If Brad flubs another tourney run, I hope Sturdy circles back around to that question. 
SureI think you're looking far too into Sturdy's tweet if you're calling that some apology to get back into good graces and "maintain status". Seems far more likely to me Sturdy is laughing it off, hence the "lol". I also can't recall one reporter Brad has shunned, banned, or consistently shamed throughout his tenure at Illinois. I can give you quite a few coaches who do consistently do that though, in fact one is about to hit the podium in a few minutes.
And did Brad not answer the question anyway? "we've won tons of close games and pulled away". There ya, go.
Uhh, I think it depends on whom we are playng and which match ups we are choosing not to double on. Today was a very good examply. Mills had a great game. But we never even tried to double him.First off, credit to the Maryland guys. They played really, really hard. Happy with the win. 8-2 on the road for the season is FANTASTIC!
Going back to the 2nd half of the UCLA game (3-22 from 3), we have REALLY been ice cold from deep the last 3-4 games. I thought our ball movement, cutting, energy, etc. was fine. Gotta knock down some of those open looks. Thatās why Iād like to see more Jake Davis.
Defensively we really struggle to contain dribble penetration. Andrej was getting blown by repeatedly. Keaton has struggled with that. Honestly, so has Kylan.
Besides the fact that heās carried us most of the yearof course Keaton has back issues. Opposing teams ride him like a pack horse.![]()
We donāt double anyone ever. Iāll just say I disagree vehemently with that philosophy.Uhh, I think it depends on whom we are playng and which match ups we are choosing not to double on. Today was a very good examply. Mills had a great game. But we never even tried to double him.
This is 100% accurate.
Ultimately it will be the defense which dictates how far this team goes in ther post season.1.25 points per possession, which is right at what we average for the season.
For as much criticism there is at times regarding our offense, it's really not the issue. What sometimes gets us is we have a habit of falling lackadaisical defensively.
YesDidnāt he have the same thing against NW?
Torvik has them at 10/15 from mid range. Based on the shot chart at ESPN, at least 5-6 of those makes are shots we'll concede anytime. Obviously don't prefer them to be wide open, but those are the shots we want to force teams to take. Some of the others are probably close enough that we'd want to contest those better.It will be a good shot chart. We were all layups and three pointers, with the threes not falling. Maryland had a ton of midrange shots, but was hitting them.
Busch League on BU's part.Apparently our reporters get shamed into kowtowing to our coaches.
Was Brad's answer or Brad's "My Bad" worse? I'm unsure? I suppose I'll pick the later.
He did answer the question. He said itās not an issue. He didnāt give the answer you wanted which he isnāt obligated to but he did answer the question.Busch League on BU's part.
Not great vibes if he feels the need to respond in this manner.
Also, if it was soo patently untrue it would not have warranted such disdain...
I felt the same way with him coming after Piper and his shooting after a question last year. You're paid millions of dollars to answer questions and be available to the media.
Kylan learning how to count to ten in Serbian at 1:12
Agree to disagreeThat was a 100% completely fair question (and asked in a complementary way). Illinois had overtime games in THREE (all losses) of the previous 7 games and then won today in a close game.
Q: Youāve had close games lately and pulled out a win today, does that give your team confidence?
Completely fair question and Brad was an !!! in his response.
I love these. Would like to draw attention to the yellow circles. One is not like the other. When the threes ain't falling, please, please start going inside more when we have such an obvious advantage (e.g. Maryland, or say, I don't know - WISCONSIN). Now, that strategy probably doesn't work against Michigan. But we've got to recognize when the shots are not going in that we should get the ball to the rim, at least for stretches. It seems so obvious, IMO.Torvik has them at 10/15 from mid range. Based on the shot chart at ESPN, at least 5-6 of those makes are shots we'll concede anytime. Obviously don't prefer them to be wide open, but those are the shots we want to force teams to take. Some of the others are probably close enough that we'd want to contest those better.
View attachment 48092
Our defensive rebounding rate wasn't up to our standard (MD got 34.4%)
This team that weāre watching now seems to be a little different than they were earlier though.Has been parroted throughout the fanbase lately
Illinois has won a bunch of close games, just had a tendency to run away at the end in them and the final score looks more comfy (Texas Tech, Tenn, at OSU, at Iowa, at Purdue, at Nebraska, at Maryland)
Lot of road games in there so we do it other teams buildings as well
Where did I say he didn't answer the question?He did answer the question. He said itās not an issue. He didnāt give the answer you wanted which he isnāt obligated to but he did answer the question.
Why do think after losing 3 OT games in the last 7 games and then winning a close game today if that gives the team confidence isnāt a fair question?Agree to disagree