I don’t like writing a headline like this, but then again, I suppose you can’t win them all. DeJuan Marrero of Bowman in Gary, Indiana has chosen to attend DePaul in 2012 instead of Illinois. This is DePaul’s first commitment for 2012.

Marrero is quoted as saying “No one saw this one coming,” on his decision to attend DePaul. The 6’5″ 200-pound small forward was also recruited by Missouri State, Dayton, Miami (Fla.), and Ball State.

I don’t want to be rude, but with 3 stars on Rivals and the quality of the other programs that were in contention, I can’t say I’m really upset about this kid heading another direction. Not to mention the fact that 200 pounds sounds like a lot on the frame of a small forward, while 6’5″ is the shorter end. Also, rivals.com characterized his shooting as “poor.”

Marrero mentioned that he really wanted to play in the Big East, but I’m not sure he realizes that he is playing on a team that has won maybe two conference games in the last three years. The Big East gets a lot of basketball hype, but so does the Big Ten. Why would you prefer to play on a team that’s at the bottom of the barrell instead of one that’s in an equally as reputable conference and in the upper echelon? Unless of course he knew that at DePaul he’d play, while at Illinois he might have to ride the bench as other talented guys hit the court.

What bugs me the most is that Marrero thinks he’s shocked the world and dissappointed the Illini Nation by not making a commitment. For years DePaul has been jealous of the team in Central Illinois, when to us they are just a small blip on the radar. The only time that DePaul basketball mattered to Illinois in the last few years is in 2005 we borrowed their court in the Elite Eight and came back from behind to crush Arizona’s hopes and dreams. Otherwise, we barely notice DePaul exists. Now if the Indiana native had chosen to join a team in Indiana, then maybe we would have cared…

Don’t worry about us in Champaign, Marrero, we’ll be fine! Go have fun playing in the Big East with a fan base that doesn’t give a hoot.

The first Illinois football game is less than a week away, and I hope the team is as ready to get started as I am. For the first time since 2006 the Illini will start the season off at home, and they have a pretty solid chance of starting the season off 1-0, another new and exciting venture.

Kickoff is at 2:37 (weird) in the afternoon of Saturday, Sept. 3 and the Illini will be facing Arkansas State. The game will be airing on the Big Ten Network.

The Illini have compiled an all-time record of 74-42-5 in season-openers and are 51-27-4 when opening the season at home. The Illini have also won their last five season-openers at Memorial Stadium dating back to 1997, including a 41-3 win over Arkansas State to start the 1999 season.

There are always some nerves as a new season begins, and this year is no different. The Illini have lost leading rusher Mykel Leshoure and my favorite hunka hunka burning linebacker Martez Wilson. DT Corey Leguit has also gone onto greener NFL pastures.

Not to worry, there will be some familiar faces, starting – of course- with QB Nathan Scheelhaase, who we all hope will pick up where he left off with a bowl win against Baylor in 2010.  Last season, Scheelhaase had 13 touchdowns and just one interception over the last seven games. In that Texas Bowl win over Baylor, the redshirt-freshman completed all 13 of his first-half passes for 170 yards and finished the game 18-of-23 for 242 yards, while also rushing for 53 yards and a touchdown.

Illinois is returning six more offensive starters:  OL Jeff Allen, OL Hugh Thornton, OL Jack Cornell (split starts with Thornton), OL Graham Pocic, WR A.J Jenkins, FB Jay Prosch, and TE Evan Wilson.

The defense returns six starters: DE Michael Buchanan, DT Akeem Spence, LB Ian Thomas, LB Trulon Henry, CB Justin Green and CB Tavon Wilson. CB Terry Hawthorne also has started six games in his career – five in 2009 and one in 2010 – but was slowed by injuries much of 2010.

Kicker Derek Dimke and long-snapper Zak Pedersen are also coming back for more fun.

Luther is ready for football!

The Fighting Illini have eight home games on the schedule in 2011 for the first time in the Memorial Stadium era and first time since 1903, when Illinois played nine home games. The Orange and Blue open with five consecutive home games and six of their first seven contests at Memorial Stadium. The Illini take an all-time record of 247-209-14 at Memorial Stadium into the 2011 campaign.

