McCamey key factor for Illini in first round
On the surface, it sounds like an incredible luxury for Illinois.
The Illini won't have Chester Frazier, the Big Ten's assists leader in all games, for today's NCAA Tournament opener against Western Kentucky because his injured right hand has "too much damage" to allow him to play this weekend.
In his stead, though, the Illini have sophomore point guard Demetri McCamey, the Big Ten's assists champ for league games only.
Sounds like a great safety net, right? Only if McCamey feels like being great against the Hilltoppers.
Illinois coach Bruce Weber, perhaps knowing Frazier's participation would be a longshot, got after the inconsistent McCamey during Monday's practice after the all-Big Ten third-teamer provided nothing in Illinois' Big Ten semifinal loss to Purdue on Saturday.
"Without being too negative, he's supposedly one of our top players," Weber said. "All-conference. And he can't have 20 minutes and zero points and 4 turnovers and nothing on the Play Hard chart. We're going to go home if that happens."
McCamey's numbers, particularly his assist-to-turnover ratio, look worse in Illinois' 9 losses than in its 24 wins.
The St. Joseph's product averages 12.2 points, 5.1 assists and 2.2 turnovers when the Illini win but just 9.9 points, 3.3 assists and 3.0 turnovers in the defeats.
Weber, who's well aware of McCamey's NBA aspirations, wonders if playing on the Portland Trail Blazers' floor might encourage his inconsistent charge to come alive.
"If he wants to be a star, he's got to step it up," Weber said. "And it can't just be one game; it has to be multiple games."
If Illinois' NCAA Tournament run goes for multiple games, there's a chance Frazier could return to active duty.
"After X-raying it and examining it, (the doctor) just felt there's too much damage to take a chance to have him play this week," Weber said. "Even after that, he did try to give it a go in practice on Tuesday. Just didn't have the strength or the hand mobility."
In any case, Frazier's mobility (or lack thereof) isn't Illinois' biggest issue against Western Kentucky.
Because the Hilltoppers' offense relies on four perimeter players - none of them taller than 6-feet-5 - it's going to be up to 6-9 Illini sophomore Mike Davis to have the mobility to chase around one of WKU's 3-point-shooting mites.
"It's going to be tough for me to guard," said Davis, who chased around wings such as Purdue's Chris Kramer and Michigan's Zack Novak in the Big Ten tournament. "I have to sit down and move my feet.
"So there's the little matchup problem. But on offense for me, too, I can get in the post and post up and hopefully use my hook over a shorter player."
Illinois (24-9) vs. Western Kentucky (24-8)
When: Approximately 8:55 p.m. at the Rose Garden
TV: Channel 2
Radio: WIND 560-AM
Skinny: Fifth-seeded Illinois guns for its first NCAA Tournament win since the first round in 2006. Western Kentucky rode the 12th seed to the Sweet Sixteen last year, but the Hilltoppers lost three top scorers from that squad. Nonetheless, they rank 24th nationally in offensive efficiency (1.08 points per possession) according to bbstate.com. That bumps heads with Illinois' strength, which is defense. The Illini rank No. 2 nationally in defensive efficiency as they allow just .87 points per possession.
Advancement: The winner plays the Gonzaga/Akron winner at 7:10 p.m. on Saturday.