LGIllini
- La Grange, IL
Imagine being me and paying $15 to follow the game against PSU Thursday! I'm sure the people around me thought I was nuts. Oh well - certainly kept me occupied the entire flight.
Pregame: Illinois vs Arkansas, Thursday, March 16th, 3:30pm CT, TBS
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Hawkins-Harris-Rodgers-TSJ-Mayer. The intensity lineup. Subbing in RJ and Goode at times. That's the lineup that would ideally carry us through Arkansas, and even Kansas. It's no secret that most of our big second half runs have occured with that lineup. The Hawkins-Rodgers-Harris combo in particular is insanely good at forcing turnovers and getting offensive boards. So good that it more than overcomes their offensive shortcomings by a lot because of all the fast break transition chances and possessions gained. The point differential with that lineup is consistently great.
Epps would help with the offense but his defense will be a serious issue against Arkansas length and athleticism. I just don't see how he can fit in this matchup unless they use a smaller guard at points in the game.
Dainja would be okay on defense since Arkansas is terrible at shooting anyway, but I think they'd contain him pretty easily in the post with swarming defense and doubles and he'd have a ton of trouble holding on to the ball.
Gotta ride that 7 man rotation I mentioned above as much as possible this game, and probably the entire tourney if we manage to win anything. I like Epps and Dain and think they'll be great players for us in the future but for this tourney they're more situational matchup type guys. Brad needs to be smart about when to use them and how long. Ride our intensity lineup and our true identity which is defensive pressure and causing chaos. That's how we're gonna win with this team.
Epps would help with the offense but his defense will be a serious issue against Arkansas length and athleticism. I just don't see how he can fit in this matchup unless they use a smaller guard at points in the game.
Dainja would be okay on defense since Arkansas is terrible at shooting anyway, but I think they'd contain him pretty easily in the post with swarming defense and doubles and he'd have a ton of trouble holding on to the ball.
Gotta ride that 7 man rotation I mentioned above as much as possible this game, and probably the entire tourney if we manage to win anything. I like Epps and Dain and think they'll be great players for us in the future but for this tourney they're more situational matchup type guys. Brad needs to be smart about when to use them and how long. Ride our intensity lineup and our true identity which is defensive pressure and causing chaos. That's how we're gonna win with this team.
the national
- the Front Range
I like you're thinking here, although I like RJ's length, on-ball D and nose for doing dirty work.
PFP checks out.
How long do you feel a 7 man rotation can exert the intense defensive pressure you are asking for?
Not like we have any better options at this point with this squad. Might as well roll the dice
Muss is a great dude
I would say we have potentially 3 players (maybe 4) that can go off and lead the Illini to victory....Tj...MM....coleman....with Epps/Dainja as a possible 4th player that could get hot and carry a team
It might misdirection by Muss. He seems like an intelligent, well spoken coach who knows how to come up with good winning strategies.
foby
- Bonnaroo Land
When he spoke with reporters, Black said he got hurt when he jumped up to get a rebound and landed on someone’s foot during the loss to Texas A&M last Friday.
However, he added that there’s “no doubt” that he’ll play in the NCAA Tournament.
“I’m pretty tough through injuries,” Black said. “I’ll be ready. … I feel 100% good that I can tough it out. I’m used to playing through stuff.”
Legendary Coach Predicts Arkansas to Make Noise in NCAA Tournament
Plus, the latest on Anthony Black's health as the Razorbacks prepare for Arkansas vs Illinois in the 2023 NCAA Tournament.
www.bestofarkansassports.com
You think he had Black wear a walking boot as some sort of gamesmanship, or you were referring to his overly positive coach speak about his chances to play on Thursday?
Hoping you meant the latter.
When he spoke with reporters, Black said he got hurt when he jumped up to get a rebound and landed on someone’s foot during the loss to Texas A&M last Friday.
However, he added that there’s “no doubt” that he’ll play in the NCAA Tournament.
“I’m pretty tough through injuries,” Black said. “I’ll be ready. … I feel 100% good that I can tough it out. I’m used to playing through stuff.”
Legendary Coach Predicts Arkansas to Make Noise in NCAA Tournament
Plus, the latest on Anthony Black's health as the Razorbacks prepare for Arkansas vs Illinois in the 2023 NCAA Tournament.
If anything, maybe we get a not-100-percent Black on Thursday a la Trent last year with the shoulder down the stretch.
