Illini's next generation quickly making impressions

Rice said although the team has only been together since June 7, individual workouts, team drills and informal pickup games have been intense.

"They are really competitive," Rice said. "We're trying to run the system coach Groce puts us in and guys are playing hard. That's what we did last year and that's the foundation we set in the summer. We're trying to keep that going."

Tupper