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2014–15 Illinois Fighting Illini men's basketball team

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2014–15 Illinois Fighting Illini men's basketball
NIT, First round
ConferenceBig Ten Conference
Record19–14 (9–9 Big Ten)
Head coach
Assistant coaches
MVPNnanna Egwu
MVPRayvonte Rice
Captains
  • Tracy Abrams
  • Nnanna Egwu
  • Rayvonte Rice
  • Ahmad Starks
Home arenaState Farm Center
Seasons
2014–15 Big Ten Conference men's basketball standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT
No. 3 Wisconsin † 16 – 2   .889 36 – 4   .900
No. 12 Maryland 14 – 4   .778 28 – 7   .800
No. 23 Michigan State 12 – 6   .667 27 – 12   .692
Iowa 12 – 6   .667 22 – 12   .647
Purdue 12 – 6   .667 21 – 13   .618
Ohio State 11 – 7   .611 24 – 11   .686
Indiana 9 – 9   .500 20 – 14   .588
Illinois 9 – 9   .500 19 – 14   .576
Michigan 8 – 10   .444 16 – 16   .500
Minnesota 6 – 12   .333 18 – 15   .545
Northwestern 6 – 12   .333 15 – 17   .469
Nebraska 5 – 13   .278 13 – 18   .419
Penn State 4 – 14   .222 18 – 16   .529
Rutgers 2 – 16   .111 10 – 22   .313
† 2015 Big Ten tournament winner
Rankings from AP poll

The 2014–15 Illinois Fighting Illini men's basketball team represented the University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign in the 2014–15 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. Led by third-year head coach John Groce, the Illini played their home games at State Farm Center in Champaign, Illinois as members of the Big Ten Conference. They finished the season 19–14, 9–9 in Big Ten play to finish in a tie for seventh place. They lost in the second round of the Big Ten tournament to Michigan. They received an invitation to the National Invitation Tournament where they lost in the first round to Alabama.

Previous season

[edit]

The Illini finished the 2013–14 season 20–15, 7–11 in Big Ten play to finish in a tie for eighth place. They received a bid to the NIT where they advanced to the second round before losing to Clemson.

Offseason

[edit]

Departures

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Name Number Pos. Height Weight Year Hometown Notes
Joseph Bertrand 2 SG 6'6" 200 RS Senior Sterling, IL Graduated/Pro for Larochette
Jon Ekey 33 F 6'7" 225 GS Senior Independence, MO Graduated/Pro for Saitama Broncos

2014 recruiting class

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Leron Black joined the Fighting Illini as the first recruit from the Memphis, Tennessee area since the 1997–98 season when Cory Bradford suited up for the Fighting Illini.[1] Black is the reigning Tennessee Mr. Basketball and is Illinois' highest rated recruit since Portland Trail Blazers Forward-center Meyers Leonard.[2]

Michael Finke joins Rayvonte Rice as the second player on the Fighting Illini roster from Centennial High School in Champaign, Illinois. Finke also follows the footsteps of his father, Jeff Finke, who lettered in basketball as a forward for the 1986–87 Illinois Fighting Illini men's basketball team and then lettered in football as a tight end for the Fighting Illini from 1988–1990.[3][4]

College recruiting information
Name Hometown High school / college Height Weight Commit date
Leron Black
PF 		Memphis, TN White Station (TN) 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 215 lb (98 kg) Sep 1, 2013 
Star ratings: Scout:4/5 stars   Rivals:4/5 stars   247Sports:4/5 stars    ESPN:4/5 stars
Michael Finke
PF 		Champaign, IL Centennial (IL) 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 210 lb (95 kg) Dec 12, 2012 
Star ratings: Scout:3/5 stars   Rivals:3/5 stars   247Sports:3/5 stars    ESPN:3/5 stars
Overall recruiting rankings:
  • Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight.
  • In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale.

Sources:

  • "2014 Illinois Basketball Commitment List". Rivals.com. Retrieved March 24, 2014.
  • "2014 Illinois Basketball Commitment List". Scout.com. Retrieved March 24, 2014.
  • "2014 Illinois Basketball Commitment List". ESPN.com. Retrieved March 24, 2014.
  • "Scout.com Team Recruiting Rankings". Scout.com. Retrieved March 24, 2014.
  • "2014 Team Ranking". Rivals.com. Retrieved March 24, 2014.
  • "2014–15 Illinois Fighting Illini men's basketball team". 247sports.com. Retrieved March 24, 2014.

