Illinois 75, Tennessee 62 Postgame

[Oranges]

He needs another year at Illinois

I definitely want another year of him at Illinois

 

[Geno33]

Keaton "Ice" Wagler with the dagger trays.

He has to be the steal of his recruiting class. Kansas has to be kicking themselves!! LOL

 

[DJM]

Jelly Roll headed straight to the local donut shop after the buzzer

 

[Geno33]

What a tremendous second half adjustment. We left no doubt who the better team was.

In other news, I learned who Jelly Roll is, and I wish I didn't. ESPN may just as well rename themselves as SECSPN permanently.

Kind of blows the Brad doesn't make adjustments narrative.

 

[BatteredWifeSchwartz]

Ben slander will no longer be tolerated. Idk how it translated on TV, but he was unbelievable tonight at every part of the game. His hustle, his defense, his physicality. It was all incredible. He might not be the most talented player on the team, but there’s no doubt he is a leader and the guys respect him.

 

[ImGonnaBeILL]

The most amazing stat of the game: Ben took ZERO shots from the field in 26 minutes

And still played a huge role in the win

 

[Illinisnake]

I’ll eat crow, every player that played poorly in the first half came in in the second and dominated. Here are my standouts:

The whole team

 

[zentrails]

Just so everyone knows....

I would NEVER miss an open dunk like that!

Me neither, I have a 3" vertical LOL

 

[Geno33]

Better than Riley was at this point in the season.

100%

 

[WhereDoWeStandWithStorr?]

Cam Christie 2.0. Has the entire arsenal. League loves those 6"6 wings who can: handle, shoot, attack, guard, rebound.

Absolutely the best player on the court

#253 ranked player in the class.

 

[Ryllini]

https://twitter.com/x/status/1997504162934960183

 

[NarrowJ]

Ben slander will no longer be tolerated. Idk how it translated on TV, but he was unbelievable tonight at every part of the game. His hustle, his defense, his physicality. It was all incredible. He might not be the most talented player on the team, but there’s no doubt he is a leader and the guys respect him.

I have been so confused by the Ben hate all the way from the beginning… I think I’m just old, the bit players were always lauded and celebrated back in my day… like everyone loved when Lucas Johnson came in the game, and God love him he couldn’t hold Ben’s jock

 

[Illini in Italy]

Hell yeah!!! What a way to come out after halftime. Strong showing and lots of fight.
The best part of this win is that we are coming together and learning toughness, grit, and how to win.
A distant second best aspect of this win is not having to see all the bozos and naysayers on here that frequently bring nothing but doom, gloom, and negativity.
Kudos to the coaches for obviously maximizing the 8 days of practice time.
This team is for real and is only going to get better throughout the season.
I L L . . .

 

[HailtotheChief]

The entire team is finally healthy, and they've been able to practice together. Makes a difference and we witnessed it in the 2nd half.

Not quite but it's good and not surecwhere Ty may fit in.

 

[CDRUSN]

Bill Self has got to be kicking himself and his assistants for watching Wagler dominated Kansas high school basketball, get named the best player in the state as a senior last year, fail to show any interest in him at all, then watch slack jawed as he reveals himself to be one of the top freshman starters in the nation. I couldn't write a more perfect revenge script.

 

[InDaAZ]

Bill Self has got to be kicking himself and his assistants for watching Wagler dominated Kansas high school basketball, get named the best player in the state as a senior last year, fail to show any interest in him at all, then watch slack jawed as he reveals himself to be one of the top freshman starters in the nation. I couldn't write a more perfect revenge script.

https://twitter.com/x/status/1997498319602659526

 

[illinifan1987]

Thank you Fighting Illini for a great victory tonight...it's the best medicine ole pru could have received tonight...it really really is...

Are you out of the hospital yet? Either way...

 

[Illini in Indiana]

Now lets beat Missouri and go 3-2 in our out of conference gauntlet.

 

[From the cheap seats]

Second half was a gut check after being bullied on the boards. The Illini answered.
The different lineups Brad can throw at teams and the sheer number of weapons make this team a tough out. As Tomi rounds into form, the Illini may just be starting to tap into their potential.

 

[Geno33]

Guys making open looks they missed vs Bama and Uconn really changes things. A lot of the same looks from the same guys. They are good shooters but when they fall it really changes things. It's fun when they fall and they will. Plus refs found the whistle the last 5 minutes and called fouls down the stretch.

 

[derrick6]

Their 12 TOs, some unforced, offset their board advantage and was a Godsend for us. Glad we took care of the ball against a physical, handsy defense.

5 of 12 were steals, so definitely forced.

That’s not a Godsend. That’s Defense. Very much deserved by this team’s effort

 

[IlliniFaninHoosierLand]

Never let it rest

'TIL YOUR GOOD GETS BETTER

 

[Geno33]

Guys making open looks they missed vs Bama and Uconn really changes things. A lot of the same looks from the same guys. They are good shooters but when they fall it really changes things. It's fun when they fall and they will. Plus refs found the whistle the last 5 minutes and called fouls down the stretch.

Being able to have practice with the entire team healthy is the difference.

 

[Second place is 1st loser]

Nobody hates him. Nobody piled on him.

Every player on this team with the exception of Bam has been called out numerous times this season. For all the same reasons Ben has been called out.

Nobody piled on him? Are you being sarcastic?

He's been the whipping boy for the better part of 1 1/4 seasons.

Hopefully we can put all of that BS away now and value the kid....value all of the guys wearing our jerseys.

 

[Bucktown]

Tennessee got away with football thuggery in the first half. Poetic justice prevailed in the second half.

Agree there is a reason why the rebound margin was so large. Their shots were also so bad they were bouncing further out.