SAN DIEGO – Down three points with just seconds left in the game, Illinois called a timeout and coach Bruce Weber drew up a plan for the outside shot his team needed. Get the freshman the ball, he said. Have Jamar take the shot.

Jamar Smith hadn’t made a three all night, but he was Illinois’ best three-point shooter, and the team’s best chance for the bucket it needed. The ball would be inbounded to senior Dee Brown, would make sure Smith was open. If the freshman was in trouble, Brown was the man to rewrite a play on the court – and everyone on the team knew it.

“I told Dee going into the timeout that this is his moment,” sophomore forward Brian Randle said. “But without me saying it, he knew that. I wouldn’t have had any other player, NBA, NCAA, anybody, take that shot besides Dee.”

When Smith couldn’t get open, Brown was forced to toss up a shot that ultimately missed the rim, gave Washington the victory and eliminated Illinois from the tournament. But the Illini players did not blame Brown for missing the basket. Instead they had only praise for the play of Brown and James Augsutine, the senior captains who led Illinois to a 26-7 season.

“They did a lot for us; they led us in the right direction,” forward Marcus Arnold said. “We proved a lot of people wrong.”

Arnold said Augustine and Brown were central to easing his transition from Illinois State. He said the seniors gave the team direction when it was struggling to define itself throughout the season.

“I’ve learned a lot from them,” Arnold said. “They’re going to leave some big shoes to fill.”

Augustine and Brown’s greatest asset may have been the way they handled team issues and individual problems. Throughout the season, the pair dominated the top of Illinois’ shooting, rebounding, and assist columns, but they were quick to help younger teammates who fell into a slump.

“They were almost like father figures,” Smith said. “When Rich (McBride) went through a drought earlier this season, I saw Dee talking to him all the time. When he came out of it, I knew a lot of it was Dee.”

Weber said Augustine and Brown created balance; Augustine leading by example and Brown using his loud and in-your-face personality to get his points across. The pair were serious about their role as the only seniors and only returning starters, stepping up on the court and in the locker room.

While Brown may have gone to the NBA if he had not broken his foot last spring, his return meant Augustine would not be forced to lead the program alone.

“I don’t know if James could have carried the torch by himself,” Weber said. “I cannot say enough about how he did it and did it with class.”

The Illini face an enormous task in rebounding from the loss of the greatest players in program history. In the next six months they’ll need to name two new starters, find new captains and produce new statistical leaders. It will be a process the team has experienced before, but that doesn’t mean it will be any easier.

“It’s the end of an era, but it’s college basketball. You lose guys,” Weber said. “We’ll have a little bit of empty nest syndrome. I told the guys before the first game, if you’re looking for Deron, he’s in Utah. Luther’s in Houston; Roger’s in Rockford. It will be like that.

“Rich, Marcus and Warren will be seniors next season. I hope they gained some confidence from this whole experience.”