"There's team stats and then there's individual stats," Groce said. "(For example) every player will be evaluated on transition 'D' and ball-screen 'D' and guarding their yard and positioning and jumping to the ball. That's specific to all of them. They all have to do those things. ... All those things go into grading out our whole performance."

Through the first nine days of practice, Brandon Paul led the Illini in scoring and assists. The senior guard has shown signs of becoming more efficient on offense, although the challenge will be making quick decisions when he doesn't know the defense that's coming.

Nnanna Egwu and Myke Henry were the leading rebounders, a positive sign for both sophomores. Egwu has steadily improved in other areas, but coaches want more rebounds. Henry's scoring has been steady, but his ticket into the rotation is through defense and rebounds.

Klee