I'm worried about this as well. Shortest guy that plays minutes for them is 6-6 so going to be difficult for Epps out there imo.
Pregame: Illinois vs Arkansas, Thursday, March 16th, 3:30pm CT, TBS
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I'm worried about this as well. Shortest guy that plays minutes for them is 6-6 so going to be difficult for Epps out there imo.
I think Epps will actually be pretty solid for us in this one. Reason being that we've gotten a lot of help side blocks this year on players that drive the ball. Matt Mayer especially has done that. Against teams that shoot the three well this has been a problem for us as if we help, they'll kick to a wide open shooter, but against teams that struggled shooting the three like say MSU we were very effective at protecting the rim. We had 10 blocks that game!
On offense, Epps is our best driver next to TSJ and Arkansas fouls a lot. I think him and TSJ taking it at Arkansas and forcing them to stop us without fouling is the key to winning this one.
As such, even though he may give up some open midrange jumpers, this is a matchup where I think Epps will shine for us. Just my 2 cents.
Hopefully he does not just get posted up every single possession. If I was Musselman and was playing 4 guards who are all 6-5 to 6-7 you had bet I'm getting the ball to whoever the 6-2 guy is guarding, every time down. Also interesting you use MSU as an example of teams that struggle shooting the three as they were 4th in the nation out of 335 teams in 3-pt percentage this season. We did do a phenomenal job of keeping them off the 3-pt line in that game though, which was unlike our many other games where it seemed opponents got 10-15 free looks out there. If we played perimeter defense in our other 31 games as we did in the MSU game, we might be a 4 seed.
Random thoughts from a (seemingly) concussed Illini fan of many years.
I hope the leaders of the team have a players only meeting to discuss how they want to play the game and then discuss it with the coaching staff.
I can see Epps and Cohawk bringing up the ball together, with either initiating an offense that includes the other three on the court moving, using picks, and cutting to the basket, looking for an advantage and attempting an easy score. IIRC, Purdue got PSU players to pick their own teammate for an easy Purdue score. This may have been unintentional, but it worked.
I also like when we apply some pressure when the opponent brings the ball up the court.
I hope the leaders of the team have a players only meeting to discuss how they want to play the game and then discuss it with the coaching staff.
I can see Epps and Cohawk bringing up the ball together, with either initiating an offense that includes the other three on the court moving, using picks, and cutting to the basket, looking for an advantage and attempting an easy score. IIRC, Purdue got PSU players to pick their own teammate for an easy Purdue score. This may have been unintentional, but it worked.
I also like when we apply some pressure when the opponent brings the ball up the court.
Arkansas is very long and athletic. There won't be many fast breaks. Getting the ball into the paint is going to be very difficult and I'm unfortunately expecting to see the high rate of 3PT attempts at the end of shot clocks continue for this game.
If we shoot better than we normally do, anything can happen.
If we shoot better than we normally do, anything can happen.
I'll have what your smoking.
pruman91
- interviewing new NL's daily....I really really am
Good morning to all my fav peeps residing here............Hope you are diggin your day so far........I'm getting all excited aboot the Illini's chance for some redemption from a less than stellar regular season......The Illini has taken Illini Nation on a topsy-turvy path of sometimes great and sometimes embarrassingly bad BB , but here we are at another crossroads in our hope of escaping a so-so
ledger so far........
I have watched 3-4 hogs games , parts of them at least and this Anthony Black dude is legit......One of the best passer's I have seen this year......And he attacks the rim with gusto , but for some reason , he is NOT a good shooter % wise......I just like the way he competes ....And the reports saying Nick Smith is better than Black is , then all aboard for a rough and tumble game Thursday nite.
I know their are many here that are formulating the necessary scouting reports so I will leave with a different agenda that is relaxing me big time in Paducah...........I'm listening to some righteous tunes today , starting off with "Overnight Sensation " by Zappa and , after taking my meds i am now groovin on Lenny Kravitz greatest hits........The cat plays with SOUL.............right to the heart SOUL................Here is a sample of what ole pru is chillin too and take some time to re-adjust your frontal lobes for a better walk down the path of life...........
Enjoy........................
my body is just a bag of rocks , but my cranium is " ROCKIN " right now..........................peace out my tribe of true believers
ledger so far........
I have watched 3-4 hogs games , parts of them at least and this Anthony Black dude is legit......One of the best passer's I have seen this year......And he attacks the rim with gusto , but for some reason , he is NOT a good shooter % wise......I just like the way he competes ....And the reports saying Nick Smith is better than Black is , then all aboard for a rough and tumble game Thursday nite.
