Illinois 74, Ohio State 55 POSTGAME

JimmyChitwood · Jan 5, 2013, 05:12 PM

I like seeing Groce get defensive about comments made about DJ. That's how a coach should be...not wishing he was coaching someone else's players. Groce is going to be one heck of a coach.

bleedsorangenblue · Jan 5, 2013, 05:21 PM

Great game tonight that should put some of the critics in their seats. I see this team evolving into the complete package. We no longer need torrid 3-point shooting to win games. We have an interior game, lock-down defense, and a fast paced style that can put opponents on their heels. tOSU looked rattled troughout much of the game. By the time they regained any semblance of composure, the game was over. We never became complacent with our lead. I like where this team is headed and hope we can be consistent in our approach from here on out. We are not a pefect team but If we can play with this intensity and continue to have contributions across the board from the players, we will win a lot of games.

IlliniSpine · Jan 5, 2013, 05:32 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DaytonIllini

Apologize for what? For being critical of a kid that had given us nothing all season? The kid was a total no show at Purdue and it cost us the game. If riding him after a ridiculously bad performance leads to him performing well maybe we should all ride him. I'll bet you Groce rode him hard Wednesday night and in practice this week. If apologizing to him will get him more than the 3 rebounds he got at Purdue, I'll gladly do so though.

Hopefully tonight is a sign of things to come for NE. That would bode well for the team. If he is the guy we saw on Wednesday, we are in a lot of trouble.

:rolleyes: Oh lord. How can you say he's given us NOTHING? He plays his tail off and scored double digits against a tough, big MIZZ team. Quit the melodrama please.

finalfour2011 · Jan 5, 2013, 05:34 PM

Great overall team effort, improved rebounding as earlier stated but I felt it was mostly defense that won this game. We were in the driver's seat when OSU went to halftime with only 25 on the scoreboard, nobody on our team was in foul trouble and the Illini had a 12 point lead even while missing 3s and getting NO free throws the first half.

zoggle101 · Jan 5, 2013, 05:36 PM

Wow, great win!!!!

JB does play out of control at times, but I'd rather him be aggressive than passive.

Please stop feeding into the BP is hurt. It's part of his thing. Every drive he has you would think he's getting punched in the kidneys with how he flails his arms up and hits the floor. It works though because he gets the shooting foul calls. Anyone notice Abrams get slammed to the ground harder than anyone has this season, and shake it off pretty quickly? BP needs to learn that toughness. If he were hurt he wouldn't be playing like he does. Let's stop with the "poor BP stuff" please.

cjcastan · Jan 5, 2013, 05:43 PM

Great effort from the team

pluses

- finally starting feeding the ball to the interior via both the pick and roll / pick and slip / and old fashioned posting up

- great tenacity and hustle plays lots of effort in putting bodies on bodies when the ball went up and bodies hitting the deck for loose balls

- great distribution of the ball, not a lot assists but the ball was moving well and timely and it seemed there was less one on one play than against purdue

- this and even last game NE is playing at a higher level than earlier in the season. he may not meet people's expectations this season but he might be preseason b1g 2nd / 3rd / Honorable mention next year. the grind of this season and a whole another off season will serve him well.

minuses

- I love TA's heart hustle grit tenacity moxie, whatever you want to call it but his court awareness is lacking. There were a few times on the fast break he should have given it up to his running mate and a few times he got up in the air on the perimeter and under the basket, with no where to go with the ball. Hopefully he can develop a better court sense in the offseason with lots of tape watching or that Tate can progress faster than expected.

- our ballhandlers are really raggedy with the rock. we all thought BP and TA would be shaky pre season, and Craft makes a lot of guys look real bad. But it's going to be even uglier some nights with the TOs. Even uglier than .66 ATO because we might not be lucky to hold the other guys to 33% from the field and 16 TOs

All in all a very enjoyable game to watch. JG has this team in year one where we thought they would be in year 2 or 3.

The future is very bright for this season and beyond looking through orange colored glasses!

IlliniSpine · Jan 5, 2013, 05:43 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by zoggle101

Wow, great win!!!!

JB does play out of control at times, but I'd rather him be aggressive than passive.

