Illinois 83, UCLA 78 Postgame
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BillyBob1
- Champaign
He was probably hoping to run into DJ and start complaining again.
No he just didn’t have it yesterday
I actually like Cronin, but he's a whiner. But he doesn't get the refs to change the game like Izzo.
Just was sick for two weeks. If they had what I did it really lingers around
In the grand scheme of things, he's averaging 3.6 TOs. A non-turnover prone PG would be averaging maybe 2 or 2.5. So that's 1 or 1.5 wasted possessions per game. I think the turnover thing is being blown out of proportion a little bit. But if he does improve in that area, sky's really the limit for him.
If you HAD to pick one to step up to shoot those foil shots, would you put a freshman up there with no experience taking pressure shots or a senior who had been in the position? You know that answer.
Yes, Ben is FAR more comfortable on the perimeter and that isn't even a question. He's a perimeter player and playing defense 20 feet away is much more in his wheelhouse. Morez's drop back into the paint isn't good, which creates the need for the guards to crash.
Maybe my imagination but 80% of the makes were against Ivisic with Boswell going over a screen. There seemed to be no adjustment.
A good reason is trusting that BU knows what he is doing most of the time. Ben's stat line last night was fine for Ben. Zero turnovers vs a team that forces a lot of them, 40% from 3, 75% from the line blocked shot, physical D option in the post after Tomi or Rez. Well there was a possession where Will Riley trying to stop a power forward in the post and he was moved out of the way with a bump as if he weighed 90lbs. I'm fine with the role Ben played last night. Will still played 31 minutes and if those that played only Dre and Jake played under 10. Rez had fouls fairly early. Dre obviously playing a completely different role. Now if White comes around then he may take some minutes but Ben is needed with only 2 true bigs.
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Not sure if this is where this belongs...but at 57 years old I will admit I do not keep up with the high School ball/AAU ball or whatever it's called now. My question(s) for those in the know, a lot more so than me, Do coaches/players not spend time on out of bounds plays as much as in the past? Besides not appearing organized we often look/act like a deer in headlights. Also in AAU ball especially, is it more common when teams get 20 point leads, they remain that way for the most part? I guess what I am wondering is, besides the obvious youth of our team, how much of what we see is more a reflection on how high school basketball and AAU basketball is being coached/played nowadays? I think back to certain parts of the game that were "drilled" into our heads from the time we started organized basketball and it's those simple, small things that seem to be lacking in college basketball a lot of the times.
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sacraig
- The desert
Notably, last night was not one of those cases, though.
sacraig
- The desert
My Son and I had great time at the game last night, it was a beautiful halftime watching the Kofi festivities. And the events during T.O.'s and breaks were fun to watch. Got dicey in the end but still I L L - I N I
This is purely anecdotal but the answer is maybe. Ben seems very nervous in pressured situations. Look at Ben's performance against high caliber opponents historically and in clutch situations...
PEr piper, over the last 3 Ben is averaging 10 and 5 with 2 assists and 1 block, while shooting above 40% from 3. And yet youd think he's been the worst player in the world in these threads lol
And after Tomi and Rez, Ben is our 3rd best post defender without fouling much.
Sometimes it's not just about the best 5 players playing all the time but having all the parts to fill various roles. Indiana has great players but are struggling as a team. You need "glue guys" like Ben, Jake and Dre to fill gaps and roles each game.
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Illini in OC
In. The. Alley.
On top of playing pretty sound defense as well!
He single handedly saved our collective hind ends on defense a few times as well. He is our least foul prone frontcourt player. Have noticed we seem to bail out the opposition with fouls on shots that are already under duress/off-balance, and Ben doesn't typically make those errors.
In addition to those things and how defenses are forced to respond when he is the game (stretches the defense out), he also does not turn the ball over with only 12 in total across 688 minutes. Ivisic & Morez turnover rate is 3x that. This is critical as a primary connector out top on offense.
Those are just a couple of things I think go overlooked.
I think Boz has been unfairly
ed on here, mainly b/c he's had some games that show his ceiling and folks expected to see more of that, but his floor is a really good contributor, someone who plays their butt off on defense, and a program rep and locker room guy. He'll be an important piece of next year's team too.I think Boz has played very well on defense, is finishing better, turning it over less, and just needs to shoot the 3 more like he has historically. He did hit a huge 3 last night and I think he will revert back to how he has preformed at Zona with better shot selection. There's no one I'd rather have at the line or with the ball if we are ahead to finish a game. He showed why to close it out last night with a few nice plays vs the press and at the line.I think Boz has been unfairly
sacraig
- The desert
These contradict each other.
But otherwise, I think Bos has taken way more flak than is deserved on here. When he's playing his game and not trying to force things, he is a phenomenal defender, a very good distributor, a good three-point shooter (career-wise, current slump notwithstanding), and good at getting to the rim and drawing contact.
Really, the only two things he consistently struggles to do are finish at the rim and trying to get too cute.
sacraig
- The desert
You seem to misunderstand. We want you to explain to us what Brad is thinking here.
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