Rivalry hits home

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BY WILL LARKIN

SVN REPORTER

wlarkin@svnmail.com

Sports Illustrated calls Illinois-Indiana the most heated rivalry in college basketball. So does Joseph Bertrand.

"I believe it," said Bertrand, the Sterling junior who committed to the Fighting Illini in November. "That last game they played (an 83-79 Indiana win in double overtime on Feb. 7) was crazy. You can tell they don't like each other that much."

Bertrand looks forward to many meetings with the Hoosiers when he arrives in Champaign. One player who will wear the crimson and cream during most of those games will share the court with Bertrand today at the Class 3A DeKalb Supersectional at NIU's Convocation Center.

Matt Roth isn't quite the college prospect Bertrand is, but the Washington senior chose Indiana over Bradley and St. Louis last fall. Roth caught the Hoosiers' eyes with a strong AAU performance last summer, and he figures to gradually work his way into Indiana's lineup on the strength of his outside shooting.

"Matt's big on the history of the game, so he couldn't pass up a chance to play at Indiana," Washington coach Kevin Brown said. "Playing in the Big Ten has always been a dream of his, and we're all excited he got that opportunity."

Shortly after Roth signed with Indiana, the phone scandal that proved to be Kelvin Sampson's undoing heated up. Sampson was forced to resign last month as Indiana was having its best season in several years.

"All of that caught us by surprise," Brown said. "Matt's recruitment was totally by the book, so we had reason to believe that maybe (the accusations of improper conduct) were untrue.

"There was awhile where Matt was kind of up in the air about what was going on, but his commitment to Indiana remained strong. He has a great relationship with coach Sampson, but it was the university and its history that got him there."

While Roth has watched the coach that recruited him ousted, Bertrand has endured a subpar season from his future team. Illinois finished the regular season tied for ninth in the 11-team Big Ten with a 5-13 conference record, and the 18 overall losses are tied for the most in the 103-year history of the program.

"It's hard to watch your team lose, especially when they're mostly close games," Bertrand said. "If they could knock down free throws, they would have won most of those games."

Indiana never seriously recruited Bertrand, and Illinois only showed interest in Roth after he had eliminated the Illini from his list. Despite the turmoil surrounding both programs, both players' college commitment appears secure.

"I still think they're a good team," Bertrand said of Illinois. "I know it's been hard on the players and coach (Bruce) Weber, but he's a good coach. I know things will turn around."

Bertrand and Roth likely won't spend much time guarding each other today. Bertrand will defend Washington point guard Dyricus Simms-Edwards, himself a Division I prospect, while Roth will probably match up with the Warriors' Devin Johnson.

"I know we're going to try to keep him from getting the ball," Bertrand said of Roth, "because he can shoot it from anywhere. From what I hear, he's the best shooter in Illinois, so he's obviously pretty good."

Roth went head-to-head with another Illinois recruit at last week's Galesburg Sectional, where the Panthers defeated D.J. Richardson and Peoria Central 73-57 in a semifinal.

"I guess it's an interesting situation, but it's one we just went through," Brown said. "I'm sure a lot of the fans will make a big thing out of it, but I can guarantee the kids won't think about it."