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Illini prep for Northwestern

Posted by: Paul Klee

Tuesday, February 10, 2009 2:19 PM

The quick scouting report from Bruce Weber this morning....

- I guess this is a dangerous game for Illinois. That's what Northwestern's results would say. The Wildcats have won three of their last four (though two of those wins were against Indiana and Chicago State) and haven't really been blown out since a 29-point loss at Wisconsin. Perhaps more telling, they're 4-0 in their last four home games.

So it's a different Northwestern team than the previous two seasons, when the Wildcats went 3-31 in the Big Ten, and I guess Illinois should be weary.

"A year ago, when you lose, you just kind of lose your zest and spirit for the game," Weber said this morning. "This year they're playing their zone with a lot of energy. When (Jeremy) Nash is at the point, it becomes almost a trapping 1-3-1. They get a lot of steals, a lot of deflections out of it."

The biggest change in their Princeton-like operation?

"I think the unique thing this year is that they're pushing it at times, and then other times they'll run the clock (down)," he said. "So you have to be prepared for both."

Still, Northwestern plays at one of the slowest paces in college basketball. (Down at No. 316.)

- Matchup-wise, Weber said Demetri McCamey's work on Michael Thompson will be "a key matchup," in terms of whether McCamey can keep the point guard out of the lane. The coach said he's still deciding on who (Chester Frazier or Trent Meacham) he'll put on Craig Moore and Kevin Coble. It's gotta be Kevin Coble, you're thinking. Well, Craig Moore has led Northwestern in scoring in its last four games, averaging over 20 points in that stretch.

"Is Trent (Meacham) a better matchup for Coble or Moore?" Weber said.

- Friend of The News-Gazette Lindsey Willhite told us the difference in these Wildcats is Michael "Juice" Thompson.

- You can expect a handful of articles on Dominique Keller over the next couple days, from several media outlets. (These things are predictable.) Weber said he's pleased with Keller, who has evolved into a reliable backup in the frontcourt. He'd like to see the juco transfer rebound a little more.

"He still has his moments. He'll revert back to the way he played in junior college, a little bit loose and free," Weber said. "He's definitely been better at home than on the road. I don't think he totally understands momentum, tempo of the game, quick shots.

"When he plays well, it helps us. If all three of those big guys play well like they did Sunday (against Purdue), you're pretty effective. You just kind of rotate them. They all give you a different look."

- Keller is 14-for-27 from the field in his last four games.

"When we just do shooting stuff and he has his feet squared up, he's one of our better shooters, there's no doubt about it," Weber said. "I'm just trying to get him to understand we don't need the quick threes. That can't be his first shot of a game. He's got to get some layups."

- You haven't seen much of Billy Cole, who's played more than eight minutes in a Big Ten game once (against Indiana). Weber said the sophomore is still working at it.

"He's had a great attitude, he's been very positive. I tried to compliment him a couple times just because he's had a good attitude and done his job," Weber said. "He's got to improve and continue to get stronger and find a niche. It's possible. He can shoot. That's the one thing he can do. He can make open shots."

- Weber critiqued himself, saying an area he wants to improve is getting certain guys more minutes coming off the bench, and that sometimes he sticks with his mainstays for too long. One of the guys he said he'd like to get in the mix more often is Alex Legion, and another is Richard Semrau.

"I wish we could start the season over and have him play right now," Weber said of Legion. "I think it would help him."

If the Illini struggle to score, Weber said, Legion could see some more time at Northwestern.

"If they're in their zone and he can make shots for us, it could help us," he said.

- I can tell you the Illini have tracked the progress of Jamar Smith progress at Southern Indiana. From Wayne McClain to Jerrance Howard to Dominique Keller to some other guys, they check in from time to time to see how he's doing. Among the players, Keller probably talks to him most frequently, even though they were teammates for about two months.

And Bruce Weber is no exception. He keeps tabs.

"I talked to Jamar (on) Friday night," Weber said. "It was kind of funny, right before we hung up, I said, 'Why don't you go and get 30 tomorrow.' He text me Saturday night and said, 'I did what you said, Coach, I got 30.'"

And there are still emotions involved, because Jamar was such a well-liked player among the coaches.

"He told me a couple weeks ago," Weber said, "The saddest thing for him is all the time I yelled at him for his ballhandling and his passing, now I can actually come off a ball screen and take care of the ball. He said, 'And I can't do it for you after all those years.' We still wish him the best."

- Among the top 10 contributors in the Illinois playing rotation, can you guess who has the highest number of Matto points per minute? It's Calvin Brock, who scores .23 Matto points/minute. Second is Chester Frazier (.19), who is well on his way to reclaiming the Matto award with 153 Matto points.

- Jeremy Werner with a Hayden Hoerdemann update.

- The Big Ten's most-talented team? One Big Ten assistant agreed with me that it's these guys.

Off to practice.

pklee@news-gazette.com