I know the “Paign” guys... but we played a good game, against an elite time.. on the road. Were up most of the game and I’m impressed with our offense and defense. We played a solid game ALL game, Maryland just made proper adjustments to get their game going. We will be fine. Worst case NIT, best case deep run in the tournament. Next year, if Ayo stays, Kofi, Curbelo and Adam, we will be fine. Be patient. A year feels forever I get it... I’ve been there for the past 10 yrs... it’s coming. Give Brad a chance, we changed our entire defensive scheme after 1 year of trying to establish an identity. So.. this is comparable to last year but better... we will win 70% of games from here on out.
Maryland 59, Illinois 58 POSTGAME
chiefini
- Rockford, Illinois
Agree with all your points, Flight#33 (my father-in-law’s # btw). With all those NBA scouts there, we needed Ayo to shine. Trent had those 3 3’s in the first half, and I don’t think he got another one. WE NEED SOMEONE TO STEP UP AND BE THE CLOSER! And Dakich, the Illini hater, is worse than a tool...
A closer... more common in the NBA, but even then, the best miss shots and make mistakes. We don’t need a closer, we need to get to the pointthat we don’t need one... and when we do... as chaotic as basketball is, EVERYONE on the team needs to be ready for that last possession/shot. Facts
If your father in law is Kenny Battle, tell hes has a life long fan of his game right here
BU has fielded a quality team. Not happy about player decision and execution at the end but we gave a top 5 team all they could handle.
Everything I've seen if Ayo is that he needs another year. His dribble is too loose and his shot not reliable enough. Either he plays at Illinois next year or d league. BU will have to make it work with both Ayo and Miller.
Everything I've seen if Ayo is that he needs another year. His dribble is too loose and his shot not reliable enough. Either he plays at Illinois next year or d league. BU will have to make it work with both Ayo and Miller.
Well, we are either
A) a poorly coached team with talent but major ego and cohesiveness problems, as evidenced by the fact we are 0-3 against “real” teams
B) a good team that laid a miserable egg in one half against Miami (and almost overcame it), and also lost two true road games to Top 15 teams while displaying competitive efforts in both
We really don’t know yet. If it’s A, we’re headed to 17 or less wins and no tourney. If it’s B, we could end up with 13 BIG wins, 22 overall.
And realistically, we won’t really know which until we play Mizzou. (Unless we lose one of the remaining cupcakes).
A) a poorly coached team with talent but major ego and cohesiveness problems, as evidenced by the fact we are 0-3 against “real” teams
B) a good team that laid a miserable egg in one half against Miami (and almost overcame it), and also lost two true road games to Top 15 teams while displaying competitive efforts in both
We really don’t know yet. If it’s A, we’re headed to 17 or less wins and no tourney. If it’s B, we could end up with 13 BIG wins, 22 overall.
And realistically, we won’t really know which until we play Mizzou. (Unless we lose one of the remaining cupcakes).
With a lead , I thought the quick shot by Giorgi was a strategic mistake. I also wonder how long Underwood stays with the Ayo option at the end of games. Everyone knows what’s coming and has no trouble stopping it.
Classy move by Underwood to sit his best player for the final 8 minutes of a close game. Then put him in with 2.1 seconds when the ball is 75 feet from the basket. We gave up way too many offensive rebounds in the end, including Morsell's which ultimately lead to Cowan's 3 pointer. Kofi would have had a good shot at that last offensive rebound.
201154JC
- Rockford, IL
Spot on. We have no one who can get his own shot in crunch time. Nobody with a good mid-range game.
Drive, stop and pop. Frazier should definitely been more involved at the end. BTW, that's an insult to tools.
I have no problem with Ayo having the ball in his hands for the last possession, but he's absolutely got to learn to be looking for the dish if the lane isn't open....
I respectfully disagree with your first paragraph about Ayo. Ayo has missed a lot of easy shots near the rim and has had way too many turnovers. He just has not been sharp this year. Plain and simple.
