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Welcome to Good Morning, Illini Nation, your daily dose of college basketball news from Illini sportswriter and AP Top 25 pick Scott Richey. Each morning he shares insight on Brad Underwood’s team and college basketball in general:
The numbers Illinois’ new recruits will wear in the 2024-25 season were announced Thursday night. Here’s a quick look at their selections:
Carey Booth — No. 0
The last to wear it were: Terrence Shannon Jr.
How to wear it best: Terrence Shannon Jr.
Some Illinois fans expressed discomfort seeing a player wear No. 0 so soon after Shannon. I’m not sure if they also had a problem with Alfonso Plummer wearing No. 11 right after Ayo Dosunmu or not. You can’t be in one camp and not the other.
Ben Humrichous — No. 3
The last to wear it were: Marcus Domask
How to wear it best: Brandon Paul
The comparisons between Humrichous and Domask have been made since both played in the Missouri Valley Conference. There is a feeling that Humrichous could be a booty ball option on offense as well.
Kylan Boswell — No. 4
Last worn: Justin Harmon
How to wear it best: Luther head
Head has no real competition here when it comes to who rocks the No. 4 orange and blue (and white) best. Not when you consider both his personal success and the role he played on one of the best teams in program history.
Will Riley — No. 7
Last worn: Lee Frandsen
How to wear it best: Lee Frandsen
I’ll be honest. I had to look up the five former Illini who wore No. 7 during their careers. Mainly because Frandsen, the last one, wore it in the late 1950s. The NCAA had a rule for decades prohibiting players from wearing jerseys with numbers 6-9, but that changed last summer. Now any number from 0-99 is available.
Tomislav Ivisic – No. 13
Last worn: Quincy Guerrier
How to wear it best: Kendall Gill
Gill was an easy choice as the No. 13 player for Illinois, but there are a few who deserve honorable mentions: Cory Bradford and Tracy Abrams. Neither of them could outdo the Flyin’ Illini, but they had solid careers of their own.
Jake Davis – No. 15
The last to wear it were: RJ Melendez
How to wear it best: Don Freeman
Freeman had no doubts when it came to Illinois Hall of Fame induction. The former Illini forward held the record for most points in a season until Shannon took that title last season, averaging 20.1 points and 10.3 rebounds for his career.
Morez Johnson Jr. – No. 21
The last to wear it were: Kofi Cockburn
How to wear it best: Kofi Cockburn
Apologies to Malcolm Hill and the late Robert Archibald and Matt Heldman. All unforgettable Illini. But Cockburn was an All-American and one of the most physically dominant players in the country during his time in Champaign. Johnson has a big hurdle to clear after being selected No. 21.
Tre White — No. 22
Last worn: Keaton Kutcher
How to wear it best: Kiwane Garris
Although there were no roster changes, Kutcher will apparently be changing his numbers now that White is on the team. The former player was relegated as a walk-on last season after transferring from South Dakota. That being said, now that Illinois has made it clear it can bend its own rules when it comes to hanging honorary jerseys in the rafters of the State Farm Center, it’s time to move Garris’ No. 22 up. One could argue he’s the best player in program history not to be on it.
Jason Jakstys — No. 31
The last to wear it were: Austin Colbert
How to wear it best: Greg Jackson
How many fans who weren’t around in the late ’60s and early ’70s know what Jackson did for the Illini? I just looked it up: The 6-foot-8 center averaged 15.2 points and 8.3 rebounds in his three-year career, including 17 points and 9.8 rebounds per game as a junior.
Kasparas Jakucionis – No. 32
The last to wear it were: Tyler Underwood
How to wear it best: Rick Schmidt
Schmidt gets the nod here considering he averaged 20.8 points as a junior and senior and was eventually drafted by the New Orleans Jazz in the sixth round of the 1975 NBA Draft. But Nnanna Egwu (defense), Demetri McCamey (assist) and Tom Michael (shooting) could all make a good case for the title of best player wearing No. 32.
