We have the most Big Ten wins (15) by two (only Michigan) in the league. Hard to think other teams are thought of better than us.
INI!He shot two. First barely drew iron. Camera was off him. I saw the first one hit the front rim. I L L....
Hey, my stepfather is a Dean Emeritus at Pacific...and also former Illinois faculty. Be nicePiling up these convincing wins on the home courts of tough Big Ten nationally ranked teams will put us in good stead when the starter's pistol kicks off the NCAA dance. Who does Gonzaga play on a regular basis anyway? The Pacific U Surfers? St. Mary's Vocational School for Troubled Teens? Pepperdine U Filthy Rich?, The Portland Antifa? West Idaho Institute for the Criminally Insane? They are in for a shock when facing tough and talented teams on the regular when it really counts. I am personally more concerned about Baylor down the road.
Weren’t there games taken off the books because of all the cheating?Um, he never lost as a player.
I friggin love that you created an id just to not let an I L L hang in the wind. Welcome, brother.INI!
First post (long time lurker) but can't go to bed leaving this hanging.
Defense. This is what impresses me so much about Underwood. When he came here he had the reputation for coaching a highly efficient offense and not prioritizing rebounding or defense. His first season or two here it just wasn’t working. Last year the motto was “defense travels well”. Defense became our calling card. This year, particularly since the Big season, it has been huge. Every defensive possession seems to have a goal of becoming a stop with a fast break bucket at the other end.An astonishingly good win. We completely shut down a prolific offense. Our defense has made massive strides since early this season. And our offensive balance has never looked better.
Goodness, somehow Iowa just passed us back up in KenPom without actually having played between the time we just won and now. So... how does that work? I generally really like KenPom, but this is just mind boggling.
First time I ever posted from my phone as I'm bedridden with intense back and leg pain but I had to join my fellow illini fanatics following the beatdown of scUM..
Great effort...I love this team with all my heart...
Time to take a pain pill and dream sweet O & B dreams..
Peace out brothers...
And by SVP on sports center just now too.This just got called the most impressive performance by any team this year in B1G network.
They're not wrong.
Agree! Just crazy how sometimes Nebraska loses leading scorer smokes Rutgers lol..Ayo has always been a team first guy. I have no worries
Instrumental is from The Scotts- Travis Scott and Kid CudiAnyone know the soundtrack to the highlight video?
No they're great!Illini are not good.....but they are getting better with every game....keep that up and they will not lose again....and then ALL will be good!!!
I think this team really enjoys road games ..Piling up these convincing wins on the home courts of tough Big Ten nationally ranked teams will put us in good stead when the starter's pistol kicks off the NCAA dance. Who does Gonzaga play on a regular basis anyway? The Pacific U Surfers? St. Mary's Vocational School for Troubled Teens? Pepperdine U Filthy Rich?, The Portland Antifa? West Idaho Institute for the Criminally Insane? They are in for a shock when facing tough and talented teams on the regular when it really counts. I am personally more concerned about Baylor down the road.
I agree with your first sentence and last sentences, but make no mistake Gonzaga is a very good team. They beat Kansas, W. Va, Iowa and VA on neutral courts. And not like their lack of conference competition has left them shocked in recent history. In last 5 NCAAs, they have a runner up, 2 Elite Eight and 2 Sweet 16 finishes, and one of those S-16 finishes was as an 11 seed. I’d prefer to have Baylor on the other side of the bracket from Illinois, but certainly wouldn’t overlook Gonzaga. Yes, their conference isn’t very good, but I believe the closest win they’ve had in conference was an 11 point victory. So they’re taking care of business.Piling up these convincing wins on the home courts of tough Big Ten nationally ranked teams will put us in good stead when the starter's pistol kicks off the NCAA dance. Who does Gonzaga play on a regular basis anyway? The Pacific U Surfers? St. Mary's Vocational School for Troubled Teens? Pepperdine U Filthy Rich?, The Portland Antifa? West Idaho Institute for the Criminally Insane? They are in for a shock when facing tough and talented teams on the regular when it really counts. I am personally more concerned about Baylor down the road.
Agreed on all points. Man, I love this team.A few things that really stood out to me in this game that I love about this team:
1. Gang rebounding on defense where all five players aggressively go after the ball. Damonte has always been a good rebounder. Curbelo is pound for pound an amazing rebounder. Grandison’s insertion into the starting lineup has been huge for the team. And Trent, Ayo (obviously didn’t play tonight but has been racking up the boards in recent games) and Ace have all shown a commitment to rebounding that I don’t think was there to start the season.
2. I love having a lockdown defender in Trent that can dominate a game on the defensive end. I hadn’t seen Michigan play this season before tonight. But all I’ve heard about them is how efficient they are on offense. Trent (with everyone else on the team also being locked in) absolutely shut down Smith’s ability to gain an advantage out of the action Michigan wanted to run.
3. Curbelo makes teams pay for trying to apply pressure and speed the game up. He still has a lot of room for development in decision making. But I love his aggressive mentality. He is not looking to get across half court and then run out the shot clock while the team tries to hang on to a dwindling lead. If you press him, he will break it for easy scores and the Illini will extend the lead (Wisconsin game notwithstanding, as that comeback was about Wisconsin draining 3s while Illini were scoring in 2s).
Don't want to be a conspiracy theorist but I understand that there calculations are done by Iowa alums working for Dominion Voting Systems in Uzbekistan.Goodness, somehow Iowa just passed us back up in KenPom without actually having played between the time we just won and now. So... how does that work? I generally really like KenPom, but this is just mind boggling.