Illini and Loyola prepare for first round in NCAA tournament
PITTSBURGH (CBS) – The Illini and Loyola both got in their day-before practices on the court in Pittsburgh Thursday.
No. 7- seeded Loyola is getting set to face Ohio State, while the Illini have a No. 4 seed and begin their tourney journey against Chattanooga.
The Illini are back in the big dance hoping for a longer stay than last year when they were upset as a 1-seed in the second round by Loyola. They've tried to keep things a little looser this time, have more fun, and not worry about what happened in 2021.
"You can go down every major program in college basketball, and they've been upset in the tournament. All you can do is keep coming back," said Illini head coach Brad Underwood.
Illinois may be as healthy as they've been all year, with Jacob Grandison coming back from a shoulder injury and Andre Curbelo finally feeling close to 100 percent.
"I've been feeling great as the days go by. I've got a few games under my belt, a few practices under my belt. I started smiling because I've been feeling it lately," Curbelo said.
The focus for the Illini this time around has been on having fun - something they say weren't really doing last year, especially because of the pandemic.
"I think the circumstances made it really difficult. Our mental health was a little bit off. COVID. It affected the guys," said Illinois All-American center Kofi Cockburn. "We weren't able to have as much fun as we should've."
"It's March. If you're not having fun, then we shouldn't be here," said Illinois guard Trent Frazier. "We're playing free. We're having fun. We're ready to go on a run."
Loyola as a 10-seed is getting set to face 7-seeded Ohio State in the early game Friday. This is the Ramblers 3rd appearance in the last 4 tourneys, and they've made deep runs in their previous two trips with a Final Four and a Sweet 16.
"I've been able to play one year, this is my second time. Everything feels different. There's a different type of pressure, different type of intensity. I think you've just got to embrace and enjoy every opportunity, and I think our experience, experiencing that, these guys have been to a Final Four, and then most of our guys have been to a Sweet 16. That's super valuable experience," said guard Braden Norris.
"They know what they can do, and we've talked about it all year that if we just do what we do from an edge standpoint, from how we approach the defensive side of the ball, if we do that and take care of the ball, then I think they believe that we can win as many games as possible," said Loyola head coach Drew Valentine.
Braden Norris will have his mom in the stands here. His dad will be in San Diego watching Braden's brother Keaton, who's also playing in the first round of the NCAA Tournament.