I know their are many here that are formulating the necessary scouting reports so I will leave with a different agenda that is relaxing me big time in Paducah...........I'm listening to some righteous tunes today , starting off with "Overnight Sensation " by Zappa and , after taking my meds i am now groovin on Lenny Kravitz greatest hits........The cat plays with SOUL.............right to the heart SOUL................Here is a sample of what ole pru is chillin too and take some time to re-adjust your frontal lobes for a better walk down the path of life...........
Enjoy........................
my body is just a bag of rocks , but my cranium is " ROCKIN " right now..........................peace out my tribe of true believers
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The whole argument that they lost 6 of their last 9 needs some context. They had a bad loss at home to Mississippi State on 2/11 by 6 points. The other 5 losses are on the road at Alabama by 3(Bama is pretty good), at Texas A&M by 6(their pretty decent), at Tennessee (when they were healthy), to Kentucky and the other day to Texas A&M in the SEC tournament (by 6). The SEC is better than the B10. They are not a good shooting team but are long and athletic. The Mitchell twins are long and block shots, Council leads them in scoring and can jump out of the gym, Davonte Davis is very streaky, Walsh is underrated, Black at 6'7" will be difficult to defend and Smith has so much potential. He has hardly played all year. If Brazille had not gotten hurt, they were a final four team.
Anything is possible but I see a double digit loss and another year not getting past the round of 32.
Anything is possible but I see a double digit loss and another year not getting past the round of 32.
I think people are missing this aspect. We all know this team can beat anyone and lose to anyone. If we are able to get to the 2nd weekend, we are in a great bracket. The 5 is St Marys, the 4 is UConn. I'll take that. Then even looking at the bottom of the bracket, Gonzaga as a 3, UCLA as the 2. Not bad either. I believe UCLA has had some big injuries.
So opportunity is there. They've just got to play up to their ability.
So opportunity is there. They've just got to play up to their ability.
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pruman91
- interviewing new NL's daily....I really really am
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Yep, there should be ZERO doubting that we CAN beat Arkansas. We need to worry about showing up on Thursday and playing for the W like it’s our last chance. Because it is. After that, you give it your all vs. Kansas, and we all hope it’s one of our “everything clicking” game. If we somehow were to win twice … well frankly, we’d be in a completely different spot, and I’d be confident in an even deeper run!
Bring max effort and focus, and there is still a lot of opportunity in front of us.
One and done!? I for one am already looking forward to the Illini matchup with Howard. That's not something you see every day.
The key to winning a game is to go into it believing that you can WIN THE GAME.
I would have expected that, tbh. They are long and athletic. As someone else mentioned they put teams on the FT line a whole bunch. If we shoot less than 20 threes, I like our chances. If we are jacking up step-back 3s against their length, we are in trouble.
EDIT: Meant to quote @john1952 post.
EDIT: Meant to quote @john1952 post.
They aren't a great rebounding team either - so hopefully we have an edge on the glass
This game has Terrence Shannon written all over it. Get. Down. Hill.
Where is the column for number of opposing players with career-best games against them?
I don't buy that close losses can be valued any differently than a regular loss and if so, we're in the same boat. We flat out pissed games away vs Iowa(road), Indiana(Road), Purdue(Road), Penn State(Neutral). That argument cuts both ways. Now, there is merit to the SEC being an overall better conference. It's TBD, but I'm leaning your direction there. We'll find out shortly.
Between the two teams we, BY FAR, have the better wins. It's not close. Many would say that it's the two best non conference wins of any team in the country.
There are some areas where we have struggled all year. We've been terrible covering the three point line(Arkansas shoots the ball terribly), penetrating guards have been an issue(major concern), turning the ball over has been an issue, which includes terrible shot selections that result in run outs(major concern )and free throw shooting has been an issue(they're as bad as us).
To me, it's can we handle their length and athleticism? We're going to have to shoot the ball well and we can't get murdered in the paint. Basically.....do what we did vs Texas. Mayer is the key to this one.
Both teams do dumb things for long stretches. Who's dumber, for longer? That's who I pick.
I admit that I give Hawkins grief on here when his play is less than I hope for. But I’ve got to give him credit. He is one of the more articulate, well spoken, kids in front of the pressroom. No matter what his basketball career becomes, I’ve got a feeling he’s going to be really successful in life.
Remember when we excited to get away from B1G officiating in the tourney, and then we walked out of the locker room to face Loyola to find Larry Scirotto smiling at us?
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I thought the same thing. This is a much better draw.
Well, considering that’s Skyy behind him in the picture, you could say Sencire’s gotten a haircut since then.
Clark?
If we win twice, I can see us deciding we don't need to try anymore and losing the Sweet Sixteen to 12-seed VCU by 30!
pruman91
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