BOSTON — As far as portal pickups go, Marcus Domask is the gold standard.
Looking at the remaining NCAA Tournament teams, few transfer players are having as significant an impact as Domask.
Finding a player who can seamlessly make the transition to a new system is no easy feat. It’s even more challenging when a player only has one year — like Domask, who’s in his fifth year — to make his mark. But the 6-6 swingman has been a huge factor in the Illini’s best tournament run in nearly two decades.
‘‘He was really good when we got him,’’ Illinois coach Brad Underwood said before the Illini beat Iowa State 72-69 on Thursday. ‘‘He was a 1,600-point scorer, probably close to a 2,000-point scorer had he not gotten hurt [in 2020-21]. He’s been a professional in terms of his approach, commitment, dedication and his willingness to adjust to anything.’’
There has been no drop-off from Domask in his lone season at Illinois after four at Southern Illinois.
According to Bryan Mullins — his former coach, who recently was hired to join new DePaul coach Chris Holtmann’s staff — it’s a testament to his preparedness. It’s a quality Mullins noticed when he arrived in Carbondale in 2019.
‘‘His feel for the game is his greatest skill,’’ Mullins said. ‘‘He was physical and strong enough to play as a true freshman. I didn’t know he was going to have the freshman season that he ended up having for us.’’
In his first season at Southern Illinois, Domask averaged 13.6 points, 5.2 rebounds and 2.5 assists. By his senior season, he was averaging 16.7 points.
Domask and Mullins talked at length about his decision to leave the Salukis, which was rooted in a desire to do exactly what he’s doing now — competing in the NCAA Tournament.
Still, the decision to enter the transfer portal comes with risks.
‘‘Trying to put [a transfer player] in the best position to succeed [is the challenge],’’ Mullins said. ‘‘When you get a one-year kid, you don’t have the years of practice with them, running plays and understanding where he is most successful. Trying to figure out with the guys that we have, now we add a new piece, and we only have him for nine months. How can we make sure we’re using our guys to the best of their ability?’’
The key for Underwood has been taking advantage of Domask’s versatility.
When he was at Southern Illinois, Domask primarily played power forward. In Underwood’s system, he has been used as a point guard, on the wing and in the paint.
Terrence Shannon Jr. has been the star of the Illini’s Elite Eight run, but Domask has proved to be the missing link Underwood needed to get his team past the first round of the tournament. Domask is the Illini’s second-leading scorer behind Shannon, averaging 16.1 points.
He attributes his successful transition to Underwood’s coaching style.
‘‘He treats us more as a professional team than a college team,’’ Domask said. ‘‘We’re an older team, and he kind of allows us to be more player-led than coach-led. He gives us that leeway to control our own destiny and how we operate some things. He puts a lot of trust in us. I think the trust he’s put in us just kind of reflects our trust in him, and it’s just kind of a two-way street.’’
A look back at last year’s transfer-portal rankings shows Domask wasn’t even among the top 50 transfer prospects on many lists. Luckily for the Illini, Underwood doesn’t recruit based on college basketball pundits’ rankings.
Sixteen teams will be reduced to eight by Saturday morning. While those eight focus on keeping their NCAA Tournament runs alive, every other team in the country will be trying to find its own Domask in the portal.
