Pregame: Illinois vs Fairleigh Dickinson, Monday, November 2nd, 7:00pm CT, BTN

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#101      
As a gall bladderless individual, I can confirm this assessment. Hopefully, both things allow him to heal fully. He can't rush the foot injury and come back too soon, one would presume, so this might be a blessing in some level of disguise.
I like this term. And I like your username.
nice GIF
 
#102      
I'm ALWAYS pumped for Illini Basketball to start, even in the down years. With that said, there have been a few seasons in my living memory as a fan where there was undeniable "hype" in every sense of the word, and our *hope* for a deep Tournament run was more of a true *belief*. Working backwards...

2020-2021 - The way we ended the 2020 season by finally beating Iowa and earning the double bye in the BTT really had me believing we were "back." To enter the 2021 season with a preseason top 10 ranking was just something that seemed unimaginable a year prior, and part of me wondered if we'd ever get back to that level of program.

2010-2011 - It's easy to forget now, but we actually did have a lot of hype (IIRC, some analyst picked us to be National Runner-Up preseason!) with everything we returned from a team that (A) got robbed of a Tournament bid and (C) ended the season playing well, knocking off a top 15 Wisconsin team and taking a top 5 OSU team to double OT in the BTT. We were also still BARELY close enough to 2005 that I retained this faith that Weber would eventually get it back together.

2004-2005 - This one needs no explanation, but I was in seventh grade ... I'm not sure I truly appreciated just how hard it was to make the Final Four and beyond OR just how good our team would be.

There have been other years like 2023-24 where I thought we could be pretty good, but it was hopeful speculation if we were being honest. Given my aforementioned younger age in November 2004, this stands alone in my life as a fan as far as excitement and optimism ... even with the injury setbacks. We seem to have some things to figure out, but I think we can get to the point where we are playing our best hoops in April.

TL;DR

I'm so frickin' pumped for Illini Hoops to be back ... more than any other season in my whole life as a fan!
 
#104      
Illini basketball and Chicago Bears on at the same exact time. What a bummer.
 
#105      
I would like to see us win it all this year but as long as Underwood keeps stacking talent, I believe we will eventually get one. I think we start out slow and lose against Duke, Uconn and maybe T. Tech. Hope I am wrong but as long as we win the BIG and go to another Final4, I think thats pretty darn good. Would love to get a 1 seed. Gotta stay reasonably healthy the rest of the way.
 
#106      


I had gallbladder surgery 3 months shy of my 45th birthday. A few days later I sneezed and was pretty sure that I had just killed myself. A week later I could stand up straight. Arthroscopic is a huge improvement, but read the Cleveland Clinic description, not people on here or AI.

The gas they used to inflate me so that the surgeon could get to everything came out way too slowly, weeks and weeks. Surgeon said that my skin was tougher than most people's. I did a lot of outside work with no shirt. Lying in bed, turn from my back to my side the air would work its way through my organs to reach my new high point. I don't know how much different the appendix surgery is, plus that was nearly 26 years ago.
YMMV on recovery, apparently. I had mine in late 2010 (as I noted at ~ 45 yrs old). Was working at my desk at home 24 hours later, flew to another city to speak at a conference six days after the surgery, was walking briskly up and down the hills of my neighborhood 7/8 days after. Had to sleep on my back for a while, of course, and, yes, sneezing was an adventure in a theretofore unexperienced realm of pain. Couldn't lift anything heavy for ~ 6 weeks (so they told me and I obeyed.) However, I was amazed at how quickly I was up and functioning.

Mirk is young, strong, and a genetic/neuromuscular freak in a stage of life in which his body can not only gain mass and strength at blinding speed but also recover from physical trauma. Full recovery from the bone break(s) in his foot is what worries me, not recovery from the appendectomy. I hope he has no complications.
 
#108      
I am predicting a 3-point loss tonight, unfortunately. The team is super soft, and we are definitely going to underachieve this year. We still don't play defense.
 
#114      
I am predicting a 3-point loss tonight, unfortunately. The team is super soft, and we are definitely going to underachieve this year. We still don't play defense.
Loop Trump GIF


This has got to be ragebait lol but if we lose by 3 to #339 ranked FDU I'll be selling my worldly possessions and retiring to hermitage in the woods...
 
#118      
I'm ALWAYS pumped for Illini Basketball to start, even in the down years. With that said, there have been a few seasons in my living memory as a fan where there was undeniable "hype" in every sense of the word, and our *hope* for a deep Tournament run was more of a true *belief*. Working backwards...

2020-2021 - The way we ended the 2020 season by finally beating Iowa and earning the double bye in the BTT really had me believing we were "back." To enter the 2021 season with a preseason top 10 ranking was just something that seemed unimaginable a year prior, and part of me wondered if we'd ever get back to that level of program.

2010-2011 - It's easy to forget now, but we actually did have a lot of hype (IIRC, some analyst picked us to be National Runner-Up preseason!) with everything we returned from a team that (A) got robbed of a Tournament bid and (C) ended the season playing well, knocking off a top 15 Wisconsin team and taking a top 5 OSU team to double OT in the BTT. We were also still BARELY close enough to 2005 that I retained this faith that Weber would eventually get it back together.

2004-2005 - This one needs no explanation, but I was in seventh grade ... I'm not sure I truly appreciated just how hard it was to make the Final Four and beyond OR just how good our team would be.

There have been other years like 2023-24 where I thought we could be pretty good, but it was hopeful speculation if we were being honest. Given my aforementioned younger age in November 2004, this stands alone in my life as a fan as far as excitement and optimism ... even with the injury setbacks. We seem to have some things to figure out, but I think we can get to the point where we are playing our best hoops in April.

TL;DR

I'm so frickin' pumped for Illini Hoops to be back ... more than any other season in my whole life as a fan!
2001-02 had great hype coming off the 2001 Elite 8 run. SI predicted us #1 in their pre season preview. Frankie on the cover IIRC. 88-89 had some hype but we'd been conditioned to falling flat in the tournament by that point. Tho once we hit #1 in January the hype went to new levels. Media was much different back then of course & I lived in the Quincy area so didn't get near the coverage on a daily basis that I do now.

I'm normally a pessimist but for some reason I have had a weird feeling since the core announced their return that this year is the moment. I hope it's not just blind optimism but we have most key pieces back & what appears to be a burning desire on the part of the coaches & team to settle for nothing less.
 
#119      
Haven't heard definitively, but I hope Mirk had a simple appendectomy to remove the organ intact, and not a burst appendix (I had one at age 48) that spreads infection and inflammation throughout the abdominal cavity and requires a longer regimen of strong antibiotics to prevent peritonitis or sepsis. The first one has a recovery period of one to three weeks tops, whereas the second one takes about five or six weeks to fully heal if there are no complications. During recovery from either procedure, there are serious limitations on vigorous physical exercise and weight training.
 
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