One of Editor & Publisher’s ‘10 That Do It Right 2021’
Clear skies. Low 22F. Winds NNW at 5 to 10 mph..
Clear skies. Low 22F. Winds NNW at 5 to 10 mph.
Updated: March 27, 2022 @ 7:57 pm
College/Prep Sports Reporter
DEFINING MOMENTS
Elite-level basketball
The best game played at State Farm Center was one Illinois lost — an 83-79 defeat against an Arizona team only beginning its climb to the top of the sport. That Dec. 11 game in Champaign might have tipped in the Wildcats’ favor, but it was an entertaining example of two top teams trading haymakers for 40 minutes. The Illini’s came from making 16 three-pointers, including six apiece from Trent Frazier and Alfonso Plummer. Arizona countered with a dominant overall performance from Bennedict Mathurin and a second-half takeover by Kerr Kriisa.
Braggin’ Rights back in C-U
Turns out Illinois reclaiming the Braggin’ Rights trophy after three consecutive losses to Missouri was just an early part of kicking the Tigers while they were down in an 88-63 Illini beatdown on Dec. 22. Missouri went on to post a 12-21 record and fire coach Cuonzo Martin after five seasons. Illinois regained the upper hand in the decades-long rivalry with a satisfying victory in St. Louis that featured its offense at its best. Kofi Cockburn dominated inside and Frazier, Plummer and Jacob Grandison all hit from three-point range.
Individual brilliance on display
Cockburn proved night in and night out — save for a few exceptions — no big man dominated more in the country. Illinois’ 7-foot, 285-pound center was a double-double machine, with few teams able to slow him down. While Cockburn set a season-high with 38 points in Illinois’ 94-85 win against UT Rio Grande Valley on Nov. 26, his most impressive performance of the year came against Wisconsin. The Badgers had no answer, and Cockburn made them pay with 37 points on 16-of-19 shooting to go with 12 rebounds for good measure during an 80-67 win by Illinois on Feb. 2 in Champaign.
Storming the court in March
The stars aligned for Illinois in the final week of the regular season. While the Illini weren’t mathematically eliminated from Big Ten championship contention, their hopes rested on then 9-21 Nebraska winning at Wisconsin to keep the door open for a shared title. The Cornhuskers pulled it off. A little more help from Iowa that featured a flurry of late missed free throws and a wide-open Kris Murray three-pointer that didn’t drop gave Illinois a 74-72 win in its regular-season finale, a share of the Big Ten title and a court storming for the ages on March 6 at State Farm Center in Champaign.
End of the line in Pittsburgh
All good things must come to an end. For Illinois, it just happened sooner than anticipated for a second straight season. The writing was on the wall after the Illini barely escaped their first-round NCAA tournament matchup with Chattanooga. Leading for just 25 seconds against the Mocs — even if it was a vital 25 seconds — before an eventual 54-53 win on March 18 in Pittsburgh should have foretold the struggles to come against a peculiar Houston team. Loaded with non-shooters, the Cougars simply did what they had done all season and outworked Illinois for a 68-53 second-round NCAA tournament victory last Sunday.
SEASON-ENDING GRADES
Backcourt: B-
Trent Frazier didn’t achieve his ultimate goal this season. That long sought after Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year honor eluded the Illinois guard once more. Still, Frazier proved his value as a two-way threat with All-Big Ten second-team and All-Big Ten defensive-team honors. Newcomer Alfonso Plummer added value of his own offensively, cracking into the top three of the Illini record books for single-season three-pointers with 98. The full effect of Illinois’ guards, though, included some regression to the mean offensively for Da’Monte Williams and a topsy-turvy season for Andre Curbelo. All told, it was a good, but not great, season for the Illini backcourt — particularly in the closing days of the season. Strong guard play can often spur NCAA tournament success, and Illinois didn’t have it.
Frontcourt: A-
Again, no other player in college basketball existed this season quite like Kofi Cockburn. It’s why Brad Underwood totally rebuilt his offense and defense around the 7-foot, 285-pound center three years ago. This season was Cockburn at his best. A little less efficient as his usage hit a career high, but more productive in the long run as the only player in the country to average at least 20 points and 10 rebounds this season, ultimately finishing with 20.9 points and 10.6 rebounds. It was a season that turned Cockburn into a consensus All-American for a second straight season except with all first-team honors this time. Coleman Hawkins had his own improvements as a sophomore amidst a period of struggles, and production from the rest of the Illinois frontcourt was limited to brief moments of success from Benjamin Bosmans-Verdonk and Omar Payne.
