(WCIA) — While their season didn’t end when they wanted it to, Illinois men’s basketball are could have a lot of guys back for next year. With three freshman seeing the court, Illinois head coach Brad Underwood believes his team could be one of the best in the nation next year.
Starting freshman point guard Jayden Epps had the fourth highest minutes on the team, missing two games because a concussion. Freshman Sencire Harris and Ty Rodgers were two of five players on the team who played every game this year. Epps says gaining this experience as a freshman can only lead to better things in their next years in orange and blue.
“I feel like us freshman made a huge impact this year so I feel like the sky’s the limit for us and what we can do in the future,” Epps said. “We’re all going to continue to work. I love these guys on and off the court, we’ve built a great relationship and I feel like we can all do something special together.”
“All these guys had great years,” Underwood said. “If they choose to leave it’s on them. All our freshman had great years and helped us and contributed. It’s not an entitlement thing, it’s a earn it thing and those guys earned it and if they’re all back we’ll be one of the best teams in the country.”
Illinois has majority of guys returning next year.