Bubble teams curse Illini
INDIANAPOLIS -- Ohio State faithful might not normally care who wins a game between its Big Ten rivals Wisconsin and Illinois. Today, they'll hope to hear a lot of "On Wisconsin."
So will fans at Arizona State. And Virginia Commonwealth. And Illinois State.
Anywhere there's a team on the bubble, they'll be pulling against the Illini.
Last year Illinois was in all those teams' shoes, when it rooted for all the favorites to win conference tournaments and then sneaked in as a No. 12 seed as one of the last at-large selections.
This year it hopes to pop a few bubbles and become the first team from a major conference to qualify for the NCAA Tournament with a losing record in 30 years.
How much would a win mean today? Would it make up for all the misery during the 13-18 regular season, the 7-8 home record, the nonconference home losses to Tennessee State and Miami (Ohio), the 5-13 Big Ten finish?
Absolutely, said both of Illinois' seniors.
"Tomorrow if we win, it would make up for the 35 games previously," Shaun Pruitt said. "It's a lot of excitement, especially because nobody thought we'd be in this position."
Said Brian Randle: "Most definitely, this would make up for it."
Eating well, playing better: Pruitt, a West Aurora product, credited a better diet for helping him the last few weeks. Pruitt is taking an independent study class on nutrition, his last class before he gets his degree in speech communications in May.
"I stay away from the ranch (dressing) and mayonnaise," Pruitt said, drawing laughter from teammates and the media, and a smile from coach Bruce Weber.
"I've been eating a lot better. I actually think it's helped me a little bit. It's great timing. And besides dieting, it's just focusing in and just being more about my team and things like that have helped me out a lot. Listening to our coaching staff and stuff like that has helped me a lot."
Pruitt has had a rocky senior year with Weber. He was suspended one game against Ohio State for an outburst after a loss to Purdue.
But he has finished strong, including a 16-point, 8-rebound effort against Minnesota on Saturday.
"I think he gets it now, and I'm not sure he got it, to be honest," Weber said. "When I say get it, it's a general term, but he understands what it's about. I think a lot of them get it. It's the team that's more important and hopefully we can bring that out of them tomorrow."
Making history: An Illinois win today would put the Illini in the NCAA Tournament with a 17-18 record. The last time a sub-.500 team made it? Last year, when Florida A&M received the 65th and final spot with a 15-17 record. The Rattlers won the MEAC championship.
The last time a major conference team made the tournament with a losing record? In 1978 Missouri finished sixth in the regular season, then won the Big Eight tournament to qualify at 14-15.
Illinois (16-18) vs. Wisconsin (28-4)
When: 2:30 p.m. at Conseco Fieldhouse, Indianapolis
TV: Channel 2
Radio: WIND 560-AM, WMVP 1000-AM
The skinny: Wisconsin beat Illinois twice this year pretty convincingly, 70-60 in Madison and 71-57 in Champaign. The Badgers may be without point guard Trevon Hughes, the team's second-leading scorer who injured his ankle and missed the final 12 minutes of Saturday's 65-63 win over Michigan State. Four Michigan State players fouled out and the Badgers shot 37 free throws, so Illini reserves Mike Davis, Mike Tisdale, Calvin Brock and Jeff Jordan and possibly players even deeper on the bench should see action. "I saw (Michigan State coach) Tom (Izzo) was in so much foul trouble he used guys that haven't been in games in months," Illinois coach Bruce Weber said. "Wisconsin doesn't show emotion. They just come and play. They don't talk trash. They do it old school." Trent Meacham was the only Illini to score in double figures both games against the Badgers, with 14 and 10 points. Illinois turned the ball over 20 times vs. Wisconsin in Champaign. "We have got to limit our turnovers," Illinois point guard Chester Frazier said. "They play attack-style defense. We've got to take what they give us and not force things." It will be the third time these teams have played in a Big Ten championship game, with the Badgers winning 70-53 in 2004 and Illinois prevailing 54-43 in 2005. This will be Illinios' fourth game in four days, and the starters have played heavy minutes the first three games. Frazier "only" played 33 minutes Saturday after logging 36 and 45 the previous two games. Demetri McCamey played 34 Saturday after 35 and 42. They'll need to do it one more day. "We have a few tricks," Frazier said. "We try to sit in the pool for awhile, get your legs back, ice up, get a lot of water, good foods, lot of proteins. Just try to stay off your feet as much as you can."
-- John Lemon