Yes I meant the latter. Sorry if I wasn't clear on that.
Fighter of the Nightman
- Chicago, IL
I similarly suffered through our Indiana BTT loss last year on my way to a bachelor party ... it was probably the atmosphere of the plane, but damn I have rarely felt that much stress as the final minutes ticked away and it was SO frustrating seeing us lose.
His interview yesterday said he'll be fine.
Players, and a bit less so coaches, are typically overly-optimistic about injury when speaking to the media. Reason being what @Illini-Rule had alluded to. Just yesterday, for example, Marcus Sasser was listed as probable minutes before the game and was even listed in the game notes as a starter. He didn't play a single minute.
This happens all of the time. If he's in a walking boot yesterday and playing full speed on Thursday, I won't necessarily be surprised though. It could be that it's only a mild sprain and they are being cautious with the boot. It also could be he doesn't have much of a shot to see the floor or will try to tough it out and not be his usual self out there. Nobody outside of Ark coaching staff will know until tipoff.
sacraig
- The desert
This doesn't surprise me at all. I think part probably just has to do with the level of competition you face in the tournament, but that certainly can't be all of it.
It's probably the rims in these "non-basketball" facilities. /s
AyoDos11
- Southern Illinois
Loyola-Chicago had something to do with that...*sigh*
Fighter of the Nightman
- Chicago, IL
That's pretty concerning, lol. With the exception of 2013 and maybe 2011, it seems we have looked markedly worse in the Tournament than we finished the season every year since 2005. We all look forward to the day this changes, but there are not many programs in the country with such a sizable gulf between our historic success in the regular season (being top 15 all-time in most categories) and our historic success in March (while still good probably closer to top 25 or top 30 all-time).
I was looking back through our Tournament setups since the 1999-2000 season, and here are a few interesting things.
- Since 2000, we have made the NCAA Tournament 14 times. We made it every year from 2000 to 2007, and then in 2009, 2011, 2013 and every year from 2021 to 2023. We were obviously going to make it in 2020, as well, before COVID hit. What a depressing gulf of sadness 2014 to 2019 was!
- In those 14 Tournaments, we have made it to at least the Second Round in every single year except for 2007 and 2009. We made it to at least the Sweet Sixteen four times (2001, 2002, 2004 and 2005), the Elite Eight twice (2001 and 2005) and the Final Four once (2005, obviously).
- We have been a #4 seed a lot and a #1 seed THREE times, as well. All in all, we have been a #4 five times, #1 three times, #5 two times, #9 two times, #7 one time and #12 one time.
- In those 14 NCAA Tournaments, we have only played our First Round game on the Thursday just THREE times before 2023 - 2009, 2006 and 2005.
- Lastly, our most common opponent is Kansas. We beat them in the 2001 Sweet Sixteen, lost to them in the 2002 Sweet Sixteen and lost to them in the 2011 Second Round. If we were to beat Arkansas, we would most likely play them for a fourth time in 14 Tournaments. The second most played opponent is a tie between Arizona (whom we lost to in the 2001 Elite Eight and then beat in the 2005 Elite Eight for some sweet, comeback-fueled revenge!) and Western Kentucky (whom we beat in the 2003 First Round and lost to in the 2009 First Round without Chester).
Lastly, since I'll always try to be an eternal optimist, I'll try to find a silver lining for this year. Hopefully having low expectations and a relatively easy trip to Des Moines might take some pressure off of this team? In 2021, the general stressful environment of a quarantine and the target of being a #1 seed proved a bit too much for us, especially after the emotional gauntlet of winning the BTT in OT to prove a point that we were the best in the league.
Last year, we had to travel pretty far (Pittsburgh) and you could tell our group was stressed to prove we could get past the Second Round. I'm not just basing that off of our incredibly tight performance and close call vs. Chattanooga, either; Underwood literally said as much right before the NCAAs and after our BTT loss to Indiana - this year's focus was all about March Madness. Well, we ran into a very underseeded #5 seed in Houston (literally ranked four spots ahead of us in the AP poll, lol), and it was not to be.
A guy can dream, but I am hoping this year will not carry the same tightness. We might lose to Arkansas, but I am hopeful that we have a pep in our step and just go out there and play. You could argue that this team has been under more pressure in every game since the Indiana loss than they are right now.
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