As for who we’re facing? This will be the third meeting between Illinois and Arkansas State, with the  Illini winning  the previous two meetings at Memorial Stadium, 41-3 in the 1999 season-opener and 59-7 in 2002.

The Red Wolves were 4-8 overall in 2010 and finished tied for fourth in the Sun Belt with a 4-4 record. ASU
is under the direction of first-year head coach Hugh Freeze, who was ASU’s offensive coordinator in 2010. He was also the high school coach that was featured in “The Blind Side” movie with Sandra Bullock, a nice little trivia nugget for you.

Basically, this is a cake walk opening game, something the Illini have needed in the past to boost their spirits going into a new season. Thankfully that contract against Missouri in St. Louis expired, so the Illini can be like most other teams and start the season off right with a massive win against a subpar team. If they don’t bring home a W, then we’re going to have serious problems for the rest of the season, because at least if you lose your home opener to Missouri you have an excuse. These easier openers are also a great way for Zook to try out some new people and get a feel for who can do what before entering conference play.

Here we go!

By Kim Cerf, Contributing Writer

The Illini-Pride Kick-off Party is tomorrow night, August 24^th, at Foellinger Auditorium.

Any University of Illinois student who is interested in joining the Orange Krush must first become a member of Illini Pride, the biggest student organization on campus.  Ron Zook, Bruce Weber, and members of various Illini athletic teams will be in attendance to welcome students.

Last year’s party included player introductions and great raffle prizes for a large majority of the students who attended.  Information will be given out at the meeting, including new ways to collect Orange Krush donations, and you get an awesome t-shirt when you register.   The football and basketball seasons are just around the corner so come on out and meet some of your fellow Illini fans before they start.

Follow @IlliniPride on twitter for more information. Go Illini!

Kim Cerf is staring her junior year at the University of Illinois, and she is an active member of the Orange Krush.

If you're getting your picture taken, try to avoid looking as stupid as I do in this photo with Juice Williams a few years ago.

Longing for an autograph from your favorite Illini football player?  Want to show how excited you are for the upcoming football season?  Are you dying to have your picture taken with the player of your choice?  Then head over to the Great West Hall of Memorial Stadium this Saturday, August 27, from 11-12:30 to for Fan Appreciation Day!

Admission is free, and – even more exciting – parking will be available for free in the northwest lot of the Assembly Hall.

Fans will be able to enter on the west side of Memorial Stadium starting at 10 am, and will get to watch the team’s “game-dayehearsal” from the west stands. The Marching Illini will also perform.

After those festivities, fans will convene in the Great West Hall for autographs and photos with Illinois players. Team posters will be available for players to sign, but fans also can bring their own items to be autographed (appropriate items, please!). Players will be seated by position groups during the event.

The Illini open the 2011 season by hosting Arkansas State at 2:30 p.m. on Sept. 3. It is the first of five consecutive home games and eight total home games, the most in Memorial Stadium history. Season and single-game tickets are still available at http://www.athletics.illinois.edu/tickets/ if you have some extra money in the penny jar.

Brandon Paul had a game-high 19 points tonight; Photo by Cary Frye

The Illinois basketball team finished its trip to Italy with an overtime win against Fulgor Omegn, 89-85. The win left the Illini with a 3-1 record on the tour, not counting that scrimmage win against West Virginia.

Last time the Illini faced overtime in Italy, the results weren’t as positive. New Zealand was able to grab the win on Tuesday, but this time the Illini were victorious.

It was an exciting, back-and-forth game vs. Omegna, with 12 lead changes and 10 ties. Illinois trailed by four points late in regulation, and just like the game against New Zealand, the Illini scored the final four points to force overtime. Tonight they came on a pair of offensive rebound dunks, first by Meyers Leonard with 20 seconds left to bring the Illini within two, and next by Crandall Head to tie the game at 78 with :13 remaining.

This time around, Brandon Paul made a jumper to break an 81-all tie midway through the extra period, and the Illini scored three straight points at the line following one free throw by Omegna to make the score 86-82 with 46 seconds left. Head then invoked the spirit of his brother, Luther,  by nailing a 3-pointer from 27 feet as the shot clock expired to put the Illini ahead by seven points with only seconds left, clinching the victory.

