Is this the same Jay Bilas that said Deron Williams was not good enough to be a starting guard in the ACC? I think so. I like him most of the time but not this time.
Pregame: Illinois vs Chattanooga, Friday, March 18th, 5:50pm CT, TNT
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Respectfully disagree, we are in Brad Underwood’s accession.
Time to leave the depression and fake rallies in the past.
TheFlyingIllini1317
- Chicago, IL
A guy I feel would be great in this matchup especially with Grandison out is Tevian Jones. Chattanooga has some length on the court and he would be a great 3 and D guy for us in this one.
InDaAZ
- Eugene, Oregon
If Frazier guards Smith in this game, it might be a big mistake. He is big and likes to shoot 2's way more than threes. It will be like the Penn St. game with their guard except Chattanooga is better. I would rather see Da'monte guard Smith and Frazier guard Jean-Baptiste. That might shut them both down and Illinois can cruise with Kofi dominating the middle and everyone else hitting threes. Kofi is going to have to pass the ball out to the right guy though, as usual.
I think Hawkins and Melendez are the guys for that right?
The Galloping Ghost
- Washington, DC
Missouri
Lovin me some Galloping Ghost
Zorak
- Naperville
I think it's less that than Loyola recovery.
Totally agree! Illini fans seem to have forgotten the four-seed is judged to be the best team in the pod. I hope these guys play like it, and I look forward to potentially getting another shot at Arizona next weekend. I truly believe this team is one hot streak away from the Final Four.I gotta say. Having been plugged in to all the ncaa tournament shows, the games last night, podcasts, etc….the vibe around the team and fan base isn’t great considering how much success we have had recently. We’ve developed into a whiny fan base (and by some accounts, not mine, a team) that is always mad or complaining about something and a team that just hasn’t quite figured it out. I hope we can change that narrative this weekend. I’m gonna try and do my part, however minimal impact it makes.
It’s also really frustrating hearing talking sports heads talk bad about Belo. The support Belo movement is partially because of the fans attitude towards him, and that’s sad. We need to support our guys no matter what and stop making excuses for why we lost certain games.
I’m pumped for this weekend and ready for a sweet 16 matchup with Arizona
Apologies for the mid day soap box
Almost everyone supports Belo and thinks he's very important to our success. There may be a vocal few posters here and there who don't, but they represent a small minority of fans/posters.I gotta say. Having been plugged in to all the ncaa tournament shows, the games last night, podcasts, etc….the vibe around the team and fan base isn’t great considering how much success we have had recently. We’ve developed into a whiny fan base (and by some accounts, not mine, a team) that is always mad or complaining about something and a team that just hasn’t quite figured it out. I hope we can change that narrative this weekend. I’m gonna try and do my part, however minimal impact it makes.
It’s also really frustrating hearing talking sports heads talk bad about Belo. The support Belo movement is partially because of the fans attitude towards him, and that’s sad. We need to support our guys no matter what and stop making excuses for why we lost certain games.
I’m pumped for this weekend and ready for a sweet 16 matchup with Arizona
Apologies for the mid day soap box
I agree with your premise on who will guard who. I am tired of posts like the one you replied to asking who we will guard. Who will guard Hawk? RJ? Grandy? Belo? They are not deep enough to be able to go 40 minutes with our depth. I am not impressed with Chattanooga. Smith is a good mid major guy but he has not played against top level defenders like we have in the B1G, We can role multiple defenders on him and with Kofi in the middle, he will not be able to get to the rim with regularity. Brad will have the guys ready and the Seniors are not ready to be done. We win this game by 20 and I will open a Twitter account and blow up Seth Davis LOL
illiniguy24 (#598): “...the vibe around the team and fan base isn’t great considering how much success we have had recently. We’ve developed into a whiny fan base (and by some accounts, not mine, a team) that is always mad or complaining about something and a team that just hasn’t quite figured it out.”
