Pregame: Illinois vs Iowa, Sunday, March 8th, 6:00pm CT, BTN

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#51      

Hoppy2105

Little Rock, Arkansas
Yes Ayo is on an elite skill level....but Trent is a very skilled shooter, Dre has skills that we see maybe once a decade, AG3 is an elite shooter, Giorgi proved last year that he has elite footwork.

Ayo has demonstrated consistency. But Trend, Dre,, AG3, and Giorgi have not. When those 4 are consistently elite, than we will be an elite team, until then we are a very good team, one of many.

And as @mattcoldagelli said earlier, when those guys are all off at the same time (which is rare) we have outcomes like against tOSU.
 
#53      

Dan

Admin
Arrive by 5:40 for Senior Night

BTN: Kevin Kugler, Shon Morris & Olivia Dekker

Game Notes
 
#54      
Iowa is just a terrible matchup for us. Without shooters we struggle to break their trapping zone. Hopefully BU has some tricks up his sleeve.

I will go out on a limb and say Kipper has a big game. 15 pts 8 reb in his final home game. Put him in the middle of that zone where he can hit the short jumper, dump it down to Kofi/Giorgi, or pump fake and get to the rim.
 
#56      
I was at the game in Iowa City and that was a very hostile environment. We handled it well until the last 5 minutes. I hope SFC is just as hostile for Fran’s crew tomorrow. I think we have to double Garza and hope Weiskamp’s slump continues. If we don’t double I could see Kofi with two quick fouls and Garza going for 30. I expect to see a lot of zone tomorrow as that is what turned the game at carver hawkeye.
 
#57      

altgeld88

Arlington, Virginia
No matter what happens tomorrow evening, sincere thanks to the four seniors:

Samson didn't get much tick but the contributions that backups make every day in practice day in and day out helps makes the starters who they are.

Tyler was one of the few guys who understood BU's system early last season. He got tick and people were often "ticked" at that. Without him and his contributions, however, stabilizing the offense at times when it was falling apart, last season would have been worse.

Kipper has hung in there through thick and thin and given us some great moments. That Iowa game when he went off was sublime.

And Dre. Well, IMO if Ayo leaves this spring we'll miss Dre next year as much as Ayo. As a former undersized guard who drove into the trees on a regular basis, I both wince and empathize when he gets airborne down there with no backup plan. But, man, when he kisses those layups high off the glass, or draws coverage and dishes; when he hits the floor after a loose ball; when he literally rips the ball out of an opponent's hand, particularly when that opponent is Garza in Iowa City at crunch time; and when you see his leadership in the huddle and on the floor that he provides this team; well, that's toughness, grace, discipline, and everything you cheer for and admire as a fan.

We're going to miss him. He's the heart and soul of what I love about this team, the culture that's developing, and BU's potential to drop firm anchor in Champaign for many winning seasons to come. When BU talked about "Everyday Guys" at his first presser I liked it but allowed it could be fluff. It's not. It's what, combined with talent, will make the Illini great again. It's Dre.

So thanks, guys, especially Dre. Remind Garza tomorrow evening at the Hall who you are. Give him a memory he won't be able to erase even 30 years from now.

ILL-
 
#59      

POWURR

From Downtown
Friends don’t let friends go to **WA

Senior Nite
May the great Ayo smite them with furious anger and Dre lay waste the visitors on the hardwood. 🔥
 
#62      

altgeld88

Arlington, Virginia
Friends don’t let friends go to **WA

Senior Nite
May the great Ayo smite them with furious anger and Dre lay waste the visitors on the hardwood. 🔥

Long-suffering Illini Fan #1: “We won again. We beat Iowa! This is good! But what is best in life?”

Long-Suffering Illni Fan #2: “The waving tall grass of the open East-Central Illinois prairie, a fleet horse, falcons at your wrist, the westerly wind in your hair!”

Long-suffering Illini Fan #1: "Ayo, what is best in life?"

Ayo: “To crush Iowa, to see them driven before us cowering, ravaged and slinking back toward their hovels on the Iowa River, and to hear the lamentation of their women! To advance aggressively into The Dance and repeatedly to smite our enemies furiously in this manner.”

Long-Suffering Illini Fans (chorus): "Yes. That is good."
 
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#67      
Who is going to be the toughest the longest. Who is going to be the most self-disciplined the longest. Rick Pitino
Much the same applies to the Illini.
 
#69      
I expect this game to be a dogfight with the outcome decided in the last 2 minutes. Hope I'm wrong but nothing seems to come easy for us. I have the tums ready.
 
#70      

ILLINI76

Springfiled, IL.
I hope BU has a game plan today. He is 0-5 against Iowa. It’s the only team he hasn’t won against in the Big Ten. I hope that changes today.
 
#72      
I hope the players execute Coach Underwood's game plan and adjustments to give the seniors a win and the team a top 4 seed in BTT and better seed in NCAAT!!! I...L...L...
 
#74      
Please help!!!!! My daughter will be going to Iowa next year, it hurts just say it, talk me off the ledge, I NEED YOU ILLINI.

. When she told me she was going to Iowa, I said " I'll see you in a couple years "
I’m sorry. It’s difficult when your children betray you.
 
#75      
IOWA IOWA IOWA ! Big Game!! Beautiful Spring Day!! Cap it off an Illini Victory!!!
Let’s go Illinois. One Amazing SFC Senior Day Home Win!!!!!!
 
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