Feb. 09--Before Illinois played Penn State in late January, Austin Colbert had remained on the bench for eight of the previous 10 games. In the 12 games in which he saw action, he played less than eight minutes in nine of them, no more than four minutes in six of those games.
To say he was forgotten about, however, would be incorrect.
"He has the energy, he can bring energy to us off the bench," senior center Nnanna Egwu said. "He motivates us."
Not something often said about a rarely used sophomore. But lately, the 6-foot-9 post player has been contributing late in games.
Against Penn State, Colbert scored two points with two rebounds in nine minutes in a 60-58 victory. In Tuesday's victory against Rutgers, he grabbed three rebounds in 11 minutes.
He was crucial to the 59-54 victory at Michigan State on Saturday, scoring on a tip-in with 5 minutes, 18 seconds left for a 51-47 lead then defending a shot by Denzel Valentine with 17 seconds left that could have tied the game.
"He was really locked in," coach John Groce said after the victory. "He communicated well. He earned the right to play in the guts of the game late."
With a roster decimated by injuries and suspensions, Colbert's late-game contributions have been a benefit.
"That's three games in a row where I think the positive plays he made contrasting that with his negative plays are clearly more positive," Groce said. "Hopefully he can continue to build on that because that helps our team."
Free throws: Groce said despite the indefinite suspensions that Rayvonte Rice and Aaron Cosby are serving, they are supportive members of the team. "They're as excited as anybody," Groce said of their reaction to the Michigan State win. "We're a family." ... Groce gave credit after the game in East Lansing, Mich., to point guard Tracy Abrams, who has been sidelined the entire season with a knee injury. "I thought Tracy was great in timeouts," he said. ... Egwu played 39 minutes against the Spartans.
sryan@tribpub.com
Twitter @sryantribune
