Illinois 77, Ohio 75 Postgame
The huge jump in productivity or percentage, probably. But Luther turned into one of the best shooters in the nation his senior year. Not sure we’ll see that.
Yes they did, play 3 games in 3 days. If they had played better all around game than us, they would have won. Go Illini.
Watching the game I would agree with your take.
Damonte has always had a good shot but right now he has confidence. I’m not sure he takes that shot last year. What a stat line for him 11 and 10 with great defense.
Depends what you mean by “best shooters” in nation. Luther was top ten in 3s made (as well as attempted) his senior year, but not sure his 41% would have put as one of the best. Still, point taken — though Damonte is 6 for 9 from 3 thus far. Interestingly, Luther’s 2-pt shooting percentage dropped each year.
whew, well lets start with the negatives. Absolutely exposed by a crafty stretch 4. Can't believe Vander Plas made those threes as the game wore on. He was an absolute handful for us and neither Damonte or Giorgi had an answer for him. Along those lines a properly operated pick and roll system is still one of the hardest to defend and we certainly did not have the answer. Much credit to the threesome of Preston/Wilson/Vander Plas. It is easy chalk this up to what we weren't able to do but credit must go to Ohio and what they did. Their energy, particularly in the 1st half, was much higher than ours. Couple that with a 5-12 start from the line and sloppiness with the ball and you have a recipe for an upset. The MAC is a pretty strong mid-major but I can't imagine they are many tougher sides then this one in the that league. Preston was a true star tonight. Very high IQ and so good with his crafty floaters and short touch shots.
Now, after the heart rate slows down, I can see some positives from this game. As the pressure mounted and the score looked grim(down 8 and down 4 with 1:30 left) and this team remained tremendously composed(I on the other hand was under going an impromptu stress test). Free throws cleaned-up(10 for the last 12 and that was with Trent intentionally missing one at the end, wouldn't have made that call myself) down the stretch, massive 3 pointers by Ayo/Trent/damonte. Huge mid range jumpers late on by Ace and Ayo. I have to chalk this up to Ayo's leadership, this guy is a stud. Last year he carried the team late about half a dozen times and once again he comes up aces. Big mid-range jumper late, Huge 3 pointer than fouled at the rim and buried the fts. All this with putting out a huge effort or the defensive end chasing Preston all over the court. Preston was not guarding Ayo for the most part. The effort and talent is monumental. Ayo could be my favorite Illini of all-time. He will join my all-time backcourt with Dee and Nick Anderson.
Speaking of favorites, if you are not thrilled with DMW I'm not sure if you are human. His three 3s tonight came at absolutely the right time and cannot be discounted. He was not able to stop Vander Plas down low tonight but he kept battling and literally we lose the game without him on the offensive side. His rebirth halfway through last year has been a joy to witness.
Interesting tactics by Underwood tonight by not adjusting the defense in terms of schemes. He tried many different combinations but no zones/presses/double teams. He seemed determined to force our presence on the game as was going to go down with the ship if we had to. It is as if he was saying, they should have to deal with us not the other way around. Ultimately they we forced ourselves on the game and did win the game but there are tons to learn and work on before Baylor. If we make our Free throws and clean up the turnovers this game is a different story. Despite struggling with those two areas they still got the job done.
What a game!
Now, after the heart rate slows down, I can see some positives from this game. As the pressure mounted and the score looked grim(down 8 and down 4 with 1:30 left) and this team remained tremendously composed(I on the other hand was under going an impromptu stress test). Free throws cleaned-up(10 for the last 12 and that was with Trent intentionally missing one at the end, wouldn't have made that call myself) down the stretch, massive 3 pointers by Ayo/Trent/damonte. Huge mid range jumpers late on by Ace and Ayo. I have to chalk this up to Ayo's leadership, this guy is a stud. Last year he carried the team late about half a dozen times and once again he comes up aces. Big mid-range jumper late, Huge 3 pointer than fouled at the rim and buried the fts. All this with putting out a huge effort or the defensive end chasing Preston all over the court. Preston was not guarding Ayo for the most part. The effort and talent is monumental. Ayo could be my favorite Illini of all-time. He will join my all-time backcourt with Dee and Nick Anderson.
Speaking of favorites, if you are not thrilled with DMW I'm not sure if you are human. His three 3s tonight came at absolutely the right time and cannot be discounted. He was not able to stop Vander Plas down low tonight but he kept battling and literally we lose the game without him on the offensive side. His rebirth halfway through last year has been a joy to witness.