Paul was the top scorer again with 19 points, and he also had a game-high four steals. Tyler Griffey has reached double figures in every full game of the tour, and followed the trend tonight with 15 points. In fact, Griffey had a double-double with a game-high 10 boards to match his double-digit points. This was the highest rebounding total by an Illinois player on the entire trip.

A total of four Illini scored in double figures on the evening, with Head and freshman Tracy Abrams adding 11 points each. Abrams also tallied three steals.

Rounding out the scoring, D.J. Richardson had nine, Leonard and Nnanna Egwu had six each, Sam Maniscalco had five, Mike Shaw had four, and Myke Henry added 3. Leonard had a game-high four blocked shots, while Maniscalco added three steals.

Great way to finish out the tour. If our worst game of the trip happened to be an overtime loss to the New Zealand National Team, then I’d say the Illini seem to be in pretty good shape. I’m ready to see what the guys can do back in the states!

The Illini are scheduled to return to campus Saturday night, with the fall semester beginning on Monday.

Apparently, the Big Ten is getting tired of everyone wanting to join the party. This statement was just sent out in regards to future expansion:

“In response to a number of recent media inquiries received by several Big Ten Presidents and Chancellors regarding the likelihood of further expansion by the Big Ten, the COP/C would like to reiterate that it will not be actively engaged in conference expansion at this time, or at any time in the foreseeable future, barring a significant shift in the current intercollegiate athletic landscape.”

The statement goes on to say that even though they’ve already made statements about being done with expansion, people are still asking.

The brief statement concludes with a quote from Big Ten Commisioner James E. Delaney:

We’re about as comfortable as we can be with where we are. We’ve said that we will continue to monitor the landscape, but we have closed down active expansion and have no plans to seek new members.

So there you have it. The Big Ten is pretty happy with the way things are, so kindly stop asking.

I can’t remember the last time Illinois scored 100 points on anyone, let alone climbing past 120. That didn’t bother this year’s team, who decided to more than double Castellanza
Select’s 65 points by scoring 131.

According to reports, the Illini dominated every facet of the game while cruising to the largest margin of victory during the Italian Tour.

Illinois continued the hot shooting they exhibited yesterday in the scrimmage victory over West Virginia. After shooting nearly 63 percent against the Mountaineers, the Illini hit close to 55 percent against Castellanza (53-97),which included 11-of-20 on 3 pointers. Illinois outrebounded Castellanza 41-to-26 and continued its pressure defense for three quarters, logging 24 steals and forcing Castellanza into 36 turnovers. With such a large lead, the Illini switched to a zone defense for the final quarter. It’s good to see their giving the zone a try, since it was reported last year that this would be a major presence, but rarely appeared.

Twelve Illini players logged at least 10 minutes as Coach Bruce Weber continued to sub frequently. This led to 12 players scoring points, and seven in double figures (Joseph Bertrand, Meyers Leonard, Myke Henry, Tyler Griffey, Ibby Djimde, Nnanna Egwu, and Brandon Paul)

Sophomore Bertrand – the Illini’s leading scorer in the game against Rome Select – was the top scorer once again. Bertrand made 8-of-12 shots, including a pair of 3-pointers, giving him a game-high 18 points. He also tallied four steals. Junior Griffey followed closely with 17 points on perfect 4-of-4 shooting in addition to eight free throws.

Junior Paul had another strong game, with15 points and 3-3 on his 3-point attempts. Paul also had a game-high eight assists along with four rebounds. Freshman Djimde had his best game of the trip, scoring 14 points on 7-of-9 shooting with four boards.

Fellow freshman Henry continued his recent scoring spree, netting 13 points on  6-of-8 from the field to go along with five boards, three blocks and three steals. A third freshman, Mike Shaw, was the Illini’s top rebounder on the night, snatching eight boards.

No real stinkers again in this game, which is what I like to see. I love that everyone got in there and made a contribution. The freshman seem to be stepping up as much as the veterans, and I can’t wait to see how these guys play together in a game back in the states. I’ve especially got my eye on Bertrand, who hasn’t been able to contribute much the last two years. He ended up redshirting his freshman year, so while this is technically his junior year, he has been around his block. I would be happy to have him finally shine.

