Before the scrimmage, chants of “We Want Shaun” echoed throughout the Ubben Basketball Complex. Any sight of Livingston aroused the crowd as he started to warm-up in street clothes before the workout. Livingston seemed realxed, as he spent time signing autographs and talking to friends on the floor. After heading to the locker room to change, the crowd roared again.
When James Augustine appeared from the locker room, chants for Shaun came again; the crowd was disappointed when they saw it was not Livingston.
When Livingston finally emerged, the crowd erupted into a thunderous applause. Livingston’s warm-up included several attempts at between the leg dunks.
Once the scrimmage began, Livingston had several opportunities to show his skills, as the floor cleared out for him several times. Livingston showed impressive range on his jumper, nailing several threes and mid-range shots. He took the ball to hoop against Luther Head and put up a reverse lay-up. Livingston displayed a gamut of moves, faking out several Illini players and hitting over almost three-quarters of his shots.
Every time Livingston touched the ball, the crowd buzzed. The atmosphere was typical of a regular game, but it was just a scrimmage. A Livingston alley hoop to Augustine whipped the crowd into frenzy, and his defense shined as well.
The crowd was relentless throughout. Every move Livingston made, the crowd chanted even louder. After one thunderous dunk, his would be teammates started to encourage the crowd even more. Jerrance Howard tried to call timeout, but to no avail. The crowd exploded even more.
At the end of the day, Shaun Livingston left a lasting impression by finally nailing a between the leg dunk. Livingston reached the huddle and placed his hand on top of the pile. It looked like he made his decision today, but we will have to wait.
Judging by his gestures and mannerisms, Livingston appeared to feel right at home, in his home state of Illinois. Fans chanted again as he left the floor. They may have been the ones that push him over the top and convince him to choose Illinois.