Pregame: Illinois vs UCLA, Friday, November 18th, 8:30pm CT, ESPNU

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#201      

kyillinifan

K
kyillinifan
Could this be the toughest holiday tournament? I know the Kansas Duke tourney was a good one.
 
#202      

Illinifan74

Illinifan74
Illinifan74
I start this by saying that I want us to win this game 100%, but there are a few other things that I would like to see as well.

I want to know how we are going to react if we get popped in the mouth. If UCLA comes out and goes up by 8 or 10 - how do we respond.

On the other hand, if we get up 8-10 points, can we keep the foot on the gas, and not have a big scoreless gap that we always seem to have in a game.

Really excited for this game, and to see how we stack up against a highly ranked team. In a perfect world, this would be this team's Wake Forest game, and we just blow the lid off the thing, but these guys have not played much together - so that is probably too high of an expectation.


ILL
 
#203      

combes

C
combes
LuckyIllini said:
IMO it’s going to boil down to how BU manages these games/matchups. Can he put his players in a position to succeed. We have all the talent on paper. BU needs to maximize. Doesn’t seem to do that in big games of recent memory. ILL!
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So there were no “big games” on the way to Big Ten titles? For example, beating Iowa to clinch the title was a bigger game than a nonconference game in November.

How about going to Michigan without Ayo and hammering a top 5 team?

So many more. Not sure what your definition of a big game is.
 
#205      

Fighter of the Nightman

Fighter of the Nightman
Chicago, IL
Fighter of the Nightman
illini0440 said:
Can't adjust much w/ Kofi
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Yep, I know this might come across as simply trying to make the best of our situation this year ... but it cannot be denied that our 2021 and 2022 teams were VERY good squads that also looked especially lost when teams effectively isolated Ayo or Kofi with a good game plan and our outside shots weren't falling. This year's team might lose more games than both of those teams did, but I also think their versatility and athleticism might just be the X factor in pulling out a win in March vs. another Loyola or Houston situation.
 
#206      

727ill

7
727ill
combes said:
So there were no “big games” on the way to Big Ten titles? For example, beating Iowa to clinch the title was a bigger game than a nonconference game in November.

How about going to Michigan without Ayo and hammering a top 5 team?

So many more. Not sure what your definition of a big game is.
Click to expand...

It's fair to critique our track record in big-time non-conference games. The only "big" win we have had in non-conference was against a mediocre Duke team at Cameron with no fans.
 
#207      

Emerson Bigguns

Emerson Bigguns
Emerson Bigguns
hodgesonfire said:
I would add pre-game plan and in-game plan into this assessment. The only fault I have with Underwood at all is in game adjustments when the opponent has created a game plan that takes away a major strength.
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Last year we really only had one major strength & everything else was dependent on him being dominant. Working inside-out was great when he could get to the rim, and/or our outside shots were falling.
When teams crowded him in the lane, and shots weren’t going down, there was no plan B. We didn’t really have the personnel to play any other way. Certainly not without taking Kofi off the floor, which wasn’t going to improve the teams odds…
This year’s team is full of dudes who are extremely versatile. It will be easier to make adjustments based on how the other team wants to play.
Half court offense may take awhile to be really good in a slow paced game, but I like our chances in a fast paced scramble of a game.
It’s pretty much the opposite style of basketball than we have played since Kofi came to town.
 
#210      

john1952

john1952
john1952
Some folks must think UCLA is a pretty solid basketball team Illlinois at 19, Michican at 20,
illinois top ten.jpg
 
#212      

GallopingGhost

GallopingGhost
Denver, CO
GallopingGhost
It all depends which Illini team shows up. And we hardly know what these teams look like as this is our first real test.

Focused, locked in, and playing loose? We could win by 10+.

Distracted, freeze up, or shots go cold? We could get blown out.

Either way, it’ll be an interesting watch…
 
#214      

Ga65

G
Ga65
Read one oddsmaker who doesn’t think UCLA can stand up to Ill physically. Haven’t seen UCLA but if true may be determined by the refs. Charmin vs Bounty?
 
