Alabama 100, Illinois 87 Postgame

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#201      
DeonThomas
Generally content overall.

The positives:
- Kylan's best offensive game by far; he essentially ran the point better than KJ; excellent penetration
- Our shooting was fine for the game, except for DGL (0-5)
- 33% from 3-pt is more than acceptable (same as 50% from 2-pt)
- We got to see which guys Brad really trusts against top competition (Riley, Kylan, KJ, Tommy, Ben)
- The 8-man rotation rounds out with DGL, Tre and Morrez
- I think we're ahead of schedule in terms of blending as a team, given the roster turnover

The negatives:
- KJ with 6 more turnovers; and he's maybe a little too slow/deliberate out front
- Alabama is exceptional, but we shouldn't be giving up 100 pts; our defense is not "ELITE"
- We're presently just a Top 20 team; still need to improve the overall chemistry to work our way into the second weekend of the NCAA tourney
 
#206      
1970 John
Free throws were lousy but the guys got to shoot a lot of them, through their own making.

No one is mentioning three pointers but man were those terrible. And every one of them is worth three points. Free throws are one point per each.

The game, despite the lack of defense, would have been a lot different with made threes.
 
#208      
Illiniguy13
PepeSilvia said:
They were a top scoring offense in the country last year because they had Terrence Shannon and Domask. Shannon was a freak of nature that could create instant offense without any help.

I'll give credit to Brad for listening to Jay Wright and letting Domask play point last year but I don't think Brad is a great X's and O's guy offensively and I think that's part of the reason he's struggled in March(and why he got thoroughly out coached by Porter Moser when he got a 1 seed).
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That’s an interesting take!
 
#209      
Ga65
Problem isn’t with offense! My only issue is KJ pounding the ball out front for seeming long periods of time. Leads to TO’s and standing around by rest of team. Defense is a different story but should be expected from a young new team. They are getting better but they just played a great offense team. They outrebounded them and shot better from three. Alabama has three better rim protectors than we have. Going to take team defense and that requires experience and time together.
 
#210      
IlliniInSturgisMi
FloridaMan said:
Game was lost in the first 5 minutes. Came out with zero intensity and let a top ten team feel comfortable; not a recipe for success. Not the last learning experience this team will have this season, and a few good moments in the second half. Would like to see many more minutes for DGL and Morez, many fewer for TW and BH.
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I'm envious that you saw the first 5 minutes. All I saw then was the end of some women's volleyball game. Grrrr

BTW I've been on this site for years and I still can't ID a player by their initials. Could always get my roster I guess.
 
#213      
NASchamp
We clawed back within 9 with a few minutes left. Just need to get tougher and play as a team. Too much hero ball at times. Need more passing and cutting.

Defense wasn’t great. Especially the 3pt defense. They killed us there. TOs actually okay. Need to make our freaking free throws. Almost the difference in the game right there.

This team is just so young. They’re still jittery under the big lights and when the crowd really gets into it.
 
#214      
OrangeBlue98
Indy Illini Fan said:
Credit where it's due ... Thought Kylan played much better in the 2nd half ...
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For me, Boswell’s performance was the best part of the game. I never like losing, but I’ll take the trade off if it means last night springs him to be a very consistent contributor.
 
#216      
OrangeBlue98
Dan said:

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Gotta admit that I like the consistent Wimp Sanderson shout out sport coats from Nate Oats. In an age where nearly all coaches are all wearing team half-zips, polos, and sneakers (not complaining about it - I often wear something like that to work myself since we have a very casual office), that look is kind of fun and a nice nod to a revered figure in Alabama basketball.
 
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#217      
Vinegarben
Poor defense or actually no defense! Allowed Bama to get inside time after time. Ivisic couldn't handle Nelson. Bama was way too quick for us, Great chemistry. Bama is a very good team with depth and size. Lost by 13 without their top scorer, get a single point. Suppose to be a good shooting team and can't make a free throw. You make free throws could have been a different game. Poor ball handling. Need Riley in the lineup-kid can score. White is too soft. Morez should get more ticks too, he is more physical than Ivisic. I guess they come home and beat up on the cupcakes and take their lumps again against Arkansas.
 
#218      
OrangeBlue98
Overall, as a fan of the game of basketball last night was fun to watch. Two teams that like to play fast, move a lot on offense (but I would agree that I'd like to see less of guys just standing in the corner to spread the floor), and are not afraid to shoot when contested. If I were a neutral fan, that game would have kept my attention for all 40 minutes. I can't say that about all of college basketball these days.
 
#219      
NASchamp
Was sitting next to some Alabama fans at the game and it was funny how jealous they were that we got KJ and Will Riley.
 
#220      
thefalcon5
Ehhhh, I’d trade him for Ben, but Coleman is really really struggling this season. I’m still believe “sometimes divorce is good for both parents” in this case.
 
#221      
NarrowJ
PepeSilvia said:
The fact they never used Ty as an off ball screener last year to punish teams that were basically not guarding him on the perimeter is an example of that.
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I'm sorry, but what? You don't think he set screens off the ball?

As in doing this?

hoopstudent.com

Off-Ball Screen in Basketball: Information Explained

An off-ball screen consists of action that occurs when at least one offensive player sets a screen for another offensive player who does not have current possession of the basketball, ultimately to create a potential scoring opportunity near the basket or near perimeter areas of the court.
hoopstudent.com

You basically lost me at the first sentence anyhow when you essentially posited that Oakland and Princeton are better on offense than our recent teams (remember the one last year that was 2nd in the nation?)
 
#222      
AirNeazy
BlueLeader said:
We win that game if we make FTs. That was horrible...
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On the flip side, if they hit a couple more of their wide open threes or bunnies in the first, we easily could've gone down 25 or 30+.

Really liked seeing aggressiveness from Boswell in the second when things were looking flat. Riley is a 5 star and does 5 star things...dunno if we've had a freshman with such a silky smooth jumper in a long time.

But man, still can't shake how physically overmatched we looked. You could tell Bama were coached to put their head down and go straight through our guys to the rack anytime they wanted a bucket. Morez struggled in the first but in the second he seemed like one of the few guys who could match up physically. Tomi got absolutely flambé'd in PnR defense and closeouts all game, another worrying sign for me.

The turnovers and scattershot offense don't phase me at all, it's a young team and they'll learn how to play with each other much better. But the defense, toughness and effort (man, how many rebounds and loose balls did we just walk to last night that in previous years wouldve had multiple guys on the floor for) show some warning signs that I can't help but be worried by.
 
#223      
Se Il Illini
IlliniInSturgisMi said:
I'm envious that you saw the first 5 minutes. All I saw then was the end of some women's volleyball game. Grrrr

BTW I've been on this site for years and I still can't ID a player by their initials. Could always get my roster I guess.
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Spot on concerning identifying players by initials.
 
#224      
LouHenson
So Coleman got 2 million at KSU right? What is Ben getting here? I just don’t remember seeing it?
 
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