Illini Basketball 2022-2023

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#1      

Dan

Admin
Welcome to the Illini Basketball & College Basketball 2022-2023 thread :illinois:

Illini Basketball 2022-2023 (16-6, 7-4)
DateOpponentResult
Mon, Nov 7Eastern IllinoisW 87-57
Fri, Nov 11Kansas CityW 86-48
Mon, Nov 14MonmouthW 103-65
Fri, Nov 18UCLAW 79-70
Sun, Nov 20VirginiaL 70-61
Fri, Nov 25LindenwoodW 92-59
Tue, Nov 29SyracuseW 73-44
Fri, Dec 2at MarylandL 71-66
Tue, Dec 6TexasW 85-78 OT
Sat, Dec 10Penn StateL 74-59
Sat, Dec 17Alabama A&MW 68-47
Thu, Dec 22MissouriL 93-71
Thu, Dec 29Bethune-CookmanW 85-52
Wed, Jan 4at NorthwesternL 73-60
Sat, Jan 7WisconsinW 79-69
Tue, Jan 10at NebraskaW 76-50
Fri, Jan 13Michigan StateW 75-66
Mon, Jan 16at MinnesotaW 78-60
Thu, Jan 19IndianaL 80-65
Tue, Jan 24Ohio StateW 69-60
Sat, Jan 28at WisconsinW 61-51
Tue, Jan 31NebraskaW 72-56
Sat, Feb 4at Iowa1:30pm FOX
Tue, Feb 7Minnesota7:30pm BTN
Sat, Feb 11Rutgers1:00pm FS1
Tue, Feb 14at Penn State6:00pm ESPN/2/U
Sat, Feb 18at Indiana11:00am ESPN/2
Thu, Feb 23Northwestern8:00pm BTN
Sun, Feb 26at Ohio State11:00am CBS
Thu, Mar 2Michigan6:00pm ESPN
Sun, Mar 5at Purdue11:30am FOX
Mar 8-12Big Ten Tournament
(Chicago)

All times CT
 
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#2      

Big Jack

Decatur
Good Morning Reaction GIF
 
#5      

the national

the Front Range
Illini ranked 30th in the AP poll. Rutgers ranked 23rd.
Very little respect for the big ten this year. It’s going to take some time and a serious streak to crack the top 25. It wouldn’t hurt if a few teams in the big ten got themselves ranked again. We could use a few more marquee Ws.
 
#7      
Very little respect for the big ten this year. It’s going to take some time and a serious streak to crack the top 25. It wouldn’t hurt if a few teams in the big ten got themselves ranked again. We could use a few more marquee Ws.
This is why preseason and early season rankings matter. This will suppress NCAA seeds and make it more difficult than it already has been to break the championship drought. Not that they are everything, but rankings do matter.
 
#10      

The Galloping Ghost

Washington, DC
Recently, we've been ranked highly. We've been a top seed. We've hung banners. All of those things are great. I'm so happy to have experienced all of them. This season, though, all I care about is playing well in March. We're a work in progress. We've seen the highs and lows. At this point, if we aren't ranked, whatever. If we don't win the conference, that's fine. Keep figuring out the offense and defense. Keep building chemistry. Keep working hard. Build that momentum into an avalanche by the end of the season. And for the love of goodness, get to the sweet sixteen or better by any means necessary. This season, that's what matters most.

Edit: Also, just in case you want a better overview of our season than AP rankings, this website is by far the cleanest way to keep track of what's happening:
 
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#11      
In a quick review looking at the Illini game scores for this Season... these are some weird results. Usually, there are games that end up close as one or two possession difference games. Especially in Big Ten Land. But not this season, so far.

The Illini have only played TWO close games. A 5-point loss, and a 7-point overtime win. And those games were back-to-back. In all the other games, there has been clear and often wide separation between the Illini and their opponents.

Illini victories... five games by between 29 and 38 points. Three wins by between 21 and 26 points. And three wins by 9 or 10 points.

Illini losses by 9, 13, 15, and 22. (Only one 'close' loss).

This is indicative of the team trying to settle into itself. Developing a personality and better-defined roles. Looking for consistency.

But also, a bit of concern here when The Dance comes along. Those high-pressure games between two good teams are often closely contested. With one or two super-nova possessions at the end to determine the victor. And end somebody’s year.

