Read a couple of good articles on the resurgences of Illinois basketball after a rough 16-19 season in 07-08. "Last year we went home sad. It was a dysfunctional family,'' center Mike Tisdale said. So far this year the Illini are off to a 13-1 start including a victory this past Tuesday at No. 9 Purdue. Purdue's Keaton Grant sees a different team.
"Last year they were arguing on the court," he said. "This year they're playing more as a team. Last year you could see how spread apart they were. They were arguing on the court. Especially at Illinois they were arguing, and this year they came closer together.''
Team chemistry, according to players, has been the reason for the successful start to the season:
"We have a different attitude," senior guard Trent Meacham said. "People worked hard in the off-season and continued to improve."
The unselfish attitude starts with guard Chester Frazier (pictured above), who coach Bruce Weber says has accepted his role as a distributor on offense and a lock down defender.
"He has accepted what he is," Weber said. "He wants to do well. Last year, when things were not going well, he was always trying to make plays. He has accepted he's not the go-to guy, and he lets the game come to him."
Part of the ploy by Weber was hatched in the offseason when he decided the team's new uniforms would not have the players' names on the back. He felt the team was driven too much by individual achievement last year and wanted something to symbolize a different approach. Instead of the move coming off as cliché, Tisdale said the players — at first resistant — have embraced the message.
"People realized it was more important than being individuals,'' he said. "Coach has been pushing that. It's had a good impact on our mindset. He says it almost every day. That's why we're winning.''
Weber isn't necessarily taking it easy on players. He has talked openly about the harsh approach he has taken with sophomores Demetri McCamey and Mike Davis at times. But after the win over Purdue he praised McCamey for not pouting over bench time and Davis for not complaining when Weber lit into him during practice.
And they have grown up. Just ask sophomore guard Demetri McCamey, who made four free throws after missing three to seal the victory at Purdue."Last year I would have pouted," McCamey said.
