Moore, Williams miss game

Tony Bleill talks more about Destiny Williams' absence here.

CHAMPAIGN – The Illini women's basketball team was shorthanded Sunday, and it might be that way for a while.

Freshman guard Amber Moore and freshman forward Destiny Williams didn't play in Sunday's victory against Siena for different reasons.

Williams was not in attendance in what coach Jolette Law termed a "coach's decision." Williams sat out last week's exhibition game with an illness, then played seven ineffectual minutes in the season-opening loss at Temple on Friday.

Law stopped short of calling Williams' situation a suspension.

"We're dealing with some things with Destiny," Law said. "Right now we're trying to move forward and do things the right way. It has nothing to do with basketball. We're trying to iron out some things."

The Benton Harbor, Mich., product, the UI's first McDonald's All-American and a member of the United States' U19 world championship team, has endured a rough transition to college. She has been asked to leave at least one Illinois practice and has sometimes been aloof with her teammates. Whether those situations are related to Law's decision on Sunday is unclear, as is Williams' status for Wednesday's game against Central Michigan.

Moore was in street clothes on the bench after injuring her knee in overtime of Friday's game. The Illini were awaiting results of an MRI conducted Sunday.

Law said she was "prayerful" that Moore won't be lost for an extended period. The freshman had eight points and sank 2 of 5 three-point shots in 22 minutes against Temple. Her outside shooting is deemed critical for a team in short supply of it.

Simpson steals the show. Lacey Simpson, the UI's career steals leader, was at it again Sunday. She had six steals in 14 foul-plagued minutes, which came on the heels of a five-steal effort while fouling out of Friday's loss.

"I started out this way last year, so I just have to tone it down a little bit," Simpson said of her foul trouble. "I get too excited. Coach always challenges me about getting these steals, so in my mind I'm out there like a mad woman."

In typical fashion, Simpson did it all. She had seven points and six assists.

"I want her to be aggressive, but I need Lacey in the game. She knows that," Law said. "Even in 14 minutes, you look at her stat line and you'd think she played 35 minutes. If she had played 25 or 30 minutes, she probably would have had a triple-double."

Simpson has a legitimate shot to become the Big Ten's all-time steals leader. With 11 through two games, she has 266 for her career. That's 106 behind record-holder Stacey Thomas of Michigan (1997-200). That seems attainable – a year ago, Simpson had 97 steals.

Foul free throw shooting. The Illini made 10 of 24 free throws, a performance that had Law mystified. The Illini shot 74 percent from the line a year ago.

"I was shocked because in practice we normally knock down our free throws," she said. "I think we're going to delete that. We're not even going to think about this. But that will be one of the main focuses, making sure we work on our free throws. We do it every day."

Short shots. Law was nearly giddy about the Illini collecting 49 points off Siena turnovers. "That's what I'm used to and I love it," the coach said. "I was getting excited. I wanted to play." ... She wasn't nearly as excited about Siena's point total. The Saints had 36 points at halftime. The Illini usually have a goal of keeping teams under 50 for the game. "We don't like people scoring more than 50 points on us. That's just one of those things that's going to be an Illini staple," she said. "We don't want people scoring 50 points or more." ... The Illini's 85 points were the most they've scored since dropping 91 on South Carolina in November 2007. ... Jenna Smith scored 10 points, upping her streak of double-figure scoring games to 41. That's the third-longest active streak in the country, trailing Ohio State's Jantel Lavender (66 games) and Oklahoma State's Andrea Riley (58).

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