2011-2012 ITH Season Preview: Illinois Fighting Illini

With the college basketball season inching closer, we’ll be taking a long look at the conference at large as well as Indiana’s roster over the next few weeks. Today, we continue our team previews with a look at the Illinois Fighting Illini. Underwhelming. That one word best describes Illinois’ 2010-2011 season. Despite returning four seniors and adding a McDonald’s All-American in Jereme Richmond, Illinois finished just 20-14 and failed to win consecutive games after January 6. And although Bruce Weber’s group did manage an appearance (and a win) in the NCAA Tournament, the talent on last year’s roster was certainly capable of much more. So what went wrong? Illinois failed to rebound and take care of the ball in Big Ten play. Even with senior Demetri McCamey manning the point, the Fighting Illini posted a turnover rate of 20.1 percent — third worst in the conference. On the glass, their offensive rebounding percentage of 30.2 was eighth in the league de...