Bench: C-
The list of items Underwood cares less about than the average fan includes recruiting rankings (always at the top of said list) and which players start. The Illinois coach is more concerned about the rotation as a whole, with production off the bench an important part of his program- and roster-building approach. This season left something to be desired on that front. Curbelo missing 14 total games and likely never reaching his max potential this season didn’t help matters. Neither did Hawkins’ midseason crisis of confidence or the growing likelihood as the season progressed that Payne would foul as soon as he entered the game. The bench provided occasional sparks, but nothing consistent.
Coaching: B-
Underwood had his work cut out for him before the 2021-22 season even started what with having to rebuild his entire coaching staff and part of his roster. Then actual basketball happened, and no team, perhaps other than Houston, lost as many games from rotation players as Illinois this season. The combination of injuries and illness was almost unprecedented. An ever-shifting lineup and rotation still yielded a share of the Big Ten title. Just no more. Early exits in both the Big Ten tournament and NCAA tournament pointed to a team not hitting a postseason peak necessary to add more trophies to the case and banners to the rafters. Underwood pulled a few strings late — went with freshmen RJ Melendez and Luke Goode at the end — but it wasn’t enough.
Overall: B-
Recent conversation around Illinois basketball has included plenty of “not since 2005” moments. Like the Big Ten regular-season title the Illini shared this season with Wisconsin. Their last came in the 2004-05 season that will go down as one of the best — if not the best — seasons in program history. The success Illinois has had since the 2019-20 season, though, has pushed expectations higher. So what if the team before that set a single-season record with 21 losses and the program isn’t that far removed from being a regular participant of playing on Wednesday at the Big Ten tournament. Win a Big Ten title, but fall short once again as a high seed in the NCAA tournament? There’s some disappointment to overcome. Again.
AWARDS SEASON
MVP — Kofi Cockburn
A formula is in place for how an Illinois basketball player can get their jersey raised to the rafters in State Farm Center. Kofi Cockburn was already guaranteed that honor before he decided to return to the Illini for the 2021-22 season. What he did this year just reinforced the 7-footer’s place among Illinois’ all-time greats. Cockburn was already one of eight Illini ever to earn consensus second-team All-American honors. He followed that up this season by becoming one of seven consensus first team All-Americans in program history and one of three along with Andy Phillip and Dee Brown.
Most improved —
Coleman Hawkins
Coleman Hawkins played a limited role as a freshman in the 2020-21 season. The 6-foot-10 forward was an irregular part of the rotation and drew six DNPs in his debut season. Hawkins’ role grew substantially this season. As did his production, as he set career-highs in scoring (5.9 points), rebounding (4.3) and shooting (44 percent overall, 29 percent from three-point range). Hawkins was at his best at the beginning and end of the season. He showcased what a “small ball” Illinois team could look like filling in for a suspended Cockburn in November and then found out how he fit next to Cockburn to finish the season on equally as high a note.
Most overlooked —
Jacob Grandison
Just ask Brad Underwood. The Illinois coach called Jacob Grandison the team’s “maestro” on the offensive end and said that he “makes everything go.” That was missing in the Big Ten tournament and NCAA tournament with Grandison either sidelined completely or still limited by a left shoulder injury he sustained in early March. Grandison had the occasional stretch where shots wouldn’t fall or moments he’d make a bad pass or get beat defensively, but the 23-year-old veteran wing held things together for Illinois more than not. His “California cool” presence was important, which became even more apparent when he wasn’t on the court.
Newcomer of the year —
Alfonso Plummer
Utilizing the transfer portal can be a tricky proposition. That’s even more true when it comes to transfers with a single year of eligibility remaining. Guys like Adonis De La Rosa and Mark Alstork didn’t necessarily pan out as anticipated early in the Underwood era. Alfonso Plummer did. The Illinois coaches viewed the Utah transfer guard as the best shooter in the portal last offseason, and Plummer proved them right. Plummer might have had his issues defensively, but he made 98 of 240 three-pointers (40.8 percent) in his lone season in Champaign and was the Illini’s second-leading scorer behind Cockburn, averaging 14.6 points.
Freshman of the year —
RJ Melendez
Jaden Ivey, Keegan Murray and Johnny Davis will all be selected in the 2022 NBA draft. All three are even likely lottery picks. All three also put up similar per 40 minutes numbers as freshmen that Melendez did this season for Illinois. Extrapolating Melendez’s production in 8.5 minutes per game in 2021-22 to a larger role puts him, from a statistical standpoint, on a similar path. The eye test doesn’t fail him either. The 6-foot-7, 205-pound guard looks the part, too, with his length, athleticism and fearlessness at either end of the court. The bar will raise significantly for him next season.
Scott Richey is a reporter covering college basketball at The News-Gazette. His email is srichey@news-gazette.com, and you can follow him on Twitter (@srrichey).
College/Prep Sports Reporter
Scott Richey is a reporter covering college basketball at The News-Gazette. His email is srichey@news-gazette.com, and you can follow him on Twitter (@srrichey).
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