Ohio State 75, Illinois 73 POSTGAME

#126      
Well, if there is such a thing as a moral victory, here's one.

This had the feel of "The Perfect Storm". We all knew we were going to lose, but at least the team made it interesting and entertaining. And just like in the movie there was that moment about three minutes from the end when we had the lead and there's the break in the clouds and we could think "well maybe..."

And then George Clooney says, "she's not going to let us out". And Marc Loving dunks after a turnover, and drills a three-pointer. And then the big wave hits.

Maybe this will be the psychological turning point toward a decent season. Or maybe this will be where things fall apart. At least it was a good tragedy, rather than a totally dispiriting blowout.


Good analogy but the Illini will live to compete another day. Love to see the growth in this young team. This alone will make the season worth watching even if there is no great success. I am on board and hope other fans can see the talent and improvement of this team.
 
#127      
Here's the story....

"Both teams' defenses let up in the second half, with Ohio State shooting a sparkling 52 percent from the field and Illinois shooting 44.4 percent over the final 20 minutes. The two teams combined for 92 second-half points after totaling 56 in the first half. The Buckeyes had 14 turnovers and made just five 3s compared to the Illini's 12, but Ohio State held a massive edge in free-throw shooting, making 28 of its whopping 39 foul shots. Illinois was 9-for-11 from the stripe.

While it was a strong showing by the Illini, the absence of their two starting big men, Mike Thorne Jr. and Leron Black, was noticeable. Ohio State had a 42-33 rebounding advantage and blocked nine shots while Illinois blocked none.

Four different Illini players scored 14 points: Coleman-Lands, Hill, Nunn and Finke. Coleman-Lands hit four 3-pointers, and Finke scored all his points in the second half. All four guys had to put up a lot of shots to get to those point totals, though, combining to shoot 36.5 percent (19-for-52)."


http://www.csnchicago.com/big-ten/illini-fight-back-buckeyes-hold-victory?p=ya5nbcs&ocid=yahoo
 
#128      

Dan

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#131      
I was not able to watch the game, but what has been written is very encouraging. I hope to see similar energy against Sparty. We're going to need it.

One comment, based only on looking at the box score, is that Hill only played 28 mins, but grabbed 7 rebounds. Nunn also had 7 rebounds. Both were about 1.5 over their season average, but Hill in significantly fewer minutes. I think they'll both need to rebound at that rate if we are going to have success moving forward.
 
#133      
Freshmen are really growing up. For Finke and JCL to put up 14 each on the road I big time. This team is becoming more and more competitive. It may not make a difference this season but definitely bodes well for the future.


Agreed, growing self-confidence for both players.

Finke make a couple of pretty difficult shots.

Massive Growth Potential :):):)
 
#136      
Is it just me, cause I always thought that once you are in the double bonus and you get fouled (even if it's an offensive foul) you're supposed to shoot free throws?
There was that play where I think fine drew a charge but we didn't get any free throws, what was with that?

It's crazy to think that we only had 5 more fouls but 28 fewer free throw attempts. That was obviously the difference.

Offensive fouls count towards the team foul total but I don't think you shoot on them.
 
#138      
I don't see how the Illini can win in the Big 10 when the starting lineup consists of four guards and one forward. Somehow, the Illini need to recruit some size in the future to be competitive.


Wisconsin did it last year. Finke is going to keep getting better. I agree size would be great to have, but we can compete with Finke at the 5.
 
#139      
Wisconsin did it last year. Finke is going to keep getting better. I agree size would be great to have, but we can compete with Finke at the 5.

Haha, I think it would be even stranger if Frank Kamisky was a starter at power forward in college. He was clearly a center in college, imo. Also, last year, Sam Dekker played the 4 and he was easily a 4 for the college game, imo.

Also, I think Finke can play the 4, but eventually, he will be a very good center in college offensively AND defensively.

So I agree that we can compete with Finke as the 5.
 
#140      
Haha, I think it would be even stranger if Frank Kamisky was a starter at power forward in college. He was clearly a center in college, imo. Also, last year, Sam Dekker played the 4 and he was easily a 4 for the college game, imo.

Also, I think Finke can play the 4, but eventually, he will be a very good center in college offensively AND defensively.

So I agree that we can compete with Finke as the 5.

I also agree that we can compete with Finke at the 5 though it would be better to have a physical PF like Black to pair with him. Finke will continue to get stronger and adjust to the physicality of college ball.

Not sure about the comparison to Wisky last year. They played a huge lineup with a 7 foot C and basically two PFs.
 
#141      
I also agree that we can compete with Finke at the 5 though it would be better to have a physical PF like Black to pair with him. Finke will continue to get stronger and adjust to the physicality of college ball.

Not sure about the comparison to Wisky last year. They played a huge lineup with a 7 foot C and basically two PFs.

Oh yeah, I forgot about Nigel Hayes... yes, he and Dekker are both perfectly fine at the 4 for a good college team.
 
#143      
And Kaminsky is 7 feet tall. A lot bigger than MF.

Yeah and Finke is 6'9? 6'10?? How many college centers are taller than 6'9 or 6'10? Not a lot. I see that Finke has the skill to be a 4, but it seems to me with a bit more weight, he easily big enough to play the 5 in college.
 
#144      
Yeah and Finke is 6'9? 6'10?? How many college centers are taller than 6'9 or 6'10? Not a lot. I see that Finke has the skill to be a 4, but it seems to me with a bit more weight, he easily big enough to play the 5 in college.

I was referring to the OP who compared our starting 5 to last year's UW starting 5. He said UW's starters last year were similarly undersized. UW's starters were 7-0, 6-8, 6-8 on the front line. They were much bigger than our lineup now. In fact, they had one of the biggest front lines in the country.