80'sIllini
- Arizona
Sorry but Hawkins not a 5- gets pushed around way too easily.
Houston 68, Illinois 53 Postgame
- Status
Grandison was clearly not healthy. He gutted it out because its his last ride but given the injury he sustained he normally would not have been playing this early.
Nothing surprising today. In reflection, this is somewhat of an example of having a roster of players that all have plus talents...and big shortcomings. This team had a roster of talent of that ilk, but no stars that had it all. BU had to find the least flawed he could trust, and ignored some of the most complete talents and least experienced (Melendez, Goode, Hawkins) and went with experience (Plummer, DFW, Grandison, Payne) instead of coaching up the talent. It is a tough decision, one most coaches would make, but it came back haunt this team in the end. Nevertheless, I am not sure that nay coach could fit those pieces together to maximize results. As it turned out, this team was tough to coach in that regard.
In the end, personally, I truly liked this team and their character as much as any Illini team. Hate to see Damonte, Trent, Grandy, AP, and Kofi leave the program, but it was truly a gift to watch their careers in the Orange and Blue uniforms they wore with pride as they worked hard for victories for the Illinois Varsity.
Nevertheless, with the same kind of work, the coming season can be even more exciting. Two great recruiting classes and a transfer will fill the floor with potentially equal talent as well as another challenge to BU an staff to figure out the mix of minutes and coach them into a smart, focused, hard working team. Hope Hawkins develops a stop and pop automatic shot from the paint and stops fouling. Hope Belo can find a dependable perimeter stroke and cut down on the ESPN highlight blunders. He has tremendous talent but has not yet come to understand how to maximize them. Hope RJ gets the green light...he can be our EJ LIddell). Luke Goode...just keep working like you obviously have. Dainja is the huge piece that is the biggest question mark. I hope he follows Kofi's work ethic as he needs to do just that to reach his dreams. And let's hope Epps, Harris, and Rogers get enough encouragement and court time to be able to step up and into the spotlight with confidence and competence. BP, just become a deadeye shooter, play tough defense, and don't turn it over and he becomes a hero. BBV....find a way to score and keep playing tough. And Lieb...who knows? If the game slows down for him he may surprise us all as he had offensive skills. As for Omar, I simply hope he can create dependable and soft jump hook and get even better on defense.
Bottom line for me is a grateful thank you to the guys moving on...may you reach your dreams and help others do so. It has been a pleasure to watch you play.
And for the 22-23 Illini hoopsters, the sky is the limit. Reach for the stars!!!
In the end, personally, I truly liked this team and their character as much as any Illini team. Hate to see Damonte, Trent, Grandy, AP, and Kofi leave the program, but it was truly a gift to watch their careers in the Orange and Blue uniforms they wore with pride as they worked hard for victories for the Illinois Varsity.
Nevertheless, with the same kind of work, the coming season can be even more exciting. Two great recruiting classes and a transfer will fill the floor with potentially equal talent as well as another challenge to BU an staff to figure out the mix of minutes and coach them into a smart, focused, hard working team. Hope Hawkins develops a stop and pop automatic shot from the paint and stops fouling. Hope Belo can find a dependable perimeter stroke and cut down on the ESPN highlight blunders. He has tremendous talent but has not yet come to understand how to maximize them. Hope RJ gets the green light...he can be our EJ LIddell). Luke Goode...just keep working like you obviously have. Dainja is the huge piece that is the biggest question mark. I hope he follows Kofi's work ethic as he needs to do just that to reach his dreams. And let's hope Epps, Harris, and Rogers get enough encouragement and court time to be able to step up and into the spotlight with confidence and competence. BP, just become a deadeye shooter, play tough defense, and don't turn it over and he becomes a hero. BBV....find a way to score and keep playing tough. And Lieb...who knows? If the game slows down for him he may surprise us all as he had offensive skills. As for Omar, I simply hope he can create dependable and soft jump hook and get even better on defense.
Bottom line for me is a grateful thank you to the guys moving on...may you reach your dreams and help others do so. It has been a pleasure to watch you play.
And for the 22-23 Illini hoopsters, the sky is the limit. Reach for the stars!!!
Unfortunately when you have a beast in the middle who is not real agile it dictates your offense a little. Combine that with the fact we didn't have anyone with real length that could get downhill on a regular basis. RJ did show the last part of the season he can be that guy going forward. That being sad I would be ecstatic to have Kofi back. With a couple of slashers to complement him we will have another solid team.
hooraybeer
- Pittsburgh, PA
long story short we have MASSIVELY underachieved the past two years. there’s no debating that.
EDIT: i think that if Groce ever had a
point like AC we are through to S16
EDIT: i think that if Groce ever had a
point like AC we are through to S16
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Tacomallini
- Washington State
Can Jake put up a shot? I can live with Belo on the bench 2nd half, but during the desperation minutes at the end, if Jake is even remotely capable of putting up a 3, I don't know why he wasn't in the game.
Knock it off w/ the DMW bashing ya hateful f-sticks. He cannot possibly play another game for the Illini at this point. Give it a rest.
Knock it off w/ the DMW bashing ya hateful f-sticks. He cannot possibly play another game for the Illini at this point. Give it a rest.