Please stop feeding into the BP is hurt. It's part of his thing. Every drive he has you would think he's getting punched in the kidneys with how he flails his arms up and hits the floor. It works though because he gets the shooting foul calls. Anyone notice Abrams get slammed to the ground harder than anyone has this season, and shake it off pretty quickly? BP needs to learn that toughness. If he were hurt he wouldn't be playing like he does. Let's stop with the "poor BP stuff" please.

So him with a big bag of ice on his knee that a trainer probably put on, him deciding to uncharacteristically pass off the ball at the end of the MIZZ game, and him re-icing today means nothing? Not saying he has a torn MCL or meniscus but even a "knee contusion", sprain etc. can absolutely affect a players ability to defend, jump, shoot, drive, etc. As a team physician during my training (NBA, NFL, UFC, and college) and currently (high school), I can assure you of that.

DRS · Jan 5, 2013, 05:46 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by IlliniSpine

:rolleyes: Oh lord. How can you say he's given us NOTHING? He plays his tail off and scored double digits against a tough, big MIZZ team. Quit the melodrama please.

+1

Not sure what has gotten into Dayton, he is usually one of the guys on here that is semi-rational and I tend to agree but I feel he is way off base with this.

Egwu from what I can see has really embraced Groce's mentality of effort and desire. He is active and diving for the ball every chance he gets. He is developing a real nice mid-range jumper. Doesn't always go in but it is shot with nice form and touch. and as far as the rebounding he is not great yet but I attribute this teams trouble down low to the power forwards/backup centers more than I do him. He sure gave everything today. Abrams and him are going to major factors in the success of this team going forward and I am optimistic on both.

TooHot4Tots · Jan 5, 2013, 06:00 PM

Great game! The Hall was packed. Hell of a response. Now beat the Gophers

AEX · Jan 5, 2013, 06:01 PM

Nice article from Eamonn Brennan at ESPN, who has been quick to qualify other Illini wins this year.

http://espn.go.com/blog/collegebaske...rop-ohio-state

Quote:

Steadier Paul, Illini drop Ohio State

The last time Brandon Paul played Ohio State at home, he didn't have a career game -- he had anybody's career game.
. . . .
This time around, the home victory over Ohio State couldn't have been more different. Illinois didn't have to summon its very best; Paul didn't have to go off. He just needed to do what he's been doing all season. He just needed to be consistent.

Addendum: I'd like to add - I love seeing our Illini on the men's basketball home page at ESPN, Foxsports, CBSSports, etc.

DaytonIllini · Jan 5, 2013, 06:11 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Chathamillini

He also had 5 blocks at Purdue. He was not a total no show. I blame the Purdue loss on the total team lack of effort especially on the defensive end. Egwu did not play any worse than anyone else. Paul and Richardson had poor games also. Brighter note, everyone played and contributed well today!

I'd agree with that. I was critical of the whole team except Tracy and Joe and Devin at Purdue. The only reason Egwu has been the thrust of this thread was AHS asking for an apology because the kid has played well today.

Quote:

Originally Posted by MTILLINOIS

Knit picking at its finest.

What knit are you talking about? I don't understand that comment in reference to the quote.

Quote:

Originally Posted by WesterveltVictoryCigar

Minny definitely has the physical athletes on the front line with Mbakwe and Williams, but I wouldn't call any of their guards "lightning quick", they are more physical tough kids. Dre Hollins is fairly quick, but I'd be more worried about their strength. Odd thing is, they are really good on the offensive glass and not very good keeping the other team from doing the same. They turn the ball over quite a bit, so we'll need to keep up the aggressive D we had today.

I have seen them only twice and they looked fast and able to penetrate. If they have trouble with that and with turnovers that would give us a much better chance.

Quote:

Originally Posted by IlliniSpine

:rolleyes: Oh lord. How can you say he's given us NOTHING? He plays his tail off and scored double digits against a tough, big MIZZ team. Quit the melodrama please.

Prior to today he was averaging 4 rebounds per game and shooting 43% while scoring 5 or 6 points a game. That is one of the worst performances of a starting center in Division I. Couple that with Sam being ineffective statistically and it made the 5 position an extreme point of weakness for this team. You may feel free to see it differently. It is possible that he will blossom and become a major contributor but prior to today he has done very little.

