Cheer Up Illini Nation

Get ready to dance U of I faithful because Demetri McCamey and Mike Davis have both decided to return for their senior seasons after declaring for the NBA draft.

The two juniors must not have liked what they were hearing from NBA teams on the prospect of taking either player in the first round.

Coach Bruce Weber is trilled:

"This time of year, you can usually relax a little bit, and now it's more interesting than any other times," Weber said Saturday "I'm proud of how they handled it. They communicated. They listened. They listened to what the NBA was saying. They did it the right way. Is there always some fear factor there? Yeah, it's always there.

"We can now focus what's at hand -- the new season."

McCamey the 6'3 point guard was an All Big Ten team selection and lead the team in scoring with 15.1 a game while being second in the nation with 7.1 assists per game. Davis the 6'9 forward who nearly averaged a double-double for the season with 10.7 points and 9.2 rebounds was an honorable mention to the All Big Ten team.

Demetri had some interesting thoughts on his draft experience:

"This was a great experience, a blessing for me to follow my dream of playing in the NBA," McCamey said in a statement. "After going through workouts and talking with my family and coach Weber, I feel that it's in my best interest to return to school for my senior season.

"Point guards are judged on victories. I think our team can do big things next year, so I'm coming back to help us compete for championships and at the same time keep getting better so I can challenge for a first-round spot in next year's draft."

It will be interesting to see how both players do next season as their numbers have increased over the course of there first 3 seasons.

Will their return be enough to launch the Illini to the top of the Big Ten with Michigan State, Wisconsin and Purdue all retaining most of their star players.

I wonder now since U of I & Northwestern footballs teams will be facing off at Wrigley this fall if the basketball teams could play a game or two at the UC. Seeing a sea of Purple and Orange at the UC would be something to see.

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