Oct. 16--Led by 6-foot-3 center Chatrice White, who set the program's freshman scoring record last season, the Illinois women's basketball team looks to "take another step" this season.
"You always want to see the needle move," coach Matt Bollant said Thursday at Big Ten media day. "Last year we were close. We (need to) take another step and play in the NCAA tournament and win a game."
The Illini are coming off a 15-16 (10-5 Big Ten) season while also trying to move beyond the allegations levied by seven former players in a lawsuit that claimed racial discrimination by the coaches.
Bollant said the chemistry of this season's team is "off the charts." He also said he wishes he could talk to the players who are suing the university.
"I talked (to the current team) about forgiveness," Bollant said. "It doesn't mean you have to wait for them to apologize or wait for them to do something right. You forgive somebody whether they say something or not. I try to apply that to the team.
"If those guys would come back to practice, I would want to give them a hug and talk to them and show them I love them and care about them, even though we've gone through some hard things."
sryan@tribpub.com
