This couldn't be further from the truth. We only took 19 three's, and all but maybe 2 or 3 were within the flow of the offense.
Illinois 79, Wisconsin 69 Postgame
This couldn't be further from the truth. We only took 19 three's, and all but maybe 2 or 3 were within the flow of the offense.
Question for the basketball minds:
Lots of our offensive sets started with getting Dainja the ball at the free throw line. Is that just another variation of the spread offense? Traditionally, he would set up at the elbow and we would go from there with either a handoff or screen.
Lots of our offensive sets started with getting Dainja the ball at the free throw line. Is that just another variation of the spread offense? Traditionally, he would set up at the elbow and we would go from there with either a handoff or screen.
blackdog
- Champaign
Great twitter exchanges between Frazier, Aaron Henry, and Harris 
It continues in the comments too
It continues in the comments too
2 things I haven't seen yet...
1) Wisconsin is one of the toughest teams to defend when you are young and inexperienced like we are. Yes, Wahl was missing, but their system is the same with or without him. They make you defend for a long time and they punish you if you make a mistake. We made very few mistakes. It was really fun to watch.
2) RJ's shot wasn't falling today, but it looked good. And I thought he played well and did the little things even though his shot wasn't falling. 2 asts 0 turnovers and 6 rebs. That's much better than the 3 turnover 2 boards stat line we've seen a bunch this year.
1) Wisconsin is one of the toughest teams to defend when you are young and inexperienced like we are. Yes, Wahl was missing, but their system is the same with or without him. They make you defend for a long time and they punish you if you make a mistake. We made very few mistakes. It was really fun to watch.
2) RJ's shot wasn't falling today, but it looked good. And I thought he played well and did the little things even though his shot wasn't falling. 2 asts 0 turnovers and 6 rebs. That's much better than the 3 turnover 2 boards stat line we've seen a bunch this year.
Ransom Stoddard
Ordained Dudeist Priest
- Bloomington, IL
Agree on both, but esp. your 2nd point. This is the best RJ I've seen this year, especially the turnovers. He also only had 1 foul in 24 minutes and I thought his D was fairly solid. He has a tendency to stick his hands in when he gets beat off the dribble and didn't do that yesterday (stick his hands in, he still got beat off the dribble a time or two).
Not sure that's best for the team if he's on fire from three-point range
When he has a good look, he can make a decent % of his 3-pt attempts. When he tries shooting 3s off the dribble, his % is awful.
blackdog
- Champaign
That's not even a variation that's the just the base package that Underwood has been running for years before he had Ayo and Kofi. They're really not doing anything but the basics right now which is one reason it was so frustrating they couldn't even do that much before today. But look what happens when you run the plays hard! Better ball movement, lanes to the basket, and open 3s.
Good to see them get to the line. That helps. Northwestern gets 32 points free to Illini's 6? WTH? Epps needs to be a bit more aware of his surroundings. Can't get your pocket picked twice late. Passing was better. There still is some "do you realize they are the team in red?" passes. Why are they rushing shots late when common sense says slow it down? Some still get caught up in hero ball. That's fine at the Y, but think please. I always DVR games so I can fast forward commercials, half time, bad ref calls replay and because if they suck I can move on with life faster. But, I'll be damned. They surprised the hell out of me...again. I had them pronounced dead. My expert analysis is, play well you win. Play not well you lose. They played well.
I'd also like to see CH post up more and use that baby hook, like he did very early in the game vs. Wisky. Thing of beauty and easy bucket.
I am assuming he'd be taller than his man on most nights.
We ran a good amount to spread and spread variations/counters/sets with Dain in. Also ran it with Hawkins. From what I remember off the top of my head, we ran it a lot early, then went to more specific sets later. Could be wrong.
With Dain they ran it with the backside pick and roll for him to post, with Hawkins they ran it with the backside pick and pop. If he didn’t get a look off the initial pop they back cut the guard at the top of the key and went immediately into another pick and pop. We’ll see if the 2 pick and pops in a row for Hawkins was game plan based or how they plan to run it in the future, because they said in the post game presser they knew Wisconsin struggled guarding that action.
We also ran a good amount of the dribble entry into the offense; which is how Shannon was getting open on those pin down curls early.
If Dain had a FT line jumper, he’d be the ideal spread big.
We’ll likely never see it run as well or as consistently as Brad ran it at SFA. He had a longer shot clock to work with there. Spread is dangerous when you get 2-3 reversals per possession, it’s just hard to do that with the 30 second shot clock these days.
I’m happy that the Illini played with some semblance of a cohesive offensive and defensive plan. I’m happy they played with better efforts and attitudes.