1 rebound against Gardner Webb. One in 23 min. One against Gonzaga. Two against Auburn. 3 against PU, 3 against Butler. If he was a guard you'd say that wasn't bad rebounding. As a center....

Quote:

Originally Posted by DRS

+1

Not sure what has gotten into Dayton, he is usually one of the guys on here that is semi-rational and I tend to agree but I feel he is way off base with this.

Egwu from what I can see has really embraced Groce's mentality of effort and desire. He is active and diving for the ball every chance he gets. He is developing a real nice mid-range jumper. Doesn't always go in but it is shot with nice form and touch. and as far as the rebounding he is not great yet but I attribute this teams trouble down low to the power forwards/backup centers more than I do him. He sure gave everything today. Abrams and him are going to major factors in the success of this team going forward and I am optimistic on both.

He has been far from great but my bone of contention was with the whole front line. I talked about Tyler and Sam. Since they scored 2 points between them you didn't get a circus call for an apology about that so it wasn't discussed here. But it wasn't a "Purdue was Egwu's fault" discussion.

AK Illini · Jan 5, 2013, 06:24 PM

The OSU scout board is melting down way worse than Loyalty after the Purdue loss.

IlliniSpine · Jan 5, 2013, 06:27 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DaytonIllini

I'd agree with that. I was critical of the whole team except Tracy and Joe and Devin at Purdue. The only reason Egwu has been the thrust of this thread was AHS asking for an apology because the kid has played well today.

What knit are you talking about? I don't understand that comment in reference to the quote.

I have seen them only twice and they looked fast and able to penetrate. If they have trouble with that and with turnovers that would give us a much better chance.

Prior to today he was averaging 4 rebounds per game and shooting 43% while scoring 5 or 6 points a game. That is one of the worst performances of a starting center in Division I. Couple that with Sam being ineffective statistically and it made the 5 position an extreme point of weakness for this team. You may feel free to see it differently. It is possible that he will blossom and become a major contributor but prior to today he has done very little.

1 rebound against Gardner Webb. One in 23 min. One against Gonzaga. Two against Auburn. 3 against PU, 3 against Butler. If he was a guard you'd say that wasn't bad rebounding. As a center....

He has been far from great but my bone of contention was with the whole front line. I talked about Tyler and Sam. Since they scored 2 points between them you didn't get a circus call for an apology about that so it wasn't discussed here. But it wasn't a "Purdue was Egwu's fault" discussion.

A starting center who barely played last year and has been playing all of a few years of organized bball. He is improving. Can he continue to get better and be consistent? I don't know. However to say he has given us "nothing" all season is flat out dumb.

Also, Sam has nothing to do with the statement about NE.

illinibob · Jan 5, 2013, 06:54 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DRS

+1

Not sure what has gotten into Dayton, he is usually one of the guys on here that is semi-rational and I tend to agree but I feel he is way off base with this.

Egwu from what I can see has really embraced Groce's mentality of effort and desire. He is active and diving for the ball every chance he gets. He is developing a real nice mid-range jumper. Doesn't always go in but it is shot with nice form and touch. and as far as the rebounding he is not great yet but I attribute this teams trouble down low to the power forwards/backup centers more than I do him. He sure gave everything today. Abrams and him are going to major factors in the success of this team going forward and I am optimistic on both.

:laugh:

Indicchief · Jan 5, 2013, 07:08 PM

It is my understanding that Groce preps his team for the Big Dance. That they tend to peak then.

If that is the case it could be a mega peak with this team. All these kinks should get ironed out by then.

A 2nd seed some place (close to home) would be great. (Long ways of - I know.)

illinibob · Jan 5, 2013, 07:18 PM

Was KBD in attendance today?

gmjz · Jan 5, 2013, 07:24 PM

For those wanting Henry over Griffey- Henry's defense is not up to speed. He will be a great player but needs to learn how to play D.

IMHO

illini4evr · Jan 5, 2013, 07:26 PM

Great game! Shows what they are capable of doing when they play with effort the whole game.

Botb9 · Jan 5, 2013, 07:28 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by AK Illini

The OSU scout board is melting down way worse than Loyalty after the Purdue loss.