Walk-ons

[edit]
College recruiting information
Name Hometown High school / college Height Weight Commit date
Alex Austin
G 		Chicago, IL Mount Carmel / Eastern Illinois 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 185 lb (84 kg) Jul 1, 2014 
Star ratings: Rivals: N/A   247Sports: N/A    ESPN:2/5 stars   ESPN grade: 85
Cameron Liss
F 		Northbrook, IL Glenbrook North 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 200 lb (91 kg) Jul 1, 2014 
Star ratings: Rivals: N/A   247Sports: N/A
Ryan Schmidt
G 		Bloomington, IL Bloomington Central Catholic 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) 185 lb (84 kg) Jan 23, 2015 
Star ratings: Rivals: N/A   247Sports: N/A
Overall recruiting rankings:
  • Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight.
  • In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale.

Sources:

Roster

[edit]
2014–15 Illinois Fighting Illini men's basketball team
Players Coaches
Pos. # Name Height Weight Year Previous school Hometown
G 1 Jaylon Tate 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 170 lb (77 kg) So Simeon High School Chicago, IL
G 3 Ahmad Starks (C) 5 ft 9 in (1.75 m) 170 lb (77 kg) RS Sr Whitney Young High School Chicago, IL
G 10 Mike LaTulip 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) 170 lb (77 kg) Jr Prospect High School Arlington Heights, IL
G 11 Aaron Cosby (S) 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 205 lb (93 kg) RS Jr Northfield Mount Hermon School/Seton Hall Louisville, KY
F 12 Leron Black 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 220 lb (100 kg) Fr White Station High School Memphis, TN
G 13 Tracy Abrams Injured (C) Current redshirt 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 185 lb (84 kg) Sr Mount Carmel High School Chicago, IL
G 14 Ryan Schmidt (W) 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) 185 lb (84 kg) Sr Bloomington Central Catholic High School Bloomington, IL
G 21 Malcolm Hill 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 230 lb (104 kg) So Belleville High School-East Belleville, IL
C 22 Maverick Morgan 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 250 lb (113 kg) So Springboro High School Springboro, OH
G 24 Rayvonte Rice (C) 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 230 lb (104 kg) RS Sr Centennial High School/Drake Champaign, IL
G 25 Kendrick Nunn 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 190 lb (86 kg) So Simeon High School Chicago, IL
F 31 Austin Colbert 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 210 lb (95 kg) So Gill St. Bernard's School Chesapeake, VA
F/C 32 Nnanna Egwu (C) 6 ft 11 in (2.11 m) 250 lb (113 kg) Sr St. Ignatius High School Chicago, IL
F 43 Michael Finke Current redshirt 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 230 lb (104 kg) Fr Centennial High School Champaign, IL
G 44 Alex Austin (W) Current redshirt 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 185 lb (84 kg) Jr Mount Carmel High School Chicago, IL
F 45 Cameron Liss (W) 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 200 lb (91 kg) Fr Glenbrook North High School Northbrook, IL
Head coach
Assistant coach(es)
Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • (S) Suspended
  • (I) Ineligible
  • (W) Walk-on

Roster
Last update: 2015-02-26

Depth chart

[edit]
Pos. Starting 5 Bench 1 Bench 2 Bench 3
F/C Nnanna Egwu Maverick Morgan
F Malcolm Hill Leron Black Austin Colbert Cameron Liss
G Rayvonte Rice
G Kendrick Nunn Ryan Schmidt
G Jaylon Tate Ahmad Starks Mike LaTulip

[5]

Regular season

[edit]

Injuries

[edit]