It was great to see a butt-whoopin’ go in the correct direction but am I the only one worried that all the Illini “big wins” have required a massive day from 3 for a single player?? UCLA game had Shannon going 8/9 from 3, the Texas game had Mayer going 5/6 in the 1st half, and this game had Hawkins hitting 6 of his first 7 from 3 (pretty sure he had 5 total made 3’s in the last month before yesterday). Everything was across the board better (effort, sets, not fouling at a crazy rate, etc) but I worry big time wins have still required a single player going nuclear from 3 to win.
Plenty have commented that the team didn’t “live by the 3” this game. They didn’t shoot the normal volume of 3’s but they did shoot roughly 20% above their season average too. So can we see a middle ground being reached by a team that’s not been good from 3 where they end up 37-39% from 3 the rest of the season or was this just a heater for Hawkins?
A couple other ideas:
I’m willing to bet the game-plan was to get the basket from the start since Wisconsin’s 2ptD < their 3ptD and Wahl was known to be out. Wahl is 6’9 and operates primarily in the post so him being out further reduces their depth (usually go 7ish deep with Wahl) and interior defense.
Vegas knew this was going to be an Illinois win before the game started. Looking at advanced metrics it makes more sense to me too. The Illinois TO and fouling issues were going to be less of an issue in this game. Wisconsin plays with little pressure and no pace really. They don’t get to the free throw line much (300+ in Torvik). They don’t turnover their opponents much (108th in Torvik) . They win with execution and by being methodical. Losing the best player off of a not-deep team hurt massively when you take a deeper look into the advanced metrics.
I was very happy with the win and saw improvements on many levels but I guess I’m still skeptical and need to see more evidence before I think this team is back on track for a run in B1G or in March. This game has too many caveats for me to put a huge amount of stock into.
All that said I still hope the Illini are out of their funk and can string together some solid performances because I think spots 3-10 in the conference are wide open.
GO ILLINI!!!
It was great to see a butt-whoopin’ go in the correct direction but am I the only one worried that all the Illini “big wins” have required a massive day from 3 for a single player?? UCLA game had Shannon going 8/9 from 3, the Texas game had Mayer going 5/6 in the 1st half, and this game had Hawkins hitting 6 of his first 7 from 3 (pretty sure he had 5 total made 3’s in the last month before yesterday). Everything was across the board better (effort, sets, not fouling at a crazy rate, etc) but I worry big time wins have still required a single player going nuclear from 3 to win.
Plenty have commented that the team didn’t “live by the 3” this game. They didn’t shoot the normal volume of 3’s but they did shoot roughly 20% above their season average too. So can we see a middle ground being reached by a team that’s not been good from 3 where they end up 37-39% from 3 the rest of the season or was this just a heater for Hawkins?
A couple other ideas:
I’m willing to bet the game-plan was to get the basket from the start since Wisconsin’s 2ptD < their 3ptD and Wahl was known to be out. Wahl is 6’9 and operates primarily in the post so him being out further reduces their depth (usually go 7ish deep with Wahl) and interior defense.
Vegas knew this was going to be an Illinois win before the game started. Looking at advanced metrics it makes more sense to me too. The Illinois TO and fouling issues were going to be less of an issue in this game. Wisconsin plays with little pressure and no pace really. They don’t get to the free throw line much (300+ in Torvik). They don’t turnover their opponents much (108th in Torvik) . They win with execution and by being methodical. Losing the best player off of a not-deep team hurt massively when you take a deeper look into the advanced metrics.
I was very happy with the win and saw improvements on many levels but I guess I’m still skeptical and need to see more evidence before I think this team is back on track for a run in B1G or in March. This game has too many caveats for me to put a huge amount of stock into.
All that said I still hope the Illini are out of their funk and can string together some solid performances because I think spots 3-10 in the conference are wide open.
GO ILLINI!!!
ginabackes00
CrazedUIFan
I was at the game. I was skeptical on which team would show up. They looked so much better offensively; ball movement, spacing, cutting, passing, and trusting each other. Defensively we got better as the game went on. As you listen to Underwood's post press conference, it all fits together. Players learning to trust the offense, the rythmn, and scouting. Let's hope they continue to do the same from now on. It was nice to see Hawkins take shots he would normally hesitate on. Most importantly, they looked like they had fun together.
Epps needs to be the one who attempts the "dagger" 3s at the end of the game, he is the one most likely to stay in rhythm and not have the moment be too big for him.
My takeaways from the game.