The mood of (any) fans rises and falls with immediacy whether things are going well or going bad. We win... we are great... nobody can stop us. We lose... we suck... everybody sucks... all is lost. That’s the definition of a ‘fan’. Fanatic: “A person with extreme enthusiasm or zeal; zealot”.
But that’s why we do it. Sports is one area of Life where it is generally acceptable to be extreme and unreasonable. Although that may be changing now with much of Life now becoming extreme and unreasonable.
And the Illini ARE a team that at times looks like it hasn’t quite figured this all out yet. You never know which Illini team is going to hit the floor on game day because there seems to be more than one.
illiniguy24: “It’s also really frustrating hearing talking sports heads talk bad about Belo. The support Belo movement is partially because of the fans attitude towards him, and that’s sad.”
Belo is an artist. He see things others can’t. He does things others wish they could. He takes chances and many times those chances don’t pan out.
He’s a unicorn of a talent that comes along maybe once a generation. With any artist, sometime you immediately like their painting and with another painting it just looks like something you can’t figure out what it is.
If Belo can become more consistent in his game and control some of his wilder impulses, this guy can be legendary.
It’s a blessing he came to the Orange and Blue. We just have to be amazed when he does something extraordinary and be patient and understanding when he does something frustrating.
That’s how you treat an Artist.
The mood of (any) fans rises and falls with immediacy whether things are going well or going bad. We win... we are great... nobody can stop us. We lose... we suck... everybody sucks... all is lost. That’s the definition of a ‘fan’. Fanatic: “A person with extreme enthusiasm or zeal; zealot”.
But that’s why we do it. Sports is one area of Life where it is generally acceptable to be extreme and unreasonable. Although that may be changing now with much of Life now becoming extreme and unreasonable.
And the Illini ARE a team that at times looks like it hasn’t quite figured this all out yet. You never know which Illini team is going to hit the floor on game day because there seems to be more than one.
illiniguy24: “It’s also really frustrating hearing talking sports heads talk bad about Belo. The support Belo movement is partially because of the fans attitude towards him, and that’s sad.”
Belo is an artist. He see things others can’t. He does things others wish they could. He takes chances and many times those chances don’t pan out.
He’s a unicorn of a talent that comes along maybe once a generation. With any artist, sometime you immediately like their painting and with another painting it just looks like something you can’t figure out what it is.
If Belo can become more consistent in his game and control some of his wilder impulses, this guy can be legendary.
It’s a blessing he came to the Orange and Blue. We just have to be amazed when he does something extraordinary and be patient and understanding when he does something frustrating.
That’s how you treat an Artist.
Bigtex
- DFW
ok but who is Plummer going to guard for his 25+ minutes? I am sure coach will figure out a way to win....
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Understand. Some of us are just slow and not quite there yet. Truthfully, the past is now irrelevant with Brad at helm. What I am looking at now is his tournament performance and the ability to recruit Ayo caliber type of guards.
altgeld88
- Arlington, Virginia
The fact that Jay did color with Dick Enberg on the Arizona Elite 8 game in '05 was delicious irony.Is this the same Jay Bilas that said Deron Williams was not good enough to be a starting guard in the ACC? I think so. I like him most of the time but not this time.
Plummer is going zone.
We have a better version … RJ.
There are some of us who date back to the days of Harv and Jim Valek. Decade in and decade out, the Illini lift you up, then slam you back down. This is not recent, it's what we have been conditioned to do. I would much rather relax in my recliner and watch a game end with a 20 point lead, rather than get heartburn on the edge of my seat watching us blow a 20 point lead.
GallopingGhost
- Denver, CO
If Plummer isn't hitting a three every 5 to 6 minutes with a two sprinkled in every so often he may only be playing 18 to 20 minutes.
This is where I am. Get to the second weekend by any means necessary. I’m just being an over the top optimist to counter y’all’s occasional doom and gloom.
This here is the important part.
Actually Plummer will likely get the assignment on Caldwell, when both are in. When Hankton is in for Caldwell and going bigger, that's BU's problem.
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