College basketball rosters turn over too quickly for teams to have the same feel for more than a couple of seasons. And Illinois coach Bruce Weber is getting ready for change.
Illinois’ problems in the backcourt don’t appear to be getting better soon. But there is an opportunity in the frontcourt, where senior Brian Randle and newcomer Rodney Alexander are showing signs that they can pick up the slack for a backcourt full of youth and question marks.
So as the Illini gear up for the season opener Nov. 11 against Northeastern at Assembly Hall, the question lingers:
Can a forward-oriented attack get the job done?
“In the past we’ve had great guards,” said Weber, remembering the Dee Brown-Deron Williams-Luther Head teams. “Now you have a big guy in (center Shaun) Pruitt. Rodney Alexander and Brian Randle are pretty athletic, Calvin (Brock) can flash to the hoop. You have a little different look.
“As a coach you have to find a way to get the ball to the guys in the right spots. You have to run your offense, tweak your motion and use their athleticism to run the court.”
Randle, showing he has come a long way back from a groin injury that required one surgery last season and another after it, was the athletic, running, jumping playmaker Weber wanted to see in Sunday night’s intrasquad scrimmage.
Playing 30 of the 32 minutes, he led all scorers with 19 points and grabbed six rebounds. Alexander had 17 points and three rebounds in 21 minutes.
But more important is where the scoring came from. Alexander was 5 of 9 on three-pointers, Randle 3 of 6. Alexander shot from the left side, right side and middle.
“I’m not afraid to shoot,” the junior college transfer said.
That’s a good thing, because somebody has to. The Illini weren’t a great shooting team last year, and Weber’s plans for this year’s backcourt have been sabotaged at every turn. Eric Gordon reneged on a commitment and signed with Indiana. His potential replacement, Quinton Watkins of Compton, Calif., turned out to be a non-qualifier and is not expected to ever make it to Champaign.
Sophomore Trent Meacham is getting the first shot, but the two exhibition games and even the early part of the schedule will go a long way toward determining how the Illini handle the position.
Steve Holdren, like Meacham a Champaign native who transferred home, might help out.
Then there’s the option of giving freshman Demetri McCamey time in the same backcourt with Chester Frazier, the point guard. But Frazier missed the scrimmage with a sprained thumb, and after an injury-ravaged 2006-07 season, he won’t be rushed back.
“I need him for Northeastern, and I need him for Hawaii (the game at Hawaii, followed by the Maui Invitational),” Weber said.
One of Weber’s big decisions is his frontcourt logjam, which at the moment is full of freshmen. Richard Semrau, who missed last year as a medical redshirt, is joined by 6-9 Mike Davis and 6-9 Bill Cole. And 7-1 center Mike Tisdale has looked good.
Weber has a 15-man roster, which is good for practice but not for play because there isn’t enough playing time. Asked how many players he’d like to redshirt, Weber said, “Two would be fine.”
But for now, Illinois will look to Pruitt and a healthy Randle to build a frontcourt-oriented attack.
“You take what you’re given,” Randle said. “You want to work to your strengths. Myself and Rodney played pretty well tonight. It’s still intrasquad, but it gives us some confidence.”
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tabannon@tribune.com