On September 11, it was announced that senior point guard Tracy Abrams suffered a torn ACL to his right knee during preseason workouts which will cause him to miss the entire 2014–15 season. The injury forced Abrams to use a medical redshirt so he can return for the 2015–16 season.[6] After an 0–2 start to Big Ten Conference play, it was announced on January 6 that redshirt senior guard Rayvonte Rice suffered a broken bone in his left hand during practice and would be sidelined indefinitely. At the time of his injury, Rice was Illinois' leader in scoring, rebounds, and steals.[7] Illinois suffered another injury that was announced prior to their game against Purdue at home on January 21. Redshirt junior guard Aaron Cosby suffered a retinal tear after being poked in the eye in his left eye during a home loss to Indiana. Cosby underwent laser surgery to repair the tear, which will sideline him up to two weeks.[8]

Student-manager turned walk-on

[edit]

On January 23, 2014 head coach John Groce announced the addition of former student-manager Ryan Schmidt to the roster as a walk-on guard after a string of injuries at the position. Schmidt is a senior from Bloomington, Illinois and played high school basketball at Bloomington Central Catholic.[9]

Aaron Cosby

[edit]

On February 20, 2015 coach Groce announced that he and redshirt junior guard Aaron Cosby have mutually decided to part ways. Cosby had not played in over a month since suffering an injury to his left eye against Indiana on January 18. While recovering from his injury, he and Rayvonte Rice were indefinitely suspended from play due to a violation of team rules on January 31. Rice returned from suspension in a home win against Michigan, however Cosby remained suspended. Despite no longer being on the roster, Cosby intends to remain enrolled at Illinois and then transfer to another school after graduating in May. Cosby previously played his first two years for Seton Hall and sat out during the 2013–14 season after transferring to Illinois.[10][11]

2004-05 national runner-up anniversary

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On December 5, 2014, Illinois announced they would be releasing commemorative bobbleheads to celebrate the ten-year anniversary of the 2004-05 Fighting Illini team.[12] The 2004-05 team finished the season as the 2005 National Runner-up with a 37–2 record, which tied the NCAA record for most wins in a season. During weeknight Big Ten Conference play at home, Illinois will release a bobblehead of the starting lineup of Deron Williams, Dee Brown, Luther Head, Roger Powell, Jr., and James Augustine.[13]

Schedule and results

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Source:[14]