Quote:

yeah, the talent difference isn't there this year, at least not in conference. still think we have some things in our favor but these guys need to give 100%, every game. if that is what it looks like when Lenzelle, Sam, Q, Amir, Rav give 100%, well, we're in trouble. i do think Craft and Thomas provide some leadership but Zelle needs to step into that role, too, he doesn't seem like any more of a leader than he was last season. i think Ross and even Thompson sometimes forget that there are numerous ways they can contribute to this team, even when their shooting is off. post play just needs to be better, period. heck, they gave Egwu a coming out party.

This gem from over there is a good example. Sounds similar to the post-Purdue game feelings.

DaytonIllini · Jan 5, 2013, 07:40 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by IlliniSpine

A starting center who barely played last year and has been playing all of a few years of organized bball. He is improving. Can he continue to get better and be consistent? I don't know. However to say he has given us "nothing" all season is flat out dumb.

Also, Sam has nothing to do with the statement about NE.

Our frontline hasn't been average this season. It has been really bad. If you want to parse that comment and excuse it with expectations that is fine. But I didn't say our frontline is playing worse than I expected. I said it was playing bad. And it has. All season long prior to today. And yes, Sam has something to do with that.

You are responding 4 days into a running discussion about the frontline not about Nnanna Egwu in particular though he has also been dismal all season except Mizzou and OSU. If two games out of 16 (and it was 1 game out of 15 when it occurred) somehow makes you feel saying 'nothing' is hyperbolic we'll have to disagree.

CaliforniaIllini · Jan 5, 2013, 07:42 PM

Quote:

http://gif.mocksession.com/2013/01/illini-coaches/

DaytonIllini · Jan 5, 2013, 07:43 PM

Does anyone have the KenPom pregame chances to win for us at Purdue and against OSU today?

DaytonIllini · Jan 5, 2013, 07:44 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by CaliforniaIllini

Wow, having missed the game I missed that. Is that what they teach you in referee school on how to defuse a situation? Have we reached the point where the ref is now looking for a confrontation. I am guessing he'd T a player that charged up all the way across the court and went nose to nose with another player.

BillyBob1 · Jan 5, 2013, 07:44 PM

I know he is only a soph, but is anyone really disappointed we didn't get Sam Thompson? He has had some big dunks, but not much else.

freebird6 · Jan 5, 2013, 07:46 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Indicchief

It is my understanding that Groce preps his team for the Big Dance. That they tend to peak then.

.)

That is indeed his modus operandi. He is like a kid with a bunch of tinker toys. THe process and the final product takes the whole year. He keeps teaching and stays positive while he and his staff formulates plans which exploit opposition weakness and play to his strengths. ALl based on statistics and math (mainly centered around 3pt defense). The team understands he wants them to get one percent better each day.

As for the comment above regarding Groce scorching the kids in practice....does not happen. Rarely raises his voice. Does not need to. He is a consummate teacher. He does have lots of individual meetings and lots of teaching moments but in the end he is a players coach who accepts the responsibility and blame and rarely....make that never...... throws his kids under the bus or belittles them....but he also lets them know what he expects of them and holds them responsible

Jan 5, 2013, 05:43 PM	#181
cjcastan Posts: 1,215	Great effort from the team pluses - finally starting feeding the ball to the interior via both the pick and roll / pick and slip / and old fashioned posting up - great tenacity and hustle plays lots of effort in putting bodies on bodies when the ball went up and bodies hitting the deck for loose balls - great distribution of the ball, not a lot assists but the ball was moving well and timely and it seemed there was less one on one play than against purdue - this and even last game NE is playing at a higher level than earlier in the season. he may not meet people's expectations this season but he might be preseason b1g 2nd / 3rd / Honorable mention next year. the grind of this season and a whole another off season will serve him well. minuses - I love TA's heart hustle grit tenacity moxie, whatever you want to call it but his court awareness is lacking. There were a few times on the fast break he should have given it up to his running mate and a few times he got up in the air on the perimeter and under the basket, with no where to go with the ball. Hopefully he can develop a better court sense in the offseason with lots of tape watching or that Tate can progress faster than expected. - our ballhandlers are really raggedy with the rock. we all thought BP and TA would be shaky pre season, and Craft makes a lot of guys look real bad. But it's going to be even uglier some nights with the TOs. Even uglier than .66 ATO because we might not be lucky to hold the other guys to 33% from the field and 16 TOs All in all a very enjoyable game to watch. JG has this team in year one where we thought they would be in year 2 or 3. The future is very bright for this season and beyond looking through orange colored glasses! __________________ The ball is round. The game lasts forty minutes. This much is fact. Everything else is theory

