Oct. 12, 1999

Sunday evening, former Illini basketball player Matt Heldman and his father Otis were killed in a two-car, head-on collision in Libertyville, Ill. Matt, 23, died at the scene and Otis, 53, died later at Condell Hospital in Libertyville.

Heldman was a four-year letterwinner at Illinois from 1995-98 and started all 33 games in 1998 when the Illini won a share of the Big Ten Championship. As a senior, he played 1,203 minutes, which is 15 minutes shy of the single-season school record held by Eddie Johnson.

"He was very inspirational for our players, not as an outspoken leader but a leader by example," head coach Lon Kruger said. "The way he acted and worked was an excellent role model for the rest of the team."

"No matter who you were, he made you believe that with hard work, you can make a difference," teammate Victor Chukwudebe said. "The first thing I thought was, 'Why did it have to happen to him, to someone who was such a great person.'"

Heldman graduated in 1998 from the University of Illinois with a degree in business and played overseas in Finland last season.

Visitation and funeral arrangements for Matt and Otis Heldman follow.

Matt and Otis Heldman Visitation/Funeral Arrangements

Visitation
Thursday, October 14
3:00-9:00 p.m.
Burnett-Dane Funeral Home
120 W. Park Avenue (Rt. 176)
Libertyville, IL

Funeral
Friday, Oct. 15
3:00 p.m.
United Methodist Church
429 Brainerd Avenue
Libertyville, IL
(4 blocks north of Rt. 176)