Is it basketball season yet?

Illinois concludes its Italy Tour on Friday, facing Fulgor Omegna at 11 a.m. Central.

Illinois defeated West Virginia 47-26 in an exhibition scrimmage held yesterday in front of about 500 military personnel and their families at the Aviano Air Base in Italy.

The 20-minute game was played after the two teams held a youth clinic for children of the Airmen. Also, the Illini and Mountaineers participated in a 10-minute scrimmage against the Aviano varsity unit. In those games, Illinois defeated Aviano 26-12, while West Virginia topped Aviano 25-7.

The three squads also held a dunk contest for the crowd with Illini junior Joseph Bertrand claiming the victory. Bertrand also nabbed this title in his first Illini scrimmage ever as a freshmen. Can’t wait to see him ues that dunking prowess in an actual game!!

Illinois started strong against West Virginia, scoring the first seven points and opening up a double-digit lead three minutes into the scrimmage. The Illini finished with the same intensity, scoring the final seven points on breakaway dunks by Meyers Leonard and D.J. Richardson and a 3-pointer by Sam Maniscalco to take a 27-8 lead into intermission.

The Illini led by at least 16 points the entire second half, and led by as much as 26 before the Mountaineer’s tallied the final five points of the scrimmage.

The Illini shot an admirable 62.5 percent, hitting 20-of-32 from the field and 5-of-8 from 3-point range. Illinois tallied 15 assists on 20 baskets and its pressure defense caused 15 Mountaineer turnovers.

Richardson led the Illini with 11 points and made all five of his shots. Myke Henry scored seven on 3-of-5 shooting while Maniscalco added six points on a pair of 3-pointers and had a game-high four assists. A total of 11 UI players entered the scoring column in the brief scrimmage, with Leonard, Nnanna Egwu and Tyler Griffey registering four points apiece, Brandon Paul adding three, and Bertrand, Crandall Head, Tracy Abrams and Mike Shaw all adding two.

Again, we’ve got a new Illini taking over with Richardson, who scored zero point in Tuesday’s game, making an impression with 11 points. Again, I’ve got no problem with someone new being a star in each game, but there needs to be some consistency. That’s where the Illini failed last year and really the  year before. Let’s hope these games are really sinking in as a lesson to the young team. However, of course I’m happy for a solid win! Especially since even though this was a scrimmage, it was a game against another college team rather than a national team. Sounds like the Illini really showed up to play, as they should in every game – scrimmage or regulation.

No real stinker award today, which is a definite improvement.

Illinois travels to Como on Thursday and will face Castellanze Select at Noon Central Time.

Illinois fell to the New Zealand National Team in overtime Tuesday night, 85-84. The was the second game of the team’s whirlwind Italy Tour.

The game was exteremely competitive, with 22 lead changes and 13 ties. New Zealand eventually prevailed after scoring on an offensive rebound with 2.8 seconds left in overtime. Prior to the game-winning putback, Brandon Paul had put the Illini on top by landing a driving bank shot in traffic with 9.7 seconds left. Paul’s basket capped a rally that brought the Illini back from a 4-point deficit with less than two minutes remaining. Too bad it just wasn’t enough.

The Illini made a similar comeback at the end of regulation. Trailing 73-69 with 45 seconds left, Illinois forced the extra period after scoring on each of its last two possessions and harassing its opponent into a pair of turnovers. Sam Maniscalco hit two free throws with :28 left to bring the Illini within two, then the defense forced a 5-second call on New Zealand’s inbounds pass to regain possession. Paul drove to the basket and drew a foul, making both free throws to tie the game at 73-all with just 18 seconds left. New Zealand tried to play for the last shot and the win, but Meyers Leonard grabbed a steal just before time ran out.

While play was sloppy at times – the teams combined for 49 turnovers and 40 percent shooting – the intensity and physicality was palpable.
The competitiveness the Illini showed in making a number of comebacks down the stretch pleased Coach Bruce Weber and was just the type of challenge he expected his team would face against New Zealand’s national team, which will face Australia in September for 2012 Olympic qualifying.