Jan 5, 2013, 07:08 PM	#190
Indicchief Posts: 1,483	It is my understanding that Groce preps his team for the Big Dance. That they tend to peak then. If that is the case it could be a mega peak with this team. All these kinks should get ironed out by then. A 2nd seed some place (close to home) would be great. (Long ways of - I know.) __________________ My top 5 are Illinois, Illinois, Illinois, Illinois and Illinois, in no particular order

Jan 5, 2013, 07:43 PM	#197
DaytonIllini Posts: 14,873	Does anyone have the KenPom pregame chances to win for us at Purdue and against OSU today? __________________ "To forbid us anything is to make us have a mind for it." Michel Eyquem de Montaigne

Jan 5, 2013, 05:12 PM	#176
JimmyChitwood Location: Central IL Posts: 383	I like seeing Groce get defensive about comments made about DJ. That's how a coach should be...not wishing he was coaching someone else's players. Groce is going to be one heck of a coach.

Jan 5, 2013, 05:21 PM	#177
bleedsorangenblue Location: C-U Posts: 943	Great game tonight that should put some of the critics in their seats. I see this team evolving into the complete package. We no longer need torrid 3-point shooting to win games. We have an interior game, lock-down defense, and a fast paced style that can put opponents on their heels. tOSU looked rattled troughout much of the game. By the time they regained any semblance of composure, the game was over. We never became complacent with our lead. I like where this team is headed and hope we can be consistent in our approach from here on out. We are not a pefect team but If we can play with this intensity and continue to have contributions across the board from the players, we will win a lot of games.

Jan 5, 2013, 05:34 PM	#179
finalfour2011 Location: Bourbonnais, IL Posts: 361	Great overall team effort, improved rebounding as earlier stated but I felt it was mostly defense that won this game. We were in the driver's seat when OSU went to halftime with only 25 on the scoreboard, nobody on our team was in foul trouble and the Illini had a 12 point lead even while missing 3s and getting NO free throws the first half.

Jan 5, 2013, 05:36 PM	#180
zoggle101 Location: Spfld, IL Posts: 4,410	Wow, great win!!!! JB does play out of control at times, but I'd rather him be aggressive than passive. Please stop feeding into the BP is hurt. It's part of his thing. Every drive he has you would think he's getting punched in the kidneys with how he flails his arms up and hits the floor. It works though because he gets the shooting foul calls. Anyone notice Abrams get slammed to the ground harder than anyone has this season, and shake it off pretty quickly? BP needs to learn that toughness. If he were hurt he wouldn't be playing like he does. Let's stop with the "poor BP stuff" please.

Jan 5, 2013, 06:00 PM	#184
TooHot4Tots Posts: 365	Great game! The Hall was packed. Hell of a response. Now beat the Gophers

Jan 5, 2013, 06:24 PM	#187
AK Illini UofI Basketball..off the chain Location: Chicago Posts: 7,257	The OSU scout board is melting down way worse than Loyalty after the Purdue loss.

Jan 5, 2013, 07:18 PM	#191
illinibob Posts: 526	Was KBD in attendance today?

Jan 5, 2013, 07:24 PM	#192
gmjz Posts: 40	For those wanting Henry over Griffey- Henry's defense is not up to speed. He will be a great player but needs to learn how to play D. IMHO

Jan 5, 2013, 07:26 PM	#193
illini4evr Posts: 5	Great game! Shows what they are capable of doing when they play with effort the whole game.

Jan 5, 2013, 07:44 PM	#199
BillyBob1 Location: Champaign Posts: 203	I know he is only a soph, but is anyone really disappointed we didn't get Sam Thompson? He has had some big dunks, but not much else.