URBANA - After a disappointing season that included a school record 19 defeats, people were curious how a "Most Valuable Player" Award would be selected for Tuesday night's annual Illini basketball awards banquet.

With more than 700 people looking on at the Urbana Holiday Inn, the answer was a surprise.

For the first time since MVPs are listed in 1941, no most valuable player was named and coach Bruce Weber provided the reasoning.

"We just felt the standard of Illinois basketball wasn't reached," Weber said after a ceremony that honored the team and did include a number of other individual honors. "We talked about MVP but we didn't feel the team was good enough to have that.

"The team was pretty much unanimous. We didn't play at the level we thought we should. In essence, how would you have a most valuable player for that? It's a long-standing tradition but we just didn't feel our season was worthy of it so we just let it go."

Senior Brian Randle won two of the major awards. Randle won the Lou Henson Courage Award for charging fouls taken during the season. Randle also won the Matt Heldman "Matto" Award for hustle plays.

Senior Shaun Pruitt won the Illini Rebounders Award for averaging 7.3 rebounds per game.

Junior Trent Meacham won the Ralf Woods Free Throw Trophy for making 78.4 percent of his free throws in Big Ten Conference play.

Meacham also won an award as the team's most improved player. And senior walkon Chris Hicks won the Kenny Battle Most Inspirational Award.

ALEXANDER LEAVING

Weber said forward Rodney Alexander, who played one season at Illinois after transferring from Redlands (Okla.) Community College, won't be returning for his senior year.

"The season probably didn't go like he'd hoped," Weber said. "We met with every guy and said, `Here's what we expect. Here's your role.'

"He didn't feel like this was the right situation for him. I don't think he has any idea what he wants to do. He could go to a Division II or NAIA school and play next season without sitting out."

Alexander started 15 of 31 games for the Illini and averaged 4.6 points. He previously told Weber he envisioned himself as a 3-point shooter but for the season, Alexander shot just 19.3 percent from 3-point range.

Since Alexander's scholarship would have been for just one more season, there will be no effort made to fill the position. Instead, Weber said there's a good chance the scholarship will be awarded to Meacham, who is technically a walkon.

Also leaving the team will be Steve Holdren, a walkon transfer who played very little and was injured for some of the season. Holdren, who told Weber he is still in pain, graduates next semester and may be pursuing an academic internship.

CLEMSON THE CHALLENGE

Clemson will visit the Assembly Hall Dec. 2 as part of the ACC/Big Ten Challenge.

"They did lose a couple of their top scorers but (coach) Oliver Purnell has done a nice job," Weber said. "It's a good game for us. We're playing at home and you hope if you play at the level you need to, you'd have a chance to be successful."

Weber also said Illinois will be playing a road game at Vanderbilt this season. "Then Vanderbilt would return the game to the Assembly Hall if we have a road game in the ACC/Big Ten Challenge the following season," he said.

The two marquee matchups in the Challenge are Duke at Purdue and North Carolina vs. Michigan State in a game to be played at Ford Field in Detroit. Mark Tupper can be reached at mtuppear@herald-review.com or at 421-7983.