https://www.stltoday.com/sports/col...cle_03def195-d5c4-56f5-a528-0129521ecb0a.html
Though the stakes aren’t the same, the point stands that Illinois (8-15, 4-8) can move its winning streak to three games in a row and build momentum in the back stretch of the conference season. Or it can have a letdown against the much-improved Scarlet Knights (11-11, 4-8).
Coach Brad Underwood and the rest of the coaching staff have been quick to put the win behind them. After the loss to Iowa earlier this season, he thought his team “drank the poison of success” after beating Minnesota in the game before. While the game against Iowa and the later loss to Minnesota don’t stick with Dosunmu as much, how the team prepared after the first Minnesota win and things that could have been tweaked stick in his brain.
“Michigan State was one of 20 regular season conference Big Ten games,” Underwood said. “Now, it was a great win — there’s no doubt. Now it’s about the next one and we put that to bed pretty quick as a staff.”
_______________________________________________________________________
I think the Illini have taken their lumps early this season and have grown as players and TEAMMATES to the point where we are now a dangerous team to play by anyone....We still are a team that , IMHO, plays up or down to the level of the competition...I see strains of that killer attitude that we need to overcome certain deficiencies against certain opponents, but it still boils down to us playing 40 minutes of pressure D and hitting our shots....
Sounds simple, but a team of mainly underclassmen will sometimes regress and it only takes 2-3 plays a game to decide the outcome, especially in the B1G this year...
Illini 78
rutgers 71