#215      

Fighter of the Nightman

Fighter of the Nightman
Chicago, IL
Fighter of the Nightman
Random trivia that I would REALLY like to update with a win tonight. :cool:

The last time the Illini beat a ranked team on a neutral floor in the non-conference??

12/21/2013: Illinois 65, #23 Missouri 64 (St. Louis, MO)

The last time we did the same in a game other than Braggin' Rights??

11/27/2004: #5 Illinois 89, #24 Gonzaga 72 (Indianapolis, IN)

The last time we beat a TOP TEN non-conference opponent on a neutral floor besides Mizzou?? It's been almost 22 years:

12/16/2000: #5 Illinois 81, #7 Arizona 73

This is mostly just fun trivia, but a LOT of casual college basketball fans and recruits use these big non-conference matchups between ranked teams in cool locations to form their perceptions of which programs are "cool" or "big-time" or whatever. You don't get the kind of opportunities we are going to get this year that often:

#19 Illinois vs. #8 UCLA (Las Vegas, NV)
#19 Illinois vs. #5 Baylor or #16 Virginia (Las Vegas, NV)
#19 Illinois vs. #11 Texas (New York, NY)

Winning ANY of these games, much less two or three of them, is a huge deal. Beating those programs in those iconic locations? Those are opportunities for statements. Let's get a HUGE win tonight, boys!
 
#217      

dwpittman

D
dwpittman
eas23 said:
Putting out a preemptive strike that the game probably won't tip off until closer to 9. 10 PM for those of us in the Eastern time zone.
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Do they pump oxygen into the arena like they do the casinos?
 
#222      

eas23

E
eas23
Fighter of the Nightman said:
Random trivia that I would REALLY like to update with a win tonight. :cool:

The last time the Illini beat a ranked team on a neutral floor in the non-conference??

12/21/2013: Illinois 65, #23 Missouri 64 (St. Louis, MO)

The last time we did the same in a game other than Braggin' Rights??

11/27/2004: #5 Illinois 89, #24 Gonzaga 72 (Indianapolis, IN)

The last time we beat a TOP TEN non-conference opponent on a neutral floor besides Mizzou?? It's been almost 22 years:

12/16/2000: #5 Illinois 81, #7 Arizona 73

This is mostly just fun trivia, but a LOT of casual college basketball fans and recruits use these big non-conference matchups between ranked teams in cool locations to form their perceptions of which programs are "cool" or "big-time" or whatever. You don't get the kind of opportunities we are going to get this year that often:

#19 Illinois vs. #8 UCLA (Las Vegas, NV)
#19 Illinois vs. #5 Baylor or #16 Virginia (Las Vegas, NV)
#19 Illinois vs. #11 Texas (New York, NY)

Winning ANY of these games, much less two or three of them, is a huge deal. Beating those programs in those iconic locations? Those are opportunities for statements. Let's get a HUGE win tonight, boys!
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Thanks for reminding me of the West Virginia game where people tried to rationalize getting beat by 30 points because we had no chance of matching up with a team that finished the season ranked 13th and had one 2nd round draft pick. :sick:
 
#223      

ElGran

E
ElGran
Emerson Bigguns said:
Last year we really only had one major strength & everything else was dependent on him being dominant. Working inside-out was great when he could get to the rim, and/or our outside shots were falling.
When teams crowded him in the lane, and shots weren’t going down, there was no plan B. We didn’t really have the personnel to play any other way. Certainly not without taking Kofi off the floor, which wasn’t going to improve the teams odds…
This year’s team is full of dudes who are extremely versatile. It will be easier to make adjustments based on how the other team wants to play.
Half court offense may take awhile to be really good in a slow paced game, but I like our chances in a fast paced scramble of a game.
It’s pretty much the opposite style of basketball than we have played since Kofi came to town.
Click to expand...

I think it's very difficult to judge last year's team because we were never fully healthy and by the end of the year, we were decimated. We hardly had a back court with Curbelo never recovered from concussion and Trent playing injured (and worse with an eye infection).
 
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