1. Offense was much better running plays.
2. TSJ really let the game come to him, did not force shots and looked determined to get his teammates involved.
3. Hawkins shot the ball and imagine that, they went in!
4. Epps and Harris are gonna be special. We have to keep both of them in the program.
5. Small improvement from RJ, active on the glass.
6. TSJ took over the last 4 minutes with some big rebounds and iced it making free throws.
7. Dainja is one of the most skilled bigs I've ever seen at this level. Ton of potential and is already good.
8. Mayer played under control.
9. Good to see Rodgers out there not looking overwhelmed.
10. Defensive effort was solid
11. Bad Angerwood didn't yell at anyone too hard so the fan base can be happy again lol
1. Offense was much better running plays.
2. TSJ really let the game come to him, did not force shots and looked determined to get his teammates involved.
3. Hawkins shot the ball and imagine that, they went in!
4. Epps and Harris are gonna be special. We have to keep both of them in the program.
5. Small improvement from RJ, active on the glass.
6. TSJ took over the last 4 minutes with some big rebounds and iced it making free throws.
7. Dainja is one of the most skilled bigs I've ever seen at this level. Ton of potential and is already good.
8. Mayer played under control.
9. Good to see Rodgers out there not looking overwhelmed.
10. Defensive effort was solid
11. Bad Angerwood didn't yell at anyone too hard so the fan base can be happy again lol
People out here talking about three pointers like my high school coach in 1989. They’re usually good shots if you take them in the flow of the offense and in rhythm, which is what we largely saw yesterday.
The other team’s D has something to say about shot selection, too. To some extent you take what the D gives you. Northwestern packs the paint and begs you to shoot the three. Wisconsin doesn’t.
The other team’s D has something to say about shot selection, too. To some extent you take what the D gives you. Northwestern packs the paint and begs you to shoot the three. Wisconsin doesn’t.
To beat a good team you need one or two players to step up and have a big day. That is how you get those marquee wins. That pretty much applies to most teams, not just us. At the same time CoHawk was having a big game from the three point line RJ and DD where having subpar days scoring wise.
That was my favorite part of the offense yesterday. Theoretically, we should be able to get those curls going for Shannon or even Mayer pretty much whenever we want.
Agree with all of these points. I'd also add that there was a much better effort to drive the ball into the paint, especially from TSJ and Epps, leading to better shots for everyone. TSJ was so much more aggressive all around and was ripping down rebounds with authority at the end.
Hawkins played within himself much better. I love his game when he sticks to his strengths.
Dain has an amazing future. I love both his offense and defense. I know he works hard on FT's, but he'll have to get significantly better at those to stay on the floor at crunch time. His release makes me think he can improve quite a bit going forward. Keeping my fingers crossed that he can at least get to be a 60-65% FT shooter in the near future.
Finally, RJ's shot looked nice and smooth with his first two 3 point attempts, but they just wouldn't go down. His third 3 point attempt looked very uncomfortable. I think it's just a confidence issue. I've never rooted so hard for a guy's shots to fall. Once he sees a couple go through, I think we'll see a different shooter going forward, and I think he's playing pretty well in all other facets of the game.
What a quiet 22 from Chucky. Did not think he scored that much.
Shannon, Hawkins lead Illini past No. 14 Badgers, 79-69
Terrence Shannon Jr. scored 24 points and Coleman Hawkins made six 3s and scored 20 points to lead Illinois to a 79-69 win over No. 14 Wisconsin. Chucky Hepburn scoredwww.stltoday.com
By GAVIN GOOD Associated Press
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — Terrence Shannon Jr. scored 24 points and Coleman Hawkins made six 3s and scored 20 points to lead Illinois to a 79-69 win over No. 14 Wisconsin on Saturday.
Chucky Hepburn scored 22 points and Steven Crowl added 20 points and grabbed 12 rebounds in the first loss for the Badgers (11-3, 3-1 Big Ten) since Nov. 29.
Freshman Jayden Epps added 15 off the bench for the Illini (10-5, 1-3), who made 10 of 19 3-point attempts.
Those two 30-foot 3 pointers in garbage time padded his scoring.
He had 10 points with 5 minutes left and a 14 point deficit. Scored 12 points off some desperation 3 pointers and a few FTs. He was pretty well contained except for that stretch where he scored 6 straight and his long makes after the game was pretty well decided. I thought we did pretty well against him overall.
Have to admit I initially had a similar thought but, when you have three or more guys that can get hot and have a big day, the odds should be in your favor that one of them does so. Also, this game not nearly so close in score if Chukie hadn't drained a couple of desperation threes at the end. CoHawk could have missed 2 or 3 more and we still would have won, although maybe not beat the spread.