uofi7477
- Silver & Gold Vandals
Hope there is a game delay to 11pm due to weather and then the game goes 5 OT's with Miznoz winning by 1 point.
Pregame: Illinois vs Missouri, Sunday, December 22nd, 12:00pm CT, ESPN
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Illinicpa14
- Chicago
Partially because we decided to play duke in February, not now
How to box out for dummies ...
It could be school before break....
Yup, kids are in finals now.
I would like this to to be the game where everything comes together. They figure out how Ivisic and Morez play together on the floor and spelling eachother. They figure out how to get open shots for Humrichous and Riley. Boswell stops shooting 3's and starts driving and dishing or making floaters and layups. Jakucionis gets it down to 2 turnovers a game and still distributes well while scoring 18 or more. These freshmen need to start taking care of the ball now and everything else can fall into place with more consistent play.
No, it's not a must win game. Nowhere close to it.. This is one that I really, really, really want a win game. That said, it's December. We have a TON of Q1 opportunities coming up in conference. There is not one non conference game that is a must win until mid-March.
We sure should.
sacraig
- The desert
Generally speaking, winning Braggin' Rights make it possible for me to feel like any season isn't a total loss.
But losing Braggin' Rights legitimately requires like a Final Four or better to fully expunge from my psyche.
Beat. Mizzou.
Did you happen to miss the game we played against the #1 team the other day?
Illini in Indiana
- Indiana
OK, add Maryland to that and I'm in. They have our number, and Willard seems like a prick.
....then we can start our post season
....then we can start our post season
Yeah it's different than last year when we just didn't have many quad 1 opportunities in conference play. This year we have a ton. That being said, while I don't consider it a must win, where it sits on the schedule does remind me of MSU at home last year where we only have so many quad 1 games at home and got to take advantage of the easier quad 1 games. While this is a neutral site game it's probably one of the easier shots we will have at one.
It really helps to have Boswell and KJ in the starting lineup as options to handle the ball, but they HAVE to be careful not to turn it over, especially KJ after his struggles with turnovers. Mizzou pressures the ball non stop.
That's basically what killed Kansas against Mizzou, KU really only has one ballhandler and they turned it over 16 times in the first half. Also have to come out ready to play despite the noon tip. Kansas and Mizzou was an early start too and KU was sleepwalking in the first half.
They were able to cut a 24 point second half deficit down to 2 once they stopped turning the ball over. When Mizzou had to run a half court offense without the turnovers it was pretty ugly.
KJ being too careless with the ball makes me nervous, but if they avoid that they should be in a pretty good spot to win.
That's basically what killed Kansas against Mizzou, KU really only has one ballhandler and they turned it over 16 times in the first half. Also have to come out ready to play despite the noon tip. Kansas and Mizzou was an early start too and KU was sleepwalking in the first half.
They were able to cut a 24 point second half deficit down to 2 once they stopped turning the ball over. When Mizzou had to run a half court offense without the turnovers it was pretty ugly.
KJ being too careless with the ball makes me nervous, but if they avoid that they should be in a pretty good spot to win.
Battle89
- Cary-Grove, the better Trojan team
Nope, and didn't miss the one in Evanston either. Silly to assume either a win or a loss in this volatile season, and Mizzou beating #10 Kansas is a valid data point. Having said that, let's please win!
and this +1, might add NW but oh well
Nobody is assuming a win, but still feel its kind of weird to question if we can do something that we just did 2 days ago against the #1 nationally ranked team.
Battle89
- Cary-Grove, the better Trojan team
And I felt that questioning Mizzou's win over Kansas was the same. All good. I'm still raw from Welsh-Ryan.
