Donnie Tillman still felt the effects of a stomach bug on Thursday nights. At times on the bench, he had a towel covering his mouth because he was coughing and spitting up.
But he didn’t let illness stop him from filling the role the Utes envisioned for him.
Tillman finished the game with his first career double-double having registered 11 points, 10 rebounds, one block and one steal in Utah’s 77-59 victory against Missouri on Thursday night at the Huntsman Center.
“We had a little sitdown conversation four, five days ago to clear some things ups,” Utes coach Larry Krystkowiak said. “He’s been bringing an awful lot of energy to our practices, and it’s kind of a little bit of karma. When you practice well and focus and play as hard as he did — our key was focusing on the defense and the rebounding and a lot of time the offense will take care of itself, and it did.”
Tillman, a four-star recruit from Findlay Prep in Nevada, averaged six points and four rebounds in the first two games of the season for Utah before Thursday.
“Coach was telling me he was looking for a motor guy, so like Draymond [Green], Kawhi [Leonard], a two-way player,” Tillman said referring to the Golden State Warriors forward and the San Antonio Spurs MVP candidate. “He needs someone who could put it on the ground and attack, get to the free throw line, and who can defend multiple positions.”
Utah coach Larry Krystkowiak talking about how he thought his team took care of the ball against Missouri. pic.twitter.com/ewBoXnS0mI
— Lynn Worthy (@LWorthySports) November 17, 2017
Against Missouri, Tillman scored all 11 of his points in the first half on 4-for-5 shooting, making one 3-pointer. He got the free throw line for three attempts and also grabbed five rebounds and one steal.
And, he did it all in 10 minutes to help the Utes build a 16-point halftime lead.
“I was just being aggressive,” Tillman said. “I knew I had like a big, slower guy — a 6-11 guy trying to guard me so I just tried to get to the rim first, get a foul, make some contact and things were just going in.”