Not really. We didn't do anything else well either.
Indiana 80, Illinois 65 Postgame
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Funny thing is, this might not be the kiss of death that 8/9s sometimes get. Is there really a 1 seed in the offing that you're scared of? I'm thinking by the end of the year, maybe. Right now, we have a fighter's chance against anyone in the country. Thursday loss definitely in play as well of course.
Still time for us to achieve better consistency, but when the lights come on for that first NCAA game, all bets are off for the very important freshmen.
Safe travels homeLet the over reactions begin! This is the youngest team in the Big Ten! Returning the least amount of minutes! This team was always going to be up and down. We will finish just above .500 in The Big regular, win a couple of games in the Big tourney and hopefully make a sweet sixteen run in the NCAA. Tonight we just played poorly, not about adjustments. Was about stopping the other team and putting the ball in the basket. We did neither and got beat. Disappointing but not unexpected considering our scheduling and youth/togetherness. We will continue to have hiccups until this team gets to gel and be consistent in defense/offense for a period of time.
Giorgi is playing in the Paris of the Midwest.
altgeld88
- Arlington, Virginia
Get outta here with that kind of measured, long-term, rational thought!! You are in the wrong place, my friend!
Disappointed, yes - Unexpected, no. This team is still figuring it out and there will be bumps along the way. The goal is to be playing best basketball come March which is still something I'm optimistic about. Matt is the best scorer (IMO) and when he gives you a 0 offensively it'll be hard to overcome (& free throws, obviously). Onto the next. ILL.
Eh, I think the tired aspect tends to be overstated when it comes to college ball. Seems like it's a prime go to response when your team gets walloped and the coach wants to protect the players a little. Yeah some might have been experiencing some tired legs or fatigue, but these are college kids- I'm sure most have played daily for multiple hours a day all their lives. Sure the grind can get to you some days, but it's usually just an off day. For example Izzo said the same thing when MSU lost to us and they faltered down the stretch, yet somehow, the same number of days later they played a phenomenal game against Rutgers where they completely dominated them the 2nd half, with Hall out the entirety of the game. If anything they should have been even more tired.
Really I think it was just an off day, a bad game plan (to be fair, TJD does have a history of going off against undersized bigs, and struggling against larger bigs, and this is really our first time facing him without one of the latter), and bad luck on the sickness front. That said I agree with you, this performance looked more like a one-off to me than the more deeply disturbing effortless performances we put in against Northwestern or Mizzou. I thought we played hard, just got beat by a team who was playing great ball and executed a really good gameplan especially on the offensive end. It happens. I think we'll play much different against OSU as well.
It will be interesting to see where both teams stand in the standings when the rematch occurs.
Ummm...Purdue starts 2 juniors, 1 sophomore and 2 freshman. Having Edey just makes a huge difference...just like having Kofi did for the Illini.
altgeld88
- Arlington, Virginia
Points taken. particularly the man-down point for MSU. IMO, however, there's a big difference between playing 6 BT games in 12 days (Illinois) and 5 (MSU). Particularly in January when players tend to get sick. At the margin that extra game is an important factor.
There's also a large psychological component. It's difficult to show up game after game and push hard for 40. I will note that our team last year, with much less talent but more seasoning and cohesiveness, did it.
We're on the same page generally. I'm not pessimistic as I was after Miznoz, PSU and NW. Jsut an off night. Five days of rest and renewed focus will likely make a big difference for these guys.
TJD obviously killed us, and I’ve seen a lot of hang wringing on what Edey and Dickinson will do to us. I actually think Dain matches up better with those 2 than TJD. TJD had a distinct quickness advantage on Dain and was able to get around/by him at will. Think Dain can match up better with guys who aren’t as quick laterally. And although 6’9, I consider Dain functionally 7 feet because of his length. That said, still think Edey will be a problem, just that he and TJD have different skill sets and think Dain is better equipped to handle Edey than TJD at this stage.
Yep...maybe Woodson watched the IU women pound the ball down low to Holmes repeatedly as the Illini refused to double team her and thought....hmm, let's try that.
And, while I'm feeling grumpy, what's everyone's definition of "a layup"? To me, if the ball leaves your hand more than two or three feet from the backboard (in any direction), it ain't really a layup. And if the arc of the ball goes more than the two feet above the rim, it ain't a layup.