So, the Illini need to keep winning. And we all enjoy having a good lead at the end to make it a stress-free occasion. But at this point there is a question how good the team will do when the lights gets brighter and the possessions get more intense.

This is a team capable of doing that. Our three top veterans are all game-tested and so seem a couple of the young guns. Wanting the ball in your hands when you must have a score and the other team is pressuring like mad to shut you down.

But we still need to see this in real games before March to get that kind of game experience.
 
#12      
Very little respect for the big ten this year. It’s going to take some time and a serious streak to crack the top 25. It wouldn’t hurt if a few teams in the big ten got themselves ranked again. We could use a few more marquee Ws.
Why should the B10 get respect? They (and the Illini) have wet themselves in the NCAA tourney time after time after time......
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#14      

the national

the Front Range
Recently, we've been ranked highly. We've been a top seed. We've hung banners. All of those things are great. I'm so happy to have experienced all of them. This season, though, all I care about is playing well in March. We're a work in progress. We've seen the highs and lows. At this point, if we aren't ranked, whatever. If we don't win the conference, that's fine. Keep figuring out the offense and defense. Keep building chemistry. Keep working hard. Build that momentum into an avalanche by the end of the season. And for the love of goodness, get to the sweet sixteen or better by any means necessary. This season, that's what matters most.

Edit: Also, just in case you want a better overview of our season than AP rankings, this website is by far the cleanest way to keep track of what's happening:
This is a great site. See how these middlings compare in the big ten:
63DBA373-323E-4AB3-AD26-7764D82FE200.jpeg
 
#15      

the national

the Front Range
I do not think the B10 is as good. IMO B10 is getting the right amount of respect.
Don’t get me wrong, from the eye test, I do think the big ten is down. But I’m curious how the conferences compare statistically to one another. For example, what are the records against each other?
 
#16      
I would agree the conference is down, at least relative to historical performance. Just going off the bracket matrix, you've got (projected seed):
(1) Purdue
(6-9) seven teams
(10-11) two teams
and one other bubble team. So a lot of teams in the mix, but a dearth of top seeds around the half-way point.
 
#17      
AP rankings have no bearing on tournament seeding.
I understand that. Where they do have bearing is on people's opinions of programs they do not follow closely; thus, the lower the ranking, the lower said opinions. I do not believe that is debatable. Now, if you want to debate that those seeding the tournament "follow all programs (or at least college basketball collectively) closely," then I believe that is a debate.
 
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#21      
How is Clemson ranked 19th. They have 3 loses which include 2 bad loses the fake USC South Carolina and Loyola and a lost to Iowa. Their best win is Duke at home and NC St. Otherwise a very weak schedule.
It is as simple as the fact that they’ve won 7 in a row and 12 out of 13. Ya stack wins, you move up as other teams lose. Ya lose 4 of 7 like Illini did, you drop like a stone and basically get back in line. The AP Poll really isn’t an accurate ranking of teams by their quality and talent — especially this time of year an earlier. Sure the top teams rise to the top but things are a lot murkier the farther down you go. Down there it is game of attrition and whose been the hottest for the longest.
 
#23      
Recently, we've been ranked highly. We've been a top seed. We've hung banners. All of those things are great. I'm so happy to have experienced all of them. This season, though, all I care about is playing well in March. We're a work in progress. We've seen the highs and lows. At this point, if we aren't ranked, whatever. If we don't win the conference, that's fine. Keep figuring out the offense and defense. Keep building chemistry. Keep working hard. Build that momentum into an avalanche by the end of the season. And for the love of goodness, get to the sweet sixteen or better by any means necessary. This season, that's what matters most.

Edit: Also, just in case you want a better overview of our season than AP rankings, this website is by far the cleanest way to keep track of what's happening:
That's a great link! Thanks
 
#25      

illini80

Forgottonia
Dainja has been such a shock to me. I knew he would have an impact offensively, but I had few expectations on the defensive end. Changing both the offense and defense to allow him to play a major roll had a lot to do with turning this season around. If he sticks around 4 years he could impact the program as much as Kofi. He isn’t Kofi, but he’s a force and has footspeed that Kofi lacked. The way he has improved his FT shooting tells me a lot about how coachable he is so there’s every reason to believe he will continue to improve.
 
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