Customer Service Place an Ad Become a Carrier Contact Us About Us Mobile Edition E-Mail Updates Report Cancellation Submit Milestone
| Subscribe Now Customer Service Place an Ad Become a Carrier Contact Us About Us Mobile Edition E-Mail Updates Report Cancellation Submit Milestone
|
 |
 |
|
Weather  Calendar Obituaries Classifieds Jobs Autos Homes Rentals Coupons Ad Center Gift Finder |
Bloomington-Normal, Illinois
|
Home News Sports
Free Time Life Money Nation/World Opinion Blogs/Columns Archives Site Map |
| SportsThursday, October 11, 2007 2:13 PM CDT |
 Comments (0) |  E-mail this page |  Print this page |  Enlarge type |  Reduce type |  Search archives |  RSS feeds |  Add to My Yahoo! |
Tupper: Illini Madness a showcase for basketball recruits
More than 20 recruits may be on hand for Friday night’s Illini Madness event at the Assembly Hall, which signals the official start of college basketball practice. Many of the recruiting targets are from the Class of 2009 and Class of 2010, and the list will be headed by Jereme Richmond, who committed to Illini coach Bruce Weber before he’d played his first game as a high school freshman. Fans will be required to buy a $7 pink T-shirt to gain admission, and part of the money will go to cancer research. By mid-day Tuesday, more than 12,500 of the shirts had been sold, and Weber said they’re still hoping to have 15,000 to nearly 17,000 shirts sold. A panoramic photo will be taken Friday of the crowd showing the place glistening in pink, much like the photos that have been shot in recent years showing it decked out in orange. Weber said the team is in good health (knock on wood), and conditioning drills have gone well. He commended freshman Mike Tisdale for his hard work during conditioning, and it’s sounding more and more like the 7-foot-1 Tisdale will play rather than redshirt. “He has only missed one of his running times,” Weber said. “And he’s really doing a good job eating (and keeping his weight up). He struggles with the physical part of playing defense.” When Shaun Pruitt backs his butt into Tisdale, he can bang the slender freshman out of the post. Offensively, however, Tisdale has encountered fewer problems and has created some for others. Everyone talks about his jump hooks. As for walkon freshman Jeff Jordan, it’s very possible he could find a spot in the guard rotation. “He can handle the ball, pressure the ball and he has the athleticism,” Weber said. “It’s just a matter of the other things coming, like his shot. But he’s definitely athletic enough.” So far, no phone calls from Papa Michael Jordan. Just a couple from Jeff’s mother, Juanita, who asks typical stuff about “how’s he doing?” and “what’s the procedure for getting tickets?” You can tell Weber admires this kid’s hard work and maturity. The Madness event used to be geared toward a night of entertainment for the fans. Now, to be honest, all of the entertainment is geared toward making a positive impression on the recruits. So brace for some loud hip-hop music and stuff the folks from Paxton and Pana might not understand. (OK, include me in that mix). Get area high school sports scores and statistics at Varsity Sports. E-mail this story | Print this story | Search archives | RSS Show comments |  Hide comments | Hide comments on all stories |
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||
 |
|
Top of Page | Home | News | Sports | Free Time | Life | Money | Nation/World | Opinion | Blogs/Columns | Archives | Site Map | RSS
Customer Service | 301 W. Washington St., PO Box 2907, Bloomington, IL 61701-2907 | Ph. 309-829-9000 | 800-747-7323
Copyright © 2009, Pantagraph Publishing Co. and Lee Enterprises. All rights reserved. | Terms of Use | Privacy Policy
|
Note: All views and opinions expressed in reader comments are solely those of the individual submitting the comment, and not those of the Pantagraph or its staff.
Please read the rules before posting comments.
You must be logged in to leave comments.
If you don't have a member ID, please register.