Pregame: Illinois vs Duke, Saturday, February 22nd, 7:00pm CT, FOX

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#127      
I listened to that MSU game on a Walkman in my first night school class at U of Chicago. Stats class, everyone bored to squat, and I am fidgeting left and right w every play. Man, did I get some crazy looks. What a game!
I was supposed to go to that game with my Dad, it was during winter break, but it was white-out conditions that day, and we decided not to make the drive. I think we watched it on TV, but were very disappointed not to make it.
No the asking price is 80k and a Chevy Blazer. I’ll see myself out.
NO Bruce Pearl jokes allowed. We don't speak of Satan, even in jest.
 
#128      
I am interested to see how Duke does in the tournament. Because of how bad the ACC is, they've been in a lot of blow outs. Can they execute in the last 4 minutes of a close game? With the strength of the SEC, B1G, and B12 there are a lot of teams with close game experience that Duke doesn't have.
I agree their schedule may look flimsy...but Duke did beat Auburn pretty handily at Cameron earlier in the year. They looked more than solid in that game.
 
#129      
I've been to a couple games at MSG. It doesn't really match up to SFC as a venue, but it has that incredible historic legacy.
 
#130      
The game against Duke is an opportunity game. A W would heal some of the team's wounds.
 
#133      
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#135      

Looking at this rundown of the Kasparas turnovers really shows how much having Boswell out there hurts our offense. He is being unguarded and it's basically 5 defenders against 4 Illini. If Boswell isn't handling the ball he's doing nothing for our offense.
Basically the equivalent of playing Ty but without the size or rebounding ability.
 
#136      
I used to gamble a little bit. Here’s how this will go. Duke -11. Illinois will throw in a couple of meaningless late threes to lose by 9.

If we're betting, I'd regrettably go against Illinois. Wiscy was a beat down, and I think Duke's on another level. They're very good on both ends, and with the hobbled front court, it's a bad match-up that I could see getting ugly early. If the game is out of hand early, the announcers are going to have a looong night.
 
#139      
Illinois is 2-0 at MSG since 2022....

I know it's a total long shot, but what if? That's been the daydream getting me through this week.

We just have to avoid all of the voodoo nonsense like burning sage and hanging jerseys upside down haha
 
#143      
Positive: We have literally nothing to lose in this game. A loss won't hurt us. Hope this frees the guys up a bit, while we have been playing hurt, we have been really tight recently.

One thing I will say, especially with the injuries and illnesses, this schedule has been a gauntlet. Not sure I can remember Illinois will have a more difficult schedule for a while. I do think this will help us come Selection Sunday.
 
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#144      
Sure would be nice to get Rez back in there with a wrapped up wrist. His legs still work, he takes up space, he has 5 fouls to give, and he can shoot free throws.
Just sayin'
 
#145      
I used to gamble a little bit. Here’s how this will go. Duke -11. Illinois will throw in a couple of meaningless late threes to lose by 9.
A tale as old as time. A meaningless backdoor cover.
 
#146      
Positive: We have literally nothing to lose in this game. A loss won't hurt us. Hope this frees the guys up a bit, while we have been playing hurt, we have been really tight recently.

One thing I will say, especially with the injuries and illnesses, this schedule has been a gauntlet. Not sure I can remember Illinois will have a more difficult schedule for a while. I do think this will help us come Selection Sunday.
I would think a loss by 30 would hurt us in possibly our tourney seeding and the eyes of the selection committee ....or a loss by only 2 or 3 could actually help in that same area
 
#147      
Positive: We have literally nothing to lose in this game. A loss won't hurt us. Hope this frees the guys up a bit, while we have been playing hurt, we have been really tight recently.

One thing I will say, especially with the injuries and illnesses, this schedule has been a gauntlet. Not sure I can remember Illinois will have a more difficult schedule for a while. I do think this will help us come Selection Sunday.
Yes, the schedule has certainly helped the Illini this year. With one more win, the Illini will see a floor of about an 8 or 9 seed. I also did not have the win in St. Louis becoming one of the two signature wins of the season on the Bingo Card. Really quite remarkable that the Illini will likely finish the season with 18-20 Quad 1 games, 7-8 Quad 2 games, 0 Quad 3 games, and only 6 Quad 4 games. Very easy to see why 18-19 wins gets the Illini safely in the field. While the recent losses have felt demoralizing, this team has still put together a relatively solid resume.
 
#148      
Illinois is 2-0 at MSG since 2022....

I know it's a total long shot, but what if? That's been the daydream getting me through this week.

We just have to avoid all of the voodoo nonsense like burning sage and hanging jerseys upside down haha

Also in the spirit of the hope-driven quest to find cherry-picked stats, Duke is 0-2 on the year on neutral sites, while we're 2-0 (if you count Alabama as "Semi-Away").

Duke is also 1-3 against teams ranked 24 or better in KP (We're currently ranked 21, and I'm not going to reference our record of the same sub-set, see "hope-driven" above).
 
#149      
If we're betting, I'd regrettably go against Illinois. Wiscy was a beat down, and I think Duke's on another level. They're very good on both ends, and with the hobbled front court, it's a bad match-up that I could see getting ugly early. If the game is out of hand early, the announcers are going to have a looong night.
I went into the Wisconsin game with no expectations. And I view this game the same way. If Duke comes into the game engaged and ready to play, I fear it will be a long night for the good guys. I agree with your thoughts.
 
#150      
We beat Mizzou on a neutral soo...bet big in Illinois? Lol

This iso-driven offense with many non-shooters getting no respect **cough cough** (Kylan Boswell) is gonna be a travesty to watch against Duke.
 
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