Weber Goes On for Mom

A heart stops. Life does not.

Illinois Coach Bruce Weber is grieving his mother’s death after she suffered a ruptured aorta Friday while picking up her tickets for the Illini’s Big Ten tournament game in the United Center.

“The last thing she told my sister before she went into surgery was not to tell me and not to tell my brother before our games, because then we would worry about her and we wouldn’t coach like we’re capable of,” Weber said. “That was in her heart.”

He coached Friday, with his family not yet fully aware how dire her situation was, then joined her at the hospital after the game.

And he coached Saturday, little more than 18 hours after the worst had happened, guiding the top-ranked Illini to a 64-56 semifinal victory over Minnesota in front of 23,697 in United Center.

The children of Dawn Weber and her late husband Lou -- a factory worker and junior high basketball coach -- were united in at least one thing. The games, of course, would go on. And the Weber boys would be there with their teams.

Bruce’s younger brother David, an area high school coach, was on the bench for his Glenbrook North team’s playoff game Friday night, learning of his mother’s death after a one-point victory.

“It’s tough when you lose somebody,” Bruce Weber said. “But we felt as a family my mom wanted me to coach. She wanted my brother to coach last night.”

Weber’s remarkable composure under the gaze of so many strangers and sympathizers broke only once Saturday, during the moment of silence for his mother before the game.

His eyes teary, his face red, Weber faltered and then gave a wave of appreciation to the crowd and quickly looked down to draw up something on the greaseboard he held in his hands.

“It hit me pretty hard, but then you start coaching and you get after it,” Weber said. “I told the kids, ‘I am going to coach hard. You better play hard. That’s how she would have wanted it.’ ”

The Illini (31-1) are struggling a bit with shooting and turnovers and still trying to recover their “rhythm” after suffering their first loss of the season to Ohio State in the regular-season finale. They allowed Minnesota to get close late, but won nevertheless, with the five starters in double figures.

Vincent Grier led Minnesota (21-10) with 24 points.

Weber’s players call him a father figure, and they were touched by the strength and devotion Weber showed by being with them.

“Him coming back to coach the team -- that’s unbelievable,” guard Dee Brown said. “It’s tragic for him to go through that situation. It’s your mom, you know. I can’t imagine losing my mom. It’s sad.”

Minnesota Coach Dan Monson embraced Weber before the game, and hung on extra long.

“I had a quick moment to say something. I said what anyone would say,” Monson said. “It just puts basketball in perspective. Anyone would trade any basketball moment for family.”

Weber comes from a particular type of family. A basketball family.

“Basketball has been a major part of our life. She loved it. My dad loved it,” he said.

At 81 and in poor health in recent years, Dawn Weber attended only one or two games a season. But she followed the Illini every step of its 29-0 start.

“She was a huge fan. She loved the games. She had a satellite dish,” Weber said. “The Ohio State game kind of got to her. She didn’t like that.”

His grief will long outlast what remains of this season -- at least two games, no more than seven, if the Illini play for the national title.

Maybe Weber, an assistant to Gene Keady at Purdue for 18 seasons before he got his chance to be a head coach at Southern Illinois in 1998, will finally reach the Final Four.

His mother won’t be there, but she witnessed something special.

“She just couldn’t believe what happened to our team,” Weber said. “To her, it was a fairy tale.”