Decataur, Ill. ? Herald and Review reporter Mark Tupper says Chicago Crane High basketball coach Anthony Longstreet may have been instrumental in Crane point guard Sherron Collins choosing Kansas University over the University of Illinois.

Tupper wrote in his Internet blog that Longstreet wouldn’t let Collins commit to Illinois after a visit last summer, instead making sure the player visited KU for Late Night in the Phog.

“It’s part of the territory, I guess, hearing stuff like this,” Longstreet told Illinois.rivals.com. “I know that I didn’t do anything wrong. I can’t help it if somebody falls in love with a school outside of Illinois. …

“I’ve never been accused of trying to get kids to transfer in from other schools, I’ve never been accused of tampering with kids and trying to get them in my program. I don’t have a bad name in Chicago, people around the Public League know that.”

Longstreet added to the Web site that if anybody thought he was paid by KU they should “produce the canceled check.” Tupper, to be fair, never suggested KU committed any violations in landing Collins.

Jayhawk coach Bill Self can’t comment on specific recruits in accordance with NCAA rules.