Illinois continued to substitute players in waves and apply constant defensive pressure. That resulted in the Fighting Illini accumulating 21 steals and forcing 29 New Zealand turnovers. Those turnovers helped to offset New Zealand’s 52-39 advantage on the boards.

Paul led the Illini with 18 points. He hit just four field goals but made his way to the free throw line repeatedly, connecting on 9-of-13 from the stripe. Paul also had team highs of four steals and three assists while adding three rebounds. Maniscalco shot 5-of-8 from the field and tallied 14 points, while Tyler Griffey also reached double figures, adding 13 points.

Tracy Abrams had nine points, Leonard totaled seven, and Joseph Bertrand and Crandall Head added six apiece. Rounding out the scoring, Nnanna Egwu had five, Mike Shawscored four, and Myke Henry added two.

Egwu and Abrams led the Illini in rebounding, with five boards apiece. Maniscalco, Griffey, Shaw, Head and Bertrand added four rebounds each.

You can’t be too upset about this loss, seeing as how they were facing a country’s national team. However, close-call losses have been plaguing the Illini in the past couple of  years, and I’d like to see Weber find an answer for this problem. Of course this game didn’t count and it’s better in Italy in the last second than fall in a game that actually counts, but I hope the guys learned from the result. It’s also nice to see that Paul decided to show up for the game, as both he and D.J. Richardson were virtually absent in the last Italian face-off.

Unfortunately, Richardson is the winner of the stinker award this time around (last game it went to Crandall Head), as he finished with 0 points on 0-7 shooting. His 5 turnovers matched Head’s previous outing. I see a similar pattern to last year in that the guys don’t want to all play well across the board. Stay tuned to see who wins the stinker award in the next game.

Illinois will visit the Aviano Air Base near Venice on Wednesday, where they will team up with West Virginia to hold a joint clinic for children of the troops and take turns scrimmaging against select military personnel. The visit will conclude with the Illini and Mountaineers facing each other in an exhibition scrimmage consisting of two 10-minute halves.

After spending two and a half days sightseeing throughout Rome, the Fighting Illini finally got down to business on the basketball court. Jetlag didn’t seem to be an issue, as they defeated Roma Selezione 78-68.

This was the first look that coaches (and fans who were able to make the trip- which is pretty hardcore I might had) got in terms of seeing the team play together as a whole. With seven new guys on the team, it’s understandable that the guys were a bit rusty and had to work to get into the groove and find some chemistry. It was in the third quarter (I guess overseas they play quarters?) that they got going and pulled away one and for all.

The starting lineup consisted of San Maniscalco, Crandall Head, Joseph Bertrand, Tyler Griffey and Nnanna Egwu. This isn’t necessarily what one would’ve expected in a starting lineup, as veterans Brandon Paul and D.J. Richardson are noticeably absent from this list. However, the lineup was based on the players who won the most games in last Saturday’s scrimmage at the Assembly Hall. The overall plan was to distribute minutes, and in the end 11 players logged at least 13 minutes, with no one tipping over 21.

Neither team shot well, but Illinois was strong on defense with 13 steals, 22 forced turnovers and a rebounding dominance of 43-22. The Illini also had 20 offensive rebounds.

Bertrand led the team in scoring with 14 points on 6-of-7 shooting. He also had the most assists with five and grabbed four rebounds. Griffey had the most rebounds with 8, and also hit double with digits in shooting with 11 points. It’s good to see these guys doing well, but I can’t forget the fact that Bertrand was a standout before the season started last year, and then barely made an appearance once the season began. Griffey has some pressure on him to step up this year, so perhaps he is responding?

Freshmen Egwu and Tracy Abrams each had 8 points, while Ibby Djimde had 5.  Upperclassmen Maniscalco, Richardson, Paul and Meyers Leonard each had 4, while Mike Shaw added just one. Shaw and Djimde were effective on the glass, with 6 and 5 boards respectively. Sadly, the real stinker of the game appears to be Head, who had 0 points and 5 turnovers in 15 minutes, with just one assist.

Next up, the Illini are heading out of Rome sunday morning and driving to Florence, where they will stay for two nights. Their next game is on Tuesday in Forli against the New Zealand National Team.

Click here to see some pictures from the game.