Clemson poses a real challenge

It's surely a clash of styles. Clemson likes to push the pace, press and shoot, and the Tigers are averaging more than 81 points a game. Illinois, on the other hand, clamps down defensively and is limiting its opponents to 56.2 points per game. Something's gotta give.

The thing I liked about Illinois' performance at South Padre is that they continued to expand the ways they can win. They had shown the ability to win with Trent Meacham and Demetri McCamey bombing away from 3, and they'd won with Mike Davis throwing up double-doubles. But now they have added Mike Tisdale to the mix and his offensive array should be a great confidence-booster for Illinois' big sophomore. On Monday, he was honored as the Big Ten Conference co-Player of the Week.

Tupper