Date
time, TV 		Rank# Opponent# Result Record High points High rebounds High assists Site (attendance)
city, state
Exhibition
Nov 7*
7:00 pm 		Quincy W 91–62  –
  20 – Hill   13 – Egwu   5 – Tied  State Farm Center (14,422)
Champaign, IL
Non-conference regular season
Nov 14*
8:00 pm, ESPN3 		Georgia Southern W 80–71  1–0
  24 – Rice   7 – Hill   3 – Tied  State Farm Center (15,626)
Champaign, IL
Nov 16*
5:00 pm 		Coppin State W 114–56  2–0
  18 – Tied   9 – Hill   7 – Tate  State Farm Center (12,272)
Champaign, IL
Nov 21*
7:00 pm, ESPN3 		Austin Peay
Las Vegas Invitational 		W 107–66  3–0
  16 – Tied   6 – Tied   5 – Tate  State Farm Center (16,337)
Champaign, IL
Nov 24*
7:00 pm, ESPN3 		Brown
Las Vegas Invitational 		W 89–68  4–0
  17 – Cosby   10 – Rice   4 – Tied  State Farm Center (11,422)
Champaign, IL
Nov 27*
4:00 pm, FS1 		vs. Indiana State
Las Vegas Invitational Semifinals 		W 88–62  5–0
  21 – Rice   8 – Tied   4 – Cosby  Orleans Arena (N/A)
Paradise, NV
Nov 28*
9:30 pm, FS1 		vs. Baylor
Las Vegas Invitational Championship 		W 62–54  6–0
  17 – Tied   8 – Egwu   5 – Starks  Orleans Arena (N/A)
Paradise, NV
Dec 2*
8:00 pm, ESPN2 		No. 24 at No. 15 Miami (FL)
ACC–Big Ten Challenge 		L 61–70  6–1
  22 – Rice   12 – Rice   3 – Hill  BankUnited Center (6,086)
Coral Gables, FL
Dec 6*
1:00 pm, ESPN3 		No. 24 American W 70–55  7–1
  13 – Hill   7 – Egwu   4 – Tate  State Farm Center (13,924)
Champaign, IL
Dec 9*
6:00 pm, ESPN 		vs. No. 7 Villanova
Jimmy V Classic 		L 59–73  7–2
  20 – Hill   9 – Egwu   4 – Starks  Madison Square Garden (11,617)
New York City, NY
Dec 13*
6:00 pm, BTN 		vs. Oregon L 70–77  7–3
  29 – Rice   7 – Tied   4 – Tied  United Center (13,759)
Chicago, IL
Dec 17*
6:00 pm, ESPNU 		Hampton W 73–55  8–3
  16 – Nunn   8 – Black   3 – Tied  State Farm Center (12,564)
Champaign, IL
Dec 20*
1:00 pm, ESPN2 		vs. Missouri
Braggin' Rights 		W 62–59  9–3
  19 – Rice   7 – Tied   3 – Rice  Scottrade Center (20,079)
St. Louis, MO
Dec 27*
8:00 pm, BTN 		Kennesaw State W 93–45  10–3
  21 – Rice   9 – Hill   7 – Tate  State Farm Center (16,158)
Champaign, IL
Big Ten regular season
Dec 30
2:00 pm, ESPN2 		at Michigan L 65–73 OT 10–4
(0–1) 		 19 – Hill   11 – Rice   6 – Rice  Crisler Center (12,707)
Ann Arbor, MI
Jan 3
2:30 pm, ESPN2 		at No. 20 Ohio State L 61–77  10–5
(0–2) 		 20 – Rice   7 – Rice   4 – Tied  Value City Arena (16,028)
Columbus, OH
Jan 7
8:00 pm, BTN 		No. 11 Maryland W 64–58  11–5
(1–2) 		 28 – Hill   9 – Egwu   4 – Tate  State Farm Center (12,896)
Champaign, IL
Jan 11
7:30 pm, BTN 		at Nebraska L 43–53  11–6
(1–3) 		 12 – Hill/Nunn   10 – Egwu   2 – Tied  Pinnacle Bank Arena (15,514)
Lincoln, NE
Jan 14
8:00 pm, BTN 		at Northwestern
Rivalry 		W 72–67  12–6
(2–3) 		 25 – Nunn   6 – Hill   4 – Starks  Welsh-Ryan Arena (7,652)
Evanston, IL
Jan 18
12:00 pm, BTN 		Indiana
Rivalry 		L 74–80  12–7
(2–4) 		 24 – Nunn   9 – Black   6 – Starks  State Farm Center (17,085)
Champaign, IL
Jan 21
8:00 pm, BTN 		Purdue W 66–57  13–7
(3–4) 		 18 – Hill   13 – Black   6 – Tate  State Farm Center (12,965)
Champaign, IL
Jan 24
1:15 pm, BTN 		at Minnesota L 71–79  13–8
(3–5) 		 18 – Tied   9 – Black   9 – Tate  Williams Arena (13,421)
Minneapolis, MN
Jan 31
12:00 pm, BTN 		Penn State W 60–58  14–8
(4–5) 		 27 – Hill   7 – Black   5 – Tate  State Farm Center (14,597)
Champaign, IL
Feb 3
8:30 pm, BTN 		Rutgers W 66–54  15–8
(5–5) 		 21 – Nunn   6 – Nunn   6 – Tate  State Farm Center (12,838)
Champaign, IL
Feb 7
11:00 am, ESPN 		at Michigan State W 59–54  16–8
(6–5) 		 19 – Hill   9 – Egwu   3 – Nunn  Breslin Center (14,797)
East Lansing, MI
Feb 12
8:00 pm, ESPN 		Michigan W 64–52 OT 17–8
(7–5) 		 21 – Nunn   12 – Egwu   4 – Starks  State Farm Center (17,087)
Champaign, IL
Feb 15
12:00 pm, CBS 		at No. 5 Wisconsin L 49–68  17–9
(7–6) 		 15 – Hill   9 – Egwu   2 – Starks  Kohl Center (17,279)
Madison, WI
Feb 22
6:30 pm, BTN 		Michigan State L 53–60  17–10
(7–7) 		 17 – Hill   5 – Rice   3 – Rice  State Farm Center (16,108)
Champaign, IL
Feb 25
8:00 pm, BTN 		at Iowa
Rivalry 		L 60–68  17–11
(7–8) 		 20 – Rice   9 – Rice   3 – Nunn  Carver–Hawkeye Arena (14,831)
Iowa City, IA
Feb 28
6:00 pm, BTN 		Northwestern
Rivalry 		W 86–60  18–11
(8–8) 		 19 – Rice   8 – Morgan   3 – Tied  State Farm Center (15,471)
Champaign, IL
Mar 4
9:00 pm, BTN 		Nebraska W 69–57  19–11
(9–8) 		 23 – Rice   8 – Egwu   2 – Tied  State Farm Center (17,085)
Champaign, IL
Mar 7
3:30 pm, BTN 		at Purdue L 58–63  19–12
(9–9) 		 25 – Rice   9 – Egwu   2 – Hill  Mackey Arena (14,846)
West Lafayette, IN
Big Ten tournament
Mar 12
11:00 am, BTN 		(8) vs. (9) Michigan
second round 		L 55–73  19–13
  13 – Hill   9 – Rice   2 – Tate  United Center (16,028)
Chicago, IL
NIT
Mar 17*
8:00 pm, ESPN 		(3) at (6) Alabama
First round 		L 58–79  19–14
  22 – Hill   8 – Egwu   6 – Hill  Coleman Coliseum (2,348)
Tuscaloosa, AL
*Non-conference game. #Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses.
All times are in Central Time.

