There have been some interesting storylines that emerged during college basketball's nonconference season. But one isn't getting any attention. While Gonzaga's Adam Morrison has been stealing the limelight and Memphis' resurgence has been grabbing the headlines, Illinois has quietly gone 15-0 and has silenced the critics who said the Fighting Illini would be hard-pressed to do what they did last season when they advanced to the national championship game and lost to North Carolina.

 Champaign Supernova

Courtesy USA Today

Starting Jan. 31, 2004, Illinois has gone 65-4 and compiled a 53-1 record in regular season games. That is pretty remarkable. Using the foundation established by Bill Self, who left the program in 2003 to take the Kansas job vacated by Roy Williams, Illinois coach Bruce Weber has built the Fighting Illini into a national power while quickly becoming recognized as one of the best in his profession. Starting in the 2001-2002 season, when he was still at Southern Illinois, Weber has won 130 games. Not even Mark Few or Mike Krzyzewski have compiled that many victories in that span of time.

When Deron Williams, Roger Powell and Luther Head left after last season, not many thought Weber would be able to repeat the success his 2004-2005 team had when it went 37-2 and lost to the Tar Heels in the title game. The Illini had little experience and the nucleus of the team was gone. But this season Weber has been getting production out of nine players averaging more than 10 minutes per game. Led by guard Dee Brown and forward James Augustine, Illinois has defeated Michigan State in its Big 10 opener, blown out Missouri 82-50 in a rivalry game and knocked off North Carolina 68-64 to get some revenge.

Yet Illinois has flown under the radar, which is surprising for a team that has won more games than every other school but Duke in the last five-and-a-half seasons. Perhaps the lack of attention has to do with an absence of superstars. Brown, after all, is averaging only 15.5 points per game, which pales in comparison to Morrison's 27.8 points per game that leads the nation. However, the 6-0, 180-pound guard plays as important a role for the Illini that Morrison does for the Bulldogs. Brown, who was initially reluctant to accept Weber and his motion offense, has bought into the system and embraced the same coach he spoke out against after Weber publicly said Brown would be wise not to enter the NBA Draft after last season.

Now, Brown is the point man for a team that runs an efficient half-court offense while placing an emphasis on rebounding and strong defense when it has to retreat to the other end. The style of play isn't sexy. But it works, and Brown couldn't be happier after dropping in 34 against Michigan State Thursday.

Neither can Weber, who has acknowledged that he didn't think Illinois would be able to recapture the magic of last season. The pollsters were of the same opinion, and they were as wrong as Weber. Now the team that has lost only one of its last 54 regular season games seems to be gearing up for another run in the NCAA Tournament. It's too bad nobody appears to have noticed.