Interesting tactics by Underwood tonight by not adjusting the defense in terms of schemes. He tried many different combinations but no zones/presses/double teams. He seemed determined to force our presence on the game as was going to go down with the ship if we had to. It is as if he was saying, they should have to deal with us not the other way around. Ultimately they we forced ourselves on the game and did win the game but there are tons to learn and work on before Baylor. If we make our Free throws and clean up the turnovers this game is a different story. Despite struggling with those two areas they still got the job done.
What a game!
He had some difficulty, but the box score has him with 3 TOs, and IIRC, he had at least 2 poor entry passes he had to try and corral. I don't think he likes going low, but if he's put in a tough spot, he will try and pull the ball away from the defense whichever way he can.
We got out bigged and outplayed most of the game. Ohio was generally taller at each position, very well schooled
and motivated to play the No 8 team in the country. This game will go down as a teaching moment.
Other teams will be watching video and we'll need to prepare accordingly.
and motivated to play the No 8 team in the country. This game will go down as a teaching moment.
Other teams will be watching video and we'll need to prepare accordingly.
Tacomallini
- Washington State
Congrats to AYO for joining the 1,000 pts.+ club today.
JFGsCoffeeMug
BU:1 Trash cans:0
- Chicago
Kenpom drops us from 16 down to 21 after this nail-biter.
I saw that and thought to myself, that will creep back up as Ohio shows how good they are. At least going by today's game, they're a lot better than Kenpom has them.
chiefini
- Rockford, Illinois
FREEBIRD6! So glad to see you back! It’s been awhile...hope you are well
Agreed. The numbers may have been poor, but that is not shocking on day 3 in November. Check on Ohio's 4/9 performance. It seems perfectly fair to me to say that Illinois won this game with free throws.
Shoot after sprints, shoot after practice. There's no secret recipe.
Will DaMonte and Trent as 4 year seniors get another year of eligibility if they so desire?
GrayGhost77
- Centennial, CO
BillyBob1
- Champaign
So does Ayo!
Weird game. Ayo's the absolute man. Georgi continues his decline this is why Brad wants a 4 so badly. Grandison isn't going to last in the box score on this team long, he doesn't seem to get spacing.
No one said only IL played 3 days in a row. Keep in mind not every single game has the same stress level on a team. Anyone who watched Dean Smith's NC teams in the 70's and 80's could see those players didn't have to work quite as hard in their four corners offense as the UNLV or St Mary's teams of the 90s who run the court all game long.
Illinois' game against NC A&T was a track meet. There were 139 shots in the game. That's nearly 3.5 shots every single minute. All game long. When Ohio played A&T they combined for 127. It's a bunch too. Just not as many. By comparison, when the teams played Chicago State the IL game had 114 shots while the Ohio game 105. Both of Illinois' games were more up tempo than the Ohio games.
Fouls mean time to catch your breath. The first 2 IL games had 75 fouls with 79 free throw attempts. Ohio's games 83 and 89. Turnovers often mean the clock stops. The IL games had 61 and Ohio 69. These are small differences but they do add up.
At the end of the game IL looked like the stronger team. It could be because they have the better players and it could also be because IL used their bench a little more. All 5 of the Ohio starters played 30 minutes or more. Only Ayo, Miller and Frazier played more than 30. Kofi was close at 28.
The point I was trying to make earlier, perhaps others too, is 3 games in a row is taxing on a body. The legs aren't as strong. 3's come up short. Free throws are a little more difficult too. Players get winded quicker and take a little longer to recover. The gap between the superior athlete and the very good athlete is smaller.
When the body is fatigued, strange things can happen.
We were treated to one of the best games of the season and once again it was a shame there had to be a loser. Props to Ohio for their fine play and I hope they continue to play and achieve. Ayo once again played an outstanding game, as did DFW. Frazier made some shots and I hope continues to gain confidence and relax. Miller did OK as a frosh, but learned he has much to learn about big time college hoops. Preston, on the other hand, was a gift to this Ohio team and for all who watched him play. I hope, and suspect, Ohio fans will realize what they have and they enjoy watching this special player while he is there. Glad the Illini won but would not have been too disappointed had they not. The first two games were pretty meaningless and there are no more cupcakes so they all have to focus, contribute, and get better every game. Hawkins and Grandison will be critical to what this team can become. Their development should be something all Illini fans watch closely...not so much offensively but on the defensive end as this game proved. Neither a big time defender now, but that is much needed and they can earn huge fan support and appreciation by showing interest and advancement there. Still, lots to like, but it is good for all to see what good coaches can do to slow down this Illini team and beat them. Should not too happen often, but it will happen.