Shannon, Hawkins looking to lead Illinois back to NCAA Tournament
Exhibition games in men's college basketball are almost never notable, but that was not the case when Illinois hit its home floor Sunday night at State Farm Center.
The Illini weren't getting ready to roll over a school like Quincy, St. Francis or Lewis in a tuneup game for the regular season.
This year, Illinois hosted No. 1-ranked Kansas in a Maui Strong Relief Matchup exhibition.
From the looks of their 82-74 win over the Jayhawks, the Illini are going to be ready to go when play starts for real next Monday in a 7 p.m. tip against visiting Eastern Illinois.
Ranked No. 25 in the AP Poll, Illinois has won 20 or more games in four straight seasons under coach Brad Underwood.
Last year, the Illini (20-13, 11-9) made their third straight trip to the NCAA Tournament and lost to Arkansas 73-63 in the first round.
With Terrence Shannon and Coleman Hawkins leading a group of six returnees, Illinois is a good bet to experience March Madness again.
Shannon, a fifth year 6-foot-6 guard, transferred from Texas Tech before last season. The former Lincoln Park High School star led the Illini in scoring at 17.2 points per game.
Hawkins, a 6-10 senior forward, led Illinois in rebounding (6.3 per game) and ranked third in scoring at 9.9 ppg.
In the exhibition win over Kansas, Shannon hit 5 3-pointers and scored a game-high 28 points. Hawkins made 4 3-pointers and scored 14.
Add in Ty Rodgers, a 6-6 sophomore guard who is on the verge of stardom, and it's easy to see why Underwood is optimistic about the upcoming season.
"We know those guys are really good," Underwood said at Big Ten media day. "Coleman Hawkins I think is one of the elite defenders in college basketball. He can positionally guard one through five. Terrence Shannon I think is one of the better two-way players.
"Ty has proven he can be one of the top rebounding guards in the country. He's tough. He's physical. He's in much better shape. He's dropped about 20 pounds since last year, so he is leaner, more athletic. Those three guys are a good starting point, but I like some of the things our other guys have done."
Forward Dain Dainja and guards Sencire Harris and Luke Goode played meaningful minutes a year ago, and the Illini should get big boosts from transfers Quincy Guerrier (Oregon) and Marcus Domask (Southern Illinois).
Guerrier, a 6-8 forward, led Oregon with 50 3-pointers last season while averaging 9 points and 4.6 rebounds per game.
Entering his "super senior" season, Guerrier began his collegiate career at Syracuse.
Domask, another super senior, was a three-time All Missouri Valley selection at SIU. Last year, he led the Salukis in scoring (16.7) and rebounding (5.8).