Surprisingly, Illinois basketball might score a lot of points in the Big Ten

ROSEMONT, Ill. - If there was one game that typified the stereotype surrounding the Big Ten - both in football and basketball - a season ago, it was one in the hands of Illinois coach Bruce Weber.

His team had played in a game last season that defied the shot clock, modern players and, well, the past 60 years of basketball. The 38-33 loss to Penn State made national attention, for all the wrong reasons.

Illinois' D.J. Richardson (1) shoots over Quincy's Justin Brock (30) during the second half of an exhibition game against Quincy in Champaign, Ill.

AP photo

“I don’t know how many of the national guys called me the next day,” Weber said. “I probably had six, seven calls. And I’m like - to be honest, I’m wondering why the heck they’re calling me, but they were looking for I guess a negative story, a story of what’s wrong with the league and the whole bit.”

That might not be as much of an issue this year. For one, the Big Ten is likely considered one of the deepest conferences in the country. And the other thing, Illinois has been showing it can score.

The Illini put up 95 points in their first exhibition game and followed it up with an 84-point game in the second exhibition. Those are numbers that were rarely seen in Champaign, Ill. a season ago no matter the opponent.

But in this Big Ten, scoring is going to be at a premium and with a lot of his players back, Weber seems to believe his guys will be much more offensively inclined this season.

Experience has a lot to do with it, including juniors Demetri McCamey, Mike Davis and Mike Tisdale. Bruce Weber called the trio the “mainstays” of his team. So while he’s “cautiously optimistic,” he also realizes the depth of the league.

And Weber also knows a lot of his team’s success will come based off of his talented freshman class.

The leader of that group is D.J. Richardson, a guard from Peoria who has already shown the ability to score at the college level. The consensus Top 50 recruit has already made his way into the starting lineup along with Davis, Tisdale, McCamey and another freshman guard, Brandon Paul. And he’s been impressive, scoring 23 points, grabbing four rebounds and adding four assists in an 84-63 win over Quincy earlier this week.

If Weber’s freshmen can mesh with his juniors, there’s a chance Illinois could be the surprise team out of the Big Ten.

“Our whole freshman group has shown signs of being very, very productive players,” Weber said. “D.J. is the one that’s maybe gotten the most publicity. He was from Peoria, went to Findlay Prep. That experience of being out at a prep school out in Vegas, being away from home, I think his maturity, the travel, the playing on national TV, they won the national, so-called national ESPN championship, prep school championship.

“I think it’s all helped him.”

It will also help Illinois score and make games under 40 points seem like more than a season ago.

(Click here for previous Big Ten previews).

Michael Rothstein covers University of Michigan basketball for AnnArbor.com. He can be reached at (734) 623-2558, by e-mail at michaelrothstein@annarbor.com or follow along on Twitter @mikerothstein.