Wednesday night Illinois played at the Assembly Hall, returning to action for the first time in a week. The Lincoln Daily News was blessed to have Jason Rennert from Moweaqua cover the game. Rennert is a huge Illini fan and below are his thoughts. Thanks, Jason.

Illinois beats Southeast Missouri         

Simply impressed

By Jason Rennert

[DEC. 29, 2005]  CHAMPAIGN -- There was plenty to talk about after Illinois maintained a perfect record, now 13-0, by beating Southeast Missouri State 89-64 in front of a sold-out crowd in their hometown of Champaign. To say the least, I was impressed.

First, there was freshman guard Jamar Smith, who came off the bench to provide the Illini with a waterfall of 3-point baskets when things were a little dry in the first half. "My job is to shoot," he said after the game. "If I don't shoot, I don't feel like I'm doing my job." And he certainly did a good job, going 4-for-4 from 3-point land and 1-for-1 from the field. Second, there was Warren Carter, who had a break-out game, scoring 14 points on 6-for-11 shooting. Third, there were, as expected, solid performances from Dee Brown and James Augustine, not to mention a certain Chester Frazier, who returned to action after being injured the last three weeks. Frazier finished the game with five assists, five rebounds and no turnovers.

In addition, the Illini dominated in the post. They dominated from the field. They didn't let a little first-half run by the Red Hawks phase them. Their scoring was balanced. They passed the ball well.

And I want to know who is to blame for all this! They weren't supposed to be this good, were they? Nobody expected them to be 13-0, but that's the wonderful reality for Illini fans. So, who is to blame for this surprise? I believe Bruce Weber is to blame for helping this team to be exactly that -- a team.

What I saw was a team thinking, a team listening, a team looking to the leadership of their coach. It was reflected in the players' conversation with the media after the game. Consider Dee Brown, who stated during the post-game press conference, "Our main goal is to play hard, with intensity and with great defense." Great defense? Isn't basketball about who can score the most? Isn't it about who dunked on whom? It is for teams that lose, which is why I believe the Illini win. They win because a coach named Bruce Weber has instilled in them an attitude of unselfish play. It's this attitude that makes the Illini good. It is this attitude that will make them better. It is because of this attitude that I am impressed.

[Jason Rennert]

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