CHAMPAIGN — Da'Monte Williams arrived in Champaign last June just six months removed from a knee injury and subsequent surgery that ended his senior season at Peoria Manual after just four games.
Williams also began his Illinois basketball career not knowing if he'd play this season. In fact, he was pretty sure he'd redshirt. His surgically-repaired knee just didn't feel right.
"I thought my knee wouldn't be 100 percent," Williams said. "I wasn't where I was supposed to be, I felt, but I just put that in the back of my mind and kept pushing every day.