. You know you're not going to shoot like that in the second half."

The Quakers led 12-10 with 13:27 remaining and scored 10 unanswered points for a 22-10 lead. Archibong scored the first two baskets and Onyewke and David Klatsky hit 3-pointers. Illinois missed four straight shots and turned the ball over once.

* S. ILLINOIS 66, IOWA ST. 57: Roland Roberts scored 24 points to lead Southern Illinois. Roberts, a Virginia Tech transfer, went 10-for-16 from the field and had six rebounds. Kent Williams added 10 points.

Jake Sullivan led Iowa State (1-1) with 21 points. Shane Power added 11.

* GEORGIA TECH 70, E. ILLINOIS 65: Marvin Lewis scored a game-high 21 points to fight off a late Eastern Illinois comeback and lead Georgia Tech. Lewis scored 17 second-half points including two free throws with seven seconds left in the game.

Tony Atkins added 14 points for Georgia Tech (2-1).

Henry Domercant led the Panthers (1-2) with 18 points, including a 10-for-10 free throwing shooting performance.

* SAINT LOUIS 85, HARTFORD 52: Ross Varner and Drew Diener each scored 13 points as Saint Louis beat Hartford.

Randy Pulley added 10 points for Saint Louis (1-1).

Ryan Stys led Hartford (0-3) with 11 points and six rebounds.

Saint Louis (1-1) built a 40-18 advantage, its largest of the first half, and had a 49-30 advantage at halftime.

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