Chicago native helped Illinois basketball to a Big Ten Conference title and national prominence in the mid-1980s.

Through 18 conference games, Illinois allowed its opponents a league-best 54.9 points per game.

"Very humble, very generous and very loving," Illinois teammate and close friend Bruce Douglas said of Winters. "You could always count on Big E.” ...

Efrem Winters, a key driver in the revival of Illinois basketball in the mid-1980s and a widely beloved figure among Illini ...

To scores of Fighting Illini fans in the 1980s, the lob pass from Bruce Douglas to Efrem Winters was both a thing of beauty ...

Efrem Winters didn’t spend all that much time in Champaign after his playing days ended. The former McDonald’s All-American, ...

It was a chance for fans to shower love on Efrem Winters, Bruce Douglas, Doug Altenberger, George Montgomery, Quinn Richardson, Tony Wysinger, Scott Meents and other members of that team.

Former Illinois men's basketball standout Efrem Winters died Monday morning after a long battle with an undisclosed illness, according to the university. He was 61. The Champaign News-Gazette was ...