Nov. 16--SPRINGFIELD -- Illinois center Maverick Morgan's brown slippers attested to a man who had spent the last 48 hours hunkered down in a hotel room.
Since the Illini lost their season opener Friday night, Morgan said he left the team hotel in Springfield only to go to the adjacent convention center for shootarounds and once for a cup of coffee. Teammate Mike Thorne Jr. said he wasn't even sure of the weather because he had stayed inside.
After a rough start, the Illini looked like a team ready to face the world, overcoming a 14-point deficit to beat North Dakota State 80-74 on Sunday afternoon at the Prairie Capital Convention Center.
"The thing that stood out to me was just the grit required by our team," Illinois coach John Groce said. "This was not an easy week for a lot of reasons. We learned a lot."
Fans could look at the victory against North Dakota State (1-1) two ways: The Illini are strong enough to bounce back from an unsettling loss to North Florida in the season opener and claw back against the Bison; or the Illini (1-1) are a team that lost to an underdog and needed a double-digit comeback to beat a lesser opponent.
Either way, Illinois is viewing the start as a positive.
"We have some character in our locker room," Groce said. "I was really proud of them. In my time at Illinois, it's one of the top-five gutsy performances."
Mike Thorne Jr. again looked like a solid acquisition for the Illini. The center who transferred from Charlotte posted 21 points and eight rebounds to follow up on his 25-point effort against North Florida.
Illinois outscored the Bison 52-35 in the second half and limited them to just three 3-pointers after they hit seven in the first half.
Freshman Jalen Coleman-Lands helped spark a second-half comeback, scoring 12 of his 15 points after halftime. Morgan scored 10 points to help inside.
Forward Leron Black, who had offseason knee surgery, made his season debut and scoredfive points in 15 minutes.
sryan@tribpub.com