Fighter of the Nightman
- Chicago, IL
The Tennessee loss was such a heart breaker (not to mention one I endured in a drunken, hyper-emotional state), but I think I have finally relaxed a bit. This squad continues to get better in the aggregate, and it is more momentary lapses that have done us in. While they are infuriating at the time, these mistakes are (A) somewhat expected with such a young team and (B) more easily addressed than something like a personnel or skill deficit. With nothing else to really do at this point, I am choosing to be optimistic that we are actually watching a *young team* in the classic sense where we can reasonably expect a lot of these guys back next year and can continue to build a foundation for a team that can give us a true Final Four chance someday. In other words, I am trying my best to look at this team like the 2003-04 Illini, enjoying every step of the ride and knowing that while this squad has plenty of potential THIS March Madness, it's next year that could really be Final Four-level special. Even if that turns out not to be true, it's what I'm going to tell myself (and my wife! 
) so that I can enjoy every second of this team.
With that said, let's go out and keep Braggin' Rights on the correct side of the river. I hope Ty and DGL can help hype the new guys up for this rivalry and for what will be an atmosphere unlike anything they have seen before (because, frankly, there IS no atmosphere similar to Braggin' Rights in college hoops...). Mizzou looks to actually be a good team this year, and I expect a total war. We need to be tough and focused from the get-go ... cannot rely on being hot shooting to beat them, because it could be an ugly game. With that said, I think the shots ARE falling, and we survive a classic.
Illinois 78
Missouri 75
) so that I can enjoy every second of this team.With that said, let's go out and keep Braggin' Rights on the correct side of the river. I hope Ty and DGL can help hype the new guys up for this rivalry and for what will be an atmosphere unlike anything they have seen before (because, frankly, there IS no atmosphere similar to Braggin' Rights in college hoops...). Mizzou looks to actually be a good team this year, and I expect a total war. We need to be tough and focused from the get-go ... cannot rely on being hot shooting to beat them, because it could be an ugly game. With that said, I think the shots ARE falling, and we survive a classic.
Illinois 78
Missouri 75
Based on past Braggin Rights games....this one will be a rock fight....I'm thinking that the team that has the last possession will be the winner....Illinois wins it with a put back by Rez on a missed shot at the buzzer....and a Merry Christmas was had by all ! (well maybe not Mizzo fans)
Agree with you on the TN loss.The Tennessee loss was such a heart breaker (not to mention one I endured in a drunken, hyper-emotional state), but I think I have finally relaxed a bit. This squad continues to get better in the aggregate, and it is more momentary lapses that have done us in. While they are infuriating at the time, these mistakes are (A) somewhat expected with such a young team and (B) more easily addressed than something like a personnel or skill deficit. With nothing else to really do at this point, I am choosing to be optimistic that we are actually watching a *young team* in the classic sense where we can reasonably expect a lot of these guys back next year and can continue to build a foundation for a team that can give us a true Final Four chance someday. In other words, I am trying my best to look at this team like the 2003-04 Illini, enjoying every step of the ride and knowing that while this squad has plenty of potential THIS March Madness, it's next year that could really be Final Four-level special. Even if that turns out not to be true, it's what I'm going to tell myself (and my wife!
With that said, let's go out and keep Braggin' Rights on the correct side of the river. I hope Ty and DGL can help hype the new guys up for this rivalry and for what will be an atmosphere unlike anything they have seen before (because, frankly, there IS no atmosphere similar to Braggin' Rights in college hoops...). Mizzou looks to actually be a good team this year, and I expect a total war. We need to be tough and focused from the get-go ... cannot rely on being hot shooting to beat them, because it could be an ugly game. With that said, I think the shots ARE falling, and we survive a classic.
Illinois 78
Missouri 75
This team is you and built with an eye towards offense. I thought our biggest weakness this year would be when we got into a physical, slugfest type game we would just get pushed around. Because last year even though we weren’t great defensively, we had a lot of physically mature, strong players.
I don’t know if Tennessee is truly the number one team but I think it’s fair to say there isn’t a team that’s tougher and more physical. And we stood toe to toe with them in that department. They were a top 10 offense coming in and we held them to 66 points. I didn’t expect this group to have this much defensive bite, particularly this early.
Outside of Kasparas, we are in a team wide shooting funk. I think we are due for some positive reversion. And I also think we can do some things on the coaching end to the likes of tweaking some lineups and maybe installing a few sets to get guys consistent looks.
Once we start shooting like we are capable of I think we will really take off.
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