NCAA Tournament 2000

Illinois Fighting Illini
RECORD: 22-10 COACH: Lon Kruger | SEASON RESULTS | SEASON STATS

OUTLOOK

First round: Defeated Pennsylvania, 68-58

Second round: Lost to Florida, 93-76

Illinois has good depth, but the Fightin' Illini have had a tough time getting point guard Frank Williams, a partial qualifier last season, to buy into the system. That has caused them to be inconsistent. He seems to be fighting himself and to have an agenda that is somewhat different than the team's. The coaching staff has had to really encourage him to play with the team.

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They have Cory Bradford, last year's Big Ten freshman of the year, at the two-guard. Then they play with a variety of people in the frontcourt. One of their best young players is Brian Cook, an athletic player who is the son of Norm Cook, a former Kansas player. Marcus Griffin, who played with Williams and Sergio McClain in high school, has been hurt. He is a good player who can block shots. Lucas Johnson is Illinois' version of Brian Cardinal. He's a good all-around player who doesn't do anything spectacularly.

The Illini's strength is being able to come at teams with a variety of lineups. But they are weakest in their cohesiveness because they haven't played together that long. If the Illini get hot, they can be dangerous in the NCAA Tournament because they have frontcourt depth and Williams can make shots in the backcourt. Plus, Bradford can shoot with anybody. -- Quinn Buckner, ESPN

ROSTER

No Name Position Height Weight Class Rebounds Assists Points

0 Victor Chukwudebe F 6-7 230 SR 2.0 0.3 2.4
5 Nate Mast G 5-11 160 JR 0.4 0.8 0.8
12 Joe Cross G 6-2 205 JR 0.3 0.0 1.0
13 Cory Bradford G 6-3 200 SO 2.5 2.0 15.3
21 Robert Archibald F 6-11 228 SO 3.5 0.5 3.6
22 Lucas Johnson F 6-8 217 SO 3.1 1.9 6.1
24 Sean Harrington G 6-3 185 FR 0.5 1.0 3.0
30 Frank Williams G 6-3 197 FR 3.5 4.2 11.3
32 Cleotis Brown F 6-5 220 SR 3.6 1.1 7.1
33 Damir Krupalija F 6-9 216 SO 3.9 1.0 3.8
34 Brian Cook F 6-10 231 FR 4.6 0.7 9.5
40 Sergio Mcclain F 6-4 222 JR 3.7 2.5 6.7
52 Marcus Griffin F 6-9 235 JR 4.9 0.8 10.6

PROBABLE STARTERS

F -- Lucas Johnson (6-8, So., 6.1 ppg, 3.0 rpg, 1.9 apg)
F -- Sergio McClain (6-4, Jr., 6.8, 3.7, 2.5)
C -- Brian Cook (6-10, Fr., 9.6, 4.6, 0.8)
G -- Cory Bradford (6-3, So., 15.5, 2.6, 1.9
G -- Frank Williams (6-3, Fr., 11.3, 3.6, 4.3)

TOP RESERVES

F -- Marcus Griffin (6-9, Jr., 10.9, 5.0, 0.8)
F -- Cleotis Brown (6-5, Sr., 7.0, 3.7, 1.1)
F -- Robert Archibald (6-11, So., 3.7, 3.6, 0.6)
G -- Sean Harrington (6-3, Fr., 2.9, 0.5, 1.0)

NOTABLE
Seed, Region and Bid: 4, East, At-large
Total NCAA Tournament Bids: 20
NCAA Tournament Record: 23-20 (.535)
Final Four Appearances: 4 (1989, 1952, 1951, 1949)
NCAA Tournament Championships: 0
Best NCAA Tournament Finish: National semifinals (1989, 1952, 1951, 1949)
Final ESPN/USA Today ranking: 23
Final Asscoiated Press ranking: 21
Final Ratings Percentage Index: 23
Final Sagarin Computer Ranking: 15

RECORD VS. RANKED TEAMS (5-4)
Nov. 30 -- Lost to No. 15 Duke, 72-69
Dec. 4 -- Lost to No. 23 Maryland, 69-67
Dec. 5 -- Beat Seton Hall, 72-61
Dec. 18 -- Beat No. 6 Kansas, 84-70
Jan. 6 -- Beat No. 18 Ohio State, 80-77
Jan. 12 -- Lost to Purdue, 69-66
Feb. 22 -- Beat No. 14 Indiana, 87-63
Mar. 10 -- Beat No. 13 Indiana, 72-69
Mar. 12 -- Lost to No. 4 Michigan State, 76-61
(Opponents ranking reflects ranking on game day)

TOURNAMENT HISTORY
Overall Record: 23-20 (.535)
Final Four Appearances: 4 (1949, 1951, 1952, 1989)

1998--Fifth seed in West Region
Defeated South Alabama in first round, 64-51
Lost to Maryland in second round, 67-61

1997--Sixth seed in Southeast Region
Defeated USC in first round, 90-77
Lost to Chattanooga in second round, 75-63

1995--Eleventh seed in in East Region
Lost to Tulsa in first round, 68-62

1994--Eighth seed in Midwest Region
Lost to Georgetown in first round, 84-77

1993--Sixth seed in West Region
Defeated Long Beach State in first round, 75-72
Lost to Vanderbilt in second round, 85-68

1990--Fifth seed in Midwest Region
Lost to Dayton in first round, 88-86

1989--First seed in Midwest Region
Defeated McNeese State in first round, 77-71
Defeated Ball State in second round, 72-60
Defeated Louisville in regional semifinal, 83-69
Defeated Syracuse in regional final, 89-86
Lost to Michigan in National Semifinal, 83-81

1988--Third seed in Southeast Region
Defeated Texas-San Antonio in first round, 81-72
Lost to Villanova in second round, 66-63

1987--Third seed in Southeast Region
Lost to Austin Peay in first round, 68-67

1986--Fourth seed in Southeast Region
Defeated Fairfield in first round, 75-51
Lost to Alabama in second round, 58-56

1985--Third seed in Southeast Region
Defeated Northeastern in first round, 76-57
Defeated Georgia in second round, 74-58
Lost to Georgia Tech in regional semifinal, 61-53

1984--Second seed in Mideast Region
Defeated Villanova in second round, 64-56
Defeated Maryland in regional semifinal, 72-70
Lost to Kentucky in regional final, 54-51

1983--Seventh seed in West Region
Lost to Utah in first round, 52-49

1981--Fourth seed in West Region
Defeated Wyoming in second round, 67-65
Lost to Kansas State in regional semifinal, 57-52

1963--Mideast Region
Defeated Bowling Green in regional semifinal, 70-67
Lost to Loyola of Illinois in regional final, 79-64

1952--East Region
Defeated Dayton in regional semifinal, 80-61
Defeated Duquesne in regional final, 74-68
Lost to St. John's in National Semifinal, 61-59
Defeated Santa Clara for National Third Place, 67-64

1951--East Region
Defeated Columbia in regional semifinal, 79-71
Defeated North Carolina State in regional final, 84-70
Lost to Kentucky in National Semifinal, 76-74
Defeated Oklahoma State for National Third Place, 61-46

1949--Eastern Regionals
Defeated Yale in regional semifinal, 71-67
Lost to Kentucky in regional final, 76-47
Defeated Oregon State for National Third Place, 57-53

1942--Eastern Regionals
Lost to Kentucky in regional semifinal, 46-44
Lost to Penn State for regional third place, 41-34


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