Honors and awards

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On March 9, 2015, The Big Ten Conference announced most of its conference awards.[15]

Player Honor
Rayvonte Rice All-Big Ten Honorable Mention
Malcolm Hill All-Big Ten Honorable Mention
Nnanna Egwu All-Defensive Team

References

[edit]
  1. ^ Martin, John (September 1, 2013). "Recruiting Insider: White Station's Leron Black commits to Illinois". The Commercial Appeal. Retrieved November 12, 2014.
  2. ^ "Class AAA Mr. Basketball Winner: LeRon Black from White Station High School". Tennessee Secondary School Athletic Association. March 15, 2014. Archived from the original on May 20, 2014. Retrieved May 13, 2014.
  3. ^ Tupper, Mark (December 13, 2012). "Centenniall's Finke commits to Illinois". Herald & Review. Retrieved November 12, 2014.
  4. ^ "Jeff Finke". Sports Reference. 2014. Retrieved November 12, 2014.
  5. ^ "Game 17 Notes IlliniHoops at Nebraska". Archived from the original on April 5, 2015. Retrieved January 10, 2015.
  6. ^ Parrish, Gary (September 11, 2014). "Illinois point guard Tracy Abrams to miss season with torn ACL". CBS Sports. Retrieved January 22, 2015.
  7. ^ Ryan, Shannon (January 6, 2015). "Rayvonte Rice, Illini's leading scorer, out indefinitely". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved January 22, 2015.
  8. ^ Johnson, Raphielle (January 21, 2015). "Eye injury to sideline Illinois junior guard up to two weeks". NBC Sports. Retrieved January 22, 2015.
  9. ^ "Ryan Schmidt". Illinois DIA. January 23, 2015. Archived from the original on January 23, 2015. Retrieved January 23, 2015.
  10. ^ "Illinois guard Aaron Cosby will transfer". Sports Illustrated. February 20, 2015. Retrieved February 23, 2015.
  11. ^ Jackson, Marcus (February 20, 2015). "Groce on Cosby: 'I wish him nothing but the best'". News-Gazette. Retrieved February 23, 2015.
  12. ^ Johnson, Raphielle (December 5, 2014). "Illinois to honor starters on 2004-05 national runner-up squad with commemorative bobbleheads". NBC Sports. Retrieved January 21, 2015.
  13. ^ "2004-05 'Starting 5' bobblehead set commemorates 10-year anniversary of historic season". Illinois DIA. January 15, 2015. Archived from the original on January 18, 2015. Retrieved January 21, 2015.
  14. ^ "2014-15 Men's Basketball Schedule".
  15. ^ "2014-15 All-Big Ten Men's Basketball Team" (PDF). CSTV.com. March 9, 2015. Archived from the original (PDF) on April 29, 2018. Retrieved March 10, 2015.
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