Illini freshmen big men trying to avoid bench time

It's the first trip to Hawaii for Illinois freshman big men Bill Cole, Mike Davis and Mike Tisdale.

"I'm very excited," Davis said. "The nice weather, the beaches."

But with Illinois having four games in six days, starting with today's midnight affair at Hawaii, Davis and the other freshmen are savvy enough to understand there might not be much time for the beach.

In fact, it's safe to say they're less concerned about their lack of beach time than their surplus of bench time.

In Illinois' opening-day win over Northeastern on Sunday, the slender trio combined for just 19 minutes of action.

That's not quite what they expected when they each elected to eschew a redshirt year.

"It went by fast to me," said Tisdale, who went scoreless and grabbed 1 rebound in his eight-minute stint against Northeastern. "I thought I played more than I actually did."

But not as much as the 7-foot-1, 220-pound Riverton resident thought he would.

"Coach (Bruce Weber) thought if I'm not going to play eight (minutes), then it'd be a good idea to redshirt," Tisdale said. "But he thinks I'm going to play between eight and 15, depending on foul trouble, matchups, things like that."

Tisdale said he left the redshirt decision to Weber but was relieved to be the first guy off the bench against Northeastern.

"I think I couldn't sit on the bench for the whole year, to be honest with you," he said. "Just sitting on the bench in Canada (for Illinois' Labor Day tour) was just uncomfortable. I felt like I wanted to be on the floor."

A 30-second stretch of Illinois' exhibition win over Kentucky Wesleyan on Nov. 6 provided the perfect snapshot of Tisdale's skills and shortcomings.

At the offensive end, Tisdale stepped out and swished an effortless 3-pointer. But on the game's ensuing possession, Wesleyan's 6-foot-6, 245-pound center posted up Tisdale and shoved him away like a twig in order to catch a post pass.

"It just takes technique," Tisdale said. "A lot of people are going to weigh more than me, obviously, but I think I'm starting to learn the technique of how to guard them, simply because I have to guard Shaun (Pruitt) every day.

"You've got to use your feet more than anything, use your quickness to your advantage to not let them catch the ball at all."

Of the three frosh, Cole seems to have become acclimated to college ball he fastest. It helps that Peoria Richwoods High School, like Illinois, runs the motion offense.

"In high school, there were a lot more people screening for me, trying to get me the ball," Cole said with a laugh. "This year, it's a lot of the opposite. It's definitely a good foundation to have. It set me up well to succeed here."

Cole chipped in 6 points and took 2 charges during his nine minutes against Northeastern.

"I'm just happy to give any contribution that (Weber) wants me to give," Cole said. "I don't care how many minutes it is. I just want to play as hard as I can every possession."

Illinois (1-0) at Hawaii (0-1)

When: 12:05 a.m. Saturday at Stan Sheriff Center

Pay-per-view: htsportsnet.com

Radio: WIND 560-AM

The skinny: To gain extra experience and extra time to adjust their body clocks before the prestigious Maui Invitational, Bruce Weber scheduled this late-night battle with the Warriors. It's the same thing Michigan State did a few years ago -- only the Spartans lost to Hawaii. At MSU coach Tom Izzo's suggestion, the Illini headed out a day earlier to get adjusted. Hawaii, picked to finish sixth in the WAC, features five starters at least 6-feet-5. That size, particularly inside, means Shaun Pruitt (12 points, 17 rebounds in the opener) will have a battle on his hands. So will Brian Randle, who'll likely guard 6-6 senior Bobby Nash, who posted 22 points and 9 rebounds in Hawaii's 73-72 loss to San Diego.

-- Lindsey Willhite