FanHouse Mike Tisdale

This week, the Illinois Fighting Illini made their first appearance in the polls since the end of the 2005-2006 season, and, apparently, they are planning on an extended stay. Tuesday night they summarily disposed of a very respectable Ohio State team, 67-49. Though OSU is still missing a key cog in swingman David Lighty, this was a quality victory for the Illini.

The inside duo of Dominique Keller and Mike Tisdale proved too much inside for the Buckeyes, as the two combined for 27 points on 11-17 shooting.

Just when I was ready to start tooting the Big Ten's horn, again, for being on their way back to a powerhouse conference, Ohio State gets embarrassed by West Virginia and Iowa gets trounced at Drake. Those were quality opponents, sure, but it was a good time to capitalize on the impressive Michigan State and Purdue wins during the weekend prior to Christmas.

Regardless, I have to root for the conference as a whole this year to maintain some level of sanity, as my alma mater has now lost consecutive games to Northeastern and Lipscomb. What a way to build momentum heading into January, huh?

Conference season for the Big Ten kicks off Tuesday night in Mackey Arena, as Purdue hosts Illinois in what is shaping up to be quite the contest. On paper, the Boilers are easily the favorite and should handle Illinois. They very well could. The Fighting Illini, however, have only lost one game all season -- a two-pointer to undefeated and 16th ranked Clemson. Sophomore seven-footer Mike Tisdale has really come into his own in the past four games, and he'll pose a major problem for the Boilers down low. I like Purdue here, but it's gonna be a doozy.

The Illini have a big game tomorrow against Arizona. Not only are they playing a ranked team, but they're doing so at the United Center in front of a national television audience on ESPN.

For those who tune into the game, and are familiar with the Illini, you may not recognize a few players on the court. That's because backup center Brian Carlwell injured his knee in practice this week,(No truth to the rumor that Jamar Smith got drunk and drove into it.) and is going to be out for three to five weeks.

Which wouldn't be a big deal, except for the fact Illinois' starting center, Shaun Pruitt, may have to miss Saturday's game as well.

[Bruce] Weber is preparing to face No. 22 Arizona on Saturday at the United Center without starting center Shaun Pruitt, who sprained an ankle in practice Sunday. Even if the senior from Aurora can play, it's unlikely to be his usual 30-plus minutes.

"It may end up being a game-time decision depending on how much progress he makes over the next two days," Weber said Thursday.

"He has lost a little mobility. [One day this week] he was in treatment three times. I don't think he'll be perfect for another week, but at least he can be involved minute-wise."

If Pruitt can't go on Saturday, freshman Mike Tisdale will be making the first start of his young college career. Tisdale is a 7'1 center who's averaged 3.7 points per game this season while playing eleven minutes a game. Obviously, he's going to need to perform far above that if the Illini are to have a shot at beating Arizona.

Going into this college basketball season, there's been a general consensus that the Big Ten Conference will finish up with Michigan State, Indiana, and Ohio State somewhere in the top three. I'm not questioning this thought process or anything, because it's one I whole heartedly subscribe to.

After watching Illinois handle Arizona State in Maui late Monday night though, I think we'd all be pretty foolish to write off the Illini in the Big Ten this season.

Granted, the Sun Devils went 8-22 last season, and this was their first game of the season, but the Illini were very impressive in their 77-54 victory. What I was most impressed with were the Illini newcomers. Ever since Eric Gordon left the Illini at the altar for Indiana, Bruce Weber has taken a lot of heat for his recruiting, but after last night I'm not so sure it's deserved.

Demetri McCamey and Jeff Jordan didn't take the game over, but both should provide solid depth for the Illini in the backcourt this season. The guys who really got my attention though were big men Mike Tisdale and Bill Cole. Both showed a lot of polish for freshmen, and if they move into the weight room, Illinois is going to have a formidable frontcourt for years to come.

You add those guys with a solid upper class that features Shaun Pruitt and Brian Randle (who if he could somehow manage to stay healthy would compete with D.J. White and Drew Neitzel for Big Ten player of the year honors) and you get a team that isn't going to make it easy on Indiana or Michigan State.

There are chinks in the armor though, because much like last year, this team still isn't very impressive at the free throw line. It was their achilles heel last season, and it's probably going to be the thing that keeps Illinois from overtaking the conference's big three.