Yeh, we missed a ton a shots at the rim off drives. But few of them were what I consider to be layups, and I don't think it should surprise anyone that a lot of the highly contested heaves that we were forcing weren't going in.
So, there!
[pause]
Get off my lawn!
(OK, I feel better now, thanks.)
Yeh, we missed a ton a shots at the rim off drives. But few of them were what I consider to be layups, and I don't think it should surprise anyone that a lot of the highly contested heaves that we were forcing weren't going in.
So, there!
[pause]
Get off my lawn!
(OK, I feel better now, thanks.)
I was wondering the same thing actually. I Googled it and it seems that in the NCAA, the average "layup" percentage is around 55%, so it has to include the tougher shots at the rim. If we hit 55% last night, we would have only made 3 more baskets. Not really enough to change the game, but that coupled with FT's and it might have been enough to go down to the wire and the outcome could have been different.
I don't think anyone is equipped to handle Edey...that guy is a freak. He doesn't have to jump to rebound....the only player who can stand flat-footed and reach over an opponent's back without getting called for a foul. You just have to harrass him and hope he has a bad game shooting down at the basket from 5 feet away.
Agreed, and rightfully so.
This team really lacks a consistent identity. We have a lot of good players, but no one we can absolutely trust to get us 15-20 points a night. Our versatility is a blessing and a curse. The last 3 years, we knew what our primary offensive gameplan would be... Give the ball to the big guy... Now we don't know if we want to play 5 out, feed the post, or run the motion.... We can do all with varying degrees of effectiveness, but we don't have a bread and butter set we can go to when things aren't going well.
When we find something that clicks, we are extremely dangerous and can put up points in a hurry. When things don't click, we are looking for answers on the fly, and like last night, you might find yourself down 15 by the time you get anything solved.
On a good night can beat any team in the country. We can also be beat down by any tournament quality team on an off night.
(IU is playing better, partially because they know exactly what they are right now. The loss of Thompson and Johnson really hurt their depth but had the unseen benefit of giving them an identity. TJD all night long... He's just a tough matchup for us... Too strong for Hawk, too quick for Dain. JHS has also been freed up by Johnson's absence. He knows he has a long leash and is playing with much more confidence.)
I think the press would have been a bit more stressful for them up by10, than it was up by 20.
I still wonder why we don't use the press earlier at times. It seems to increase our energy overall, so sometimes when we look flat, it would just be a good change for a few possessions.
I'll say it again and again. This team struggles against teams that deploy a ton of ball pressure. Maybe the guys were tired but this seems to be a yearly thing with Brad Underwood teams.
I can count on one hand the number of possessions last night where we actually ran Spread and got a shot out of it. Seemed like most times IU was blowing up the play with their ball pressure and then we had to improvise.
Of course, TJD scoring almost half their points doesn't help either. But, the stretch in the first half where we got down double digits and couldn't buy a bucket was where the game was lost.
I can count on one hand the number of possessions last night where we actually ran Spread and got a shot out of it. Seemed like most times IU was blowing up the play with their ball pressure and then we had to improvise.
Of course, TJD scoring almost half their points doesn't help either. But, the stretch in the first half where we got down double digits and couldn't buy a bucket was where the game was lost.
So sorry Pru, my dad is suffering from terminal liver cancer right now I totally feel for you.
I tend to agree. TJD just worked Dain with his drop step on repeat. He's become really nasty when he's allowed that little chicken wing. Interestingly Dain and Edey have the same wingspan.
Illini_1979
- Oregon
Woke up.
Had a cup of Siggi's coconut skyr for breakfast.
Won today's game of Wordle. Answer:
Came here and was pleasantly surprised at the mostly calm response to the game. I still think this team can beat anyone on a given night and will be tough come March. Might be a few more bumps along the way but we will get there.
Go Illini.
Had a cup of Siggi's coconut skyr for breakfast.
Won today's game of Wordle. Answer:
ALTER
Came here and was pleasantly surprised at the mostly calm response to the game. I still think this team can beat anyone on a given night and will be tough come March. Might be a few more bumps along the way but we will get there.
Go Illini.
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