Belleville East boys basketball player Malcolm Hill is in Children's Hospital in St. Louis recovering from a blood clot in his left arm.

The 6-foot-6 Hill, a top University of Illinois recruit who will be a senior at East under new coach Abel Schrader next season, said he noticed last Sunday that his arm had become swollen, although he didn't experience any pain.

Hill, 16, said he saw his regular doctor Tuesday, then was admitted to Children's Hospital on Friday afternoon after seeing a specialist and learning about the blood clot.

"I'm taking two shots a day," Hill said Saturday evening. "I'm probably going to be out three months (from basketball). I'm doing better. I'm probably going to be released (Sunday) or Monday."

Hill said doctors expect him to make a full recovery.

"I'm not scared at all," he said. "I'll be able to do non-contact stuff, like running and shooting, in about a month."

Hill, the Belleville News-Democrat's Player of the Year last season, averaged 23.8 points per game for the Lancers (19-10) as a junior. He set school records for most points (666) and free-throws attempted (270) in a season, making 231. Hill connected on 47 of 108 3-pointers.

Hill attended the NBPA Top 100 Camp on June 13-16 at the University of Virginia. Hill said nothing happened at the camp that would have caused the blood clot.

Hill acknowledged that he is looking forward to being discharged from the hospital, but not until he knows he's ready.

"It's better to be safe than sorry," Hill said. "I'll stay here for a week if I have to.

"We went to the doctor Tuesday. He said to go home and rest and then go see another doctor Friday."

Hill was recruited by dozens of Division I programs, eventually choosing Illinois over Missouri and Xavier.

When the Illini fired coach Bruce Weber after last season, some wondered whether Hill would decommit from Illinois.

But Hill announced April 9 that he would stay with the Illini, who hired Ohio University's John Groce as Weber's replacement.

Contact reporter David Wilhelm at dwilhelm@bnd.com or 239-2667.