However, I totally agree with you on Feliz and about Frazier needing to get the ball in that situation. This team just really needs a scorer with moxie. I am hoping someone(hell, anyone) on this team develops that this year. Regardless of the loss, we really took it to the #3 team on the road. The team is young and has a lot of growing left to do this season. I believe this team is the best Brad has had at Illinois, but I hope they prove that with their play and record. On to Michigan. Go Illini!
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And top coaches get their players ready and in a position to win.
If BU isn't a positive on the coaching side then we were sold a bill of goods.
Steelyunk
- Tobacco Road
Turgeon ain’t a bad coach and their talent is equal and if we’re honest with ourselves- better. My objection to the whiners on this board is that they don’t realize the other guy has a say in the outcome. They have talent and it showed late. Our talent shrank. I think brad got out coached but neither he nor turg were on the floor.
Tonight, we had the players to win... The 7’ rebounder on the bench the last 2 minutes? And several other game management decisions that could be questioned..
It seems every time we are in position to win a game, we play the equivalent of football's prevent defense and it blows up in our face. The entire second half it appeared we were simply trying to run down the clock and not continuing to be aggressive like the first half. Where was Kofi? Our toughness in closing out games has got to change. We have the talent to be a tournament team, but until they prove it we ain't going nowhere. This was a golden opportunity to gain national recognition but instead an afterthought. Coulda woulda shoulda.
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chiefini
- Rockford, Illinois
No, not quite, but our family is friends with Kenny because he shared my father-in-law’s number. In fact, we discussed how one must be a great player at Illinois to be allowed to wear #33 after the Michigan game, with only 4 of them hanging in the rafters of the Assembly Hall...I wish we had had either of them tonight because they were both winners...
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Steelyunk
- Tobacco Road
Disagree. We do not have the talent. Talent wins. When my STL rams got Marshall Faulk, Torrey Holt and Kurt Warner... they won. MD has more talent. We’re fans and we overestimate our talent. Listen to Trent Meecham on Jeremy Warner’s show: we’re not a particularly good shooting or passing team. We competed tonight. We came up short. It sucks.
First of all, Maryland is overrated. That's an important point to consider. MD is not a perennial blue blood so the high ranking is impacting their players as well. Also, they are undefeated...very unfamiliar territory for a team not used to winning like this...so that impacts how players play. Finally, they were supposed to win this game by double digits per the wise guys. Other than Cowan, MD is as young as Illinois (sophs and frosh). Go back and watch a replay of the game and you will see that both teams missed TONS of wide open looks. Both teams can talk about defense but, if you watch the game again, you will see that players just missed wide open shots. We also need to remember that these are not mature adults on the court. They haven't been diehard fans for years who are yearning for a string of success. Most of the players are thinking about themselves first and foremost. I actually think this year's national championship may not even be ranked yet. The polls this year don't mean a thing because this year, the whole thing is wide open. Tons of teams have a shot at the Final Four. Stop blaming the refs...this is silly and makes no sense. It's cowardly and immature to do that.
Steelyunk
- Tobacco Road
I saw a different game. The defense was smothering on both sides.
With all due respect, based on that comment, Kentucky and Duke should absolutely wipe up every year as they have the best talent. Why even play the games. Good teams can beat good players... we coached and substituted the second half to not lose rather than keeping the foot on the pedal...
Deleted member 533939
D
Guest
I'm floored that 4 people liked this comment. Underwood calling his last timeout in that situation (between FTs) was literally forfeiting the game. Maryland misses on purpose, no time to get a shot off. It was without a doubt, one of the dumbest things I've ever seen a coach do.
Steelyunk
- Tobacco Road
Well - they do have the banners that kind of prove my point.
It was almost as dumb as not using that time out to set up a play for the final possession. Game is tied. You have the ball and the shot clock is turned off. There’s absolutely no way you should lose in regulation. Absolute worst case scenario is you go to overtime.