The Illini may have been without two of their key players Wednesday night, but it didn’t really matter. Even with a depleted roster, Illinois proved to be too much for Lewis, defeating the Flyers 83-58 in front of a less-than-full sellout crowd at the Assembly Hall.

Without the services of Rich McBride, who is serving a six-game suspension, and Brian Randle, who will be out 7-10 days with a strained groin, the Illini were forced to alter their lineup significantly. Despite these absences, Illinois used its athleticism and pressure defense to its advantage.

“I like Bruce’s team, they’ve got size,” Lewis head coach Scott Trost said. “Those kids inside are tough, and obviously we don’t have much size.”

While Lewis’ tallest player only stands 6-foot-6, the Flyers out-rebounded the Illini 40-to-37, a stat that disappointed both head coach Bruce Weber and sophomore guard Chester Frazier.

“We’ve got to box out, that’s one thing we need to do, is hit the glass,” Weber said.

Senior forward Warren Carter had a game-high 13 points to go along with four rebounds, while sophomore guard Jamar Smith added 12 points, but shot 0-of-8 from beyond the arc.

Junior forward Shaun Pruitt and Frazier both had 10 points apiece. Frazier, who gave himself a ‘C’ grade for the game, also added seven rebounds and six assists.

Jason Genova and Stephen Bolt led the Flyers with 11 points apiece, while Dustin Warfield and Brandon Dagans each added 10.

Lewis took an early 5-2 lead before Illinois found its rhythm. Trailing the Flyers 7-5, the Illini went on a 23-3 run over the next 12 minutes. The first-half lead grew to as many as 24 points after Pruitt’s three-point play with 1:31 remaining gave the Illini a 41-17 advantage.

The Illini shot 53.1 percent (17-of-32) from the field in the first half, while the Flyers managed just 20 percent (5-of-25). Although Illinois shot 48.4 percent from the field for the game, its three-point shooting was nearly non-existent. The Illini made just 3 of the 21 three-point shots they attempted.

“I thought there were some quick threes early, little hyper threes,” Weber said. “And then Jamar is really pressing; I think he just thought it was going to come magically. Most of the threes he shot I thought were not good rhythm threes, and he’s got to do a good job of just taking his time.”

After watching most of the team lose its intensity during the Orange and Blue Scrimmage last Friday, Weber said he was pleased to see the Illini stay competitive throughout the game.

“The big guys ran well; part of that is that we rotated them every three minutes so they had plenty of energy when they went in there,” Weber said. “And that might be how we need to do it.”

Wednesday’s contest against Lewis also marked the first game in an Illinois uniform for freshmen Richard Semrau and Brian Carlwell.

But understanding that nerves play a part, Carter said both played well.

“Carlwell played well, he went out there and played hard. He had that nice block,” Carter said. “One thing that he’s doing really well is that he’s responding well to the system.

“I was a freshman once too, I understand how nervous they get, but for the first game, I think they both went out there and played hard and did their role.”

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