Purdue is French for “lose” -

ONE STEP FORWARD, TWO STEPS BACK

Winning at Minnesota took Illinois off the bubble. Losing by double digits to Purdue, at home, put Illinois back in the NIT conversation.

The Boilermakers grabbed a 42–28 rebound differential, and pounded the ball toward the basket. JaJuan Johnson and E’Twaun Moore scored 24 and 20 points respectively, largely from the charity stripe. Johnson connected 10 of 12 from free. Moore hit 8 of 10.

But the Illini could have pulled the game out. Execution was the difference. In crunch time, Johnson and Moore hit big shots. At the other end, Demetri McCamey and Bill Cole came up empty on consecutive breakaways.

Bruce Weber seemed to adopt the Cubs fan’s mindset, looking toward next year. Mike Tisdale saw only 18 minutes of action. As the game wound down, McCamey watched from the bench as Crandall Head played point.

An eerily charming afternoon sun shone on Head from the Assembly Hall’s B and C concourse doors, kept open by the raft of departing Illini fans.

Weber challenged the media to report his successes. “We were up seven to nothing. It was a great move by me. Put that on there.”

He also spoke of outside influences corrupting his ability to coach the team. It’s a beguiling 10:22 of rant.

Demetri McCamey’s entourage of ne’er-do-wells

RECRUITING DEON THOMAS

Illini assistant Jay Price does whatever Bruce Weber asks, and gets all the credit and blame associated with his assigned tasks. Price’s performance in recruiting and administrative functions buttresses his aspiration to land a head coaching job. In his assignment coaching the big men, Price follows the Weber philosophy. Does that aspect of his job description aid his future job prospects?

Maybe, and probably not.

To the extent that neutral observers continue to pile criticism on Illinois bigs, the best spin for Jay Price is that he’s willing to tackle thankless assignments.

Let’s imagine a future in which the Illinois coaching staff needs to fill a position. Whether Wayne McClain takes the Bradley job after the much-predicted Jim Les firing; whether Deron Williams’s machinations take Bruce Weber to Salt Lake City; whether Jay Price gets his first head coaching gig at a Midwestern mid-major or smaller D1 school; any opening on the Illini staff should see Deon Thomas returned to the fold.

Illinois basketball could use a guy from the Dick Nagy tree. Illinois could use a big man big men coach. And Deon is simply great with people. On Sunday, Deon and his wife Dafna Tal-Thomas met their Israeli-Illini compatriots, the Randles.

Anastasia is back in Illinois to further her education. Brian came for a visit.

His future in pro ball is both safely confirmed and up in the air.

It’s obvious that their work separation bores a hole in Brian’s soul. Apart from her obvious beauty, grace and intelligence; Brian misses her cooking.

Their meal planning is in flux. Anastasia has not made Shepherd’s Pie in a while.

RECRUITING THE NEXT DEON THOMAS

Jaylon Tate made another trip to Champaign. This time he joined DeLaSalle teammate Alex Foster.

It’s been a while since the Fosters made it to Champaign. Whether they came to see Illinois or Purdue, it’s hard to say. Dad Tony said as the recruiting process deepens and progresses, all the schools start to blur into one.

Jaylon Tate and Alex Foster

Tony Foster says Alex continues to do well in school. He’s working to expand his skill set, focusing especially on drills that would make him a viable wing player. To this point, Alex’s strengths are interior-oriented. Maybe he can play power forward in college. But given his tweener build, it’s probably best to be versatile.

Hope and Tony Foster

Tony says basketball is the only sport Alex likes, but the Fosters are pushing Alex to take up swimming as a way to develop his upper body strength.

The official Foster Family Stance is that Alex likes Purdue and Illinois. And the final codicil to that statement was “you want to know that the coach is still going to be there when you finally arrive.”