Stevegarbs
- Mokena, IL
I agree with almost everything here but doesn't Underwood bear some responsibility for preparing the team and then adjusting when things aren't working? He knows what he has at this point and saw what happened on Friday. I think he should have reacted more quickly and decisively with changes. But he was trying to draw an inside straight flush on the river.
How would you like me to prove it? Wisconsin has made 2 final 4 appearances since, including a runner up finish. Msu has 3 since 2010, and has 21 tournament wins in that stretch. Michigan has 2 final 4 appearances in that time.
Of the 10 winningest programs in March since 2010, big ten has 3 teams, tied for most with the ACC.
Houston was missing 2 starters who brought 27 ppg to the table.
GrayGhost77
- Centennial, CO
In the tourney? Yes. Otherwise? No.
In the Tournament, yes. Overall, I don't think that's a fair assessment.
also, this team honestly did not catch a break with injuries/covid all season- not an excuse, just stating a fact. coming into the tourney down one starter and with another's vision impaired is not optimal. would have loved to see what a complete season with the actual roster would have looked like but it wasn't meant to be.
congrats on a successful season, team is headed in a great direction!
congrats on a successful season, team is headed in a great direction!
Boy I can't believe you thought Williams should sit and trust a freshman?
I agree. Curbelo has the type of ceiling that can win a team a national championship- he just hasn't quite figured it out yet. That's why you go to college and what college coaches are for- to help a kid reach that potential. If andre spends the whole summer shooting threes until he can confidently knock it down, and if in his own mind decides to play a bit more controlled and a bit more in system truth is the sky is the limit for him. Fact is he's only a sophomore and one who was injured much of this season. He has a bright future ahead of him- we just as a fanbase have to be patient, and that's not something we're known for.
schnaurt
- Phoenix, AZ
Last year, YES. This years team was not as good as you think. Bad shooting week with a horrible matchup.
sacraig
- The desert
Sure. We were the two most injured teams.in the country. That doesn't invalidate our key injuries.
In all seriousness that was a tough 5 seed draw. They're ranked 15 in the AP poll for a reason and they've endured losses with some big time injuries. That's the thing about the tournament. It's all about match ups.
drsmitty74
- Rochester
Officials didnt make us miss shots.
It was a fun season full of emotions, but, I can't wait till next year.
On the positive side, at least now I can focus on the recruiting thread rather than a pregame thread, in game thread, post game thread, and the next game coming up thread.
It takes time to build a program from the bottom. This is a speed bump on the curve back to that era of dominance. Lets just take a deep breath and realize the culture it winning is being instilled.
chrisRunner7
- Spokane, WA
Big thank you to the seniors, particularly Trent and Da'Monte, for helping to get Illinois basketball back to respectability. We were so bad/mediocre for more than a decade, and Trent and Da'monte played a big part in turning things around. And thank you for the first Big Ten championship in more than 15 years!!!!!!
It's a shame things ended with Grandison hurt and Trent playing hurt, and it doesn't seem fair, but that's life. For whatever reason, the team never felt like it gelled all season.
I hope Kofi returns, but I think he goes pro and ends up on an NBA bench somewhere... I think he's shown enough ability to move his feet on defense (at times) that a team will take a chance on him, and he wants to go pro. I just can't shake the feeling that Kofi coming back would be like a high school kid going trick-or-treating... it just feels like he's gotten all he can from college at this point, and I am sure he is tired of being whacked in the head every game.
The offense will then get a complete overhaul in the off-season. We can all see it gets stagnant at times trying to force the ball to Kofi, then having players stand around and watch Kofi get triple-teamed. It will be interesting to see what Brad comes up with. Pessimistic folks will say it'll be a weave for 30 seconds and then hoist a three, but we will have players who will look to drive the ball... Curbelo, Melendez, maybe Hawkins?
I have no clue what to expect next year except that it will be... interesting and unpredictable, and I am looking forward to it.
It's a shame things ended with Grandison hurt and Trent playing hurt, and it doesn't seem fair, but that's life. For whatever reason, the team never felt like it gelled all season.
I hope Kofi returns, but I think he goes pro and ends up on an NBA bench somewhere... I think he's shown enough ability to move his feet on defense (at times) that a team will take a chance on him, and he wants to go pro. I just can't shake the feeling that Kofi coming back would be like a high school kid going trick-or-treating... it just feels like he's gotten all he can from college at this point, and I am sure he is tired of being whacked in the head every game.
The offense will then get a complete overhaul in the off-season. We can all see it gets stagnant at times trying to force the ball to Kofi, then having players stand around and watch Kofi get triple-teamed. It will be interesting to see what Brad comes up with. Pessimistic folks will say it'll be a weave for 30 seconds and then hoist a three, but we will have players who will look to drive the ball... Curbelo, Melendez, maybe Hawkins?
I have no clue what to expect next year except that it will be... interesting and unpredictable, and I am looking forward to it.
As long as the recruiting remains as consistent as it has been since Brad arrived, I'll take our chances
The Galloping Ghost
- Washington, DC
I think everyone has to process this loss their own way. For me, as emotional as I am, I will forever be an optimist.
I see the energy and skills the freshmen showed today. I see the improvement Hawk made throughout the season. I see a good class coming in next season. I see how BU was able to grab Plummer from the transfer portal and the names already showing up there. I see a player of Dainja's quality getting a half year of learning the system and getting fit. I see two banners. I see two four-star recruits becoming first-team All-Americans. I see hope.
- Status