I just hope we win this one, I really, really thought we'd beat IU by 10-15 easily, so at this point I'll take a one point win.
Pregame: Illinois vs Ohio State, Tuesday, January 24th, 6:00pm CT, ESPN
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I’m not convinced that his shooting ability is really that great, but I agree it is baffling.
On an aside, I was just looking at his stats and if ESPN is correct he has taken and made the exact same number of shots thus far this year as he took all of last year.
altgeld88
- Arlington, Virginia
In part, they're likely recalling what it was like to be inexperienced players on a green team that lost by 15 at Nebraska in Dec. 2018, by 24 at Iowa four years ago yesterday, by 12 to Wisc at home immediately following that game, and by 18 v. Indiana at home in early March. (Indiana finished 8-13 in the BT that year, a mere one game ahead of us.) And by 21 again (as an 11-seed) to 6-seed Iowa in the BTT. They also recall the elation of beating #13 Maryland in MSG and #9 MSU at home that season.
That is, they're probably recalling the rollercoaster, and have a lot of empathy for Epps, Ty, Dain, and Sencire (and Skyy).
Yes, this team has much more talent (and, in Meyer and Shannon, truly seasoned stars) but also a lot of youth and, as others have noted, looked gassed and lost on Thursday. It happens.
Sunk costs. On to OSU and a new winning streak.
Yeah, overall his numbers are all up from last season to this, with 14 games yet to play. 3pt% is down, but not significantly. I have to agree with others on his pump fake, it's not working, and in fact is allowing defenders to close on him. His ppg are at 9.6, and probably should be closer to 13 or 14, but I don't know that we'll see that kind of production as he's not our first or second option. 44% FG% vs team average of 45.9% (4th in B1G) is not bad by any means.
LarryGotFouled
- Plano, TX
His shooting motion and rhythm always looks so good. Good form, quick release. Consistent. The number that jumps out at me is his FT percentage. He should be a FAR better FT shooter than 63%. He does a lot of 1 for 2 from the line which always looks to me like he's rushing or a lack of routine or focus. Could be that same issue is preventing him from shooting to his true potential from outside as well. I can't speak to why he won't take a 5 footer.
Good shooting is contagious, so is bad shooting. However, when you have tired legs you tend to be short on your shots or over compensate and be long on your shots. There was no doubt that our guys had tired legs against IU. The result was looking slow and missing a ton of shots. We will be fine. The BIG 10 hasn't done any of the teams a favor with this brutal stretch of so many games in a short period. But hey they are here to protect our student athletes right? (Even though we all know it's about the money for the BIG 10/ NCAA).
I was at the game and, while it was frustrating I have to agree with this. Almost everyone missed easy shots they would normally make in that first half. TJD didn't have a physically imposing big to keep from under the basket. I would like to have seen us try a box and one or something similar to bother him when got the ball, but no body pays me money to coach basketball for a reason.... I'm just an avid fan. I was down after the game, but my orange glasses have un-fogged and I am optimistic again. ILL!
I would have liked to see us make TJD defend. Post Dain more to possibly pick up a foul or two in that first half. I know, I know, Dain would more than likely miss the free throws. However, the trade off may have been that TJD was on the floor less because of foul trouble. JMHO
Once again, this is the fascinating and sometimes frustrating feature about basketball. Contagion. Can start at any moment and grab a hold of you.
You – or your Team – miss a couple shots and doubt begins to creep in. Then other guys start to miss. The other team goes on scoring and you start falling back. Now you’ve fear and panic. The legs and arms get tighter and throws off your natural shooting motion. And the longer this goes on... the more you get frustrated you get until someone breaks the cycle and finds the bottom of the net again and the pressure starts to ease.
That’s why this Illini squad has these infamous five to seven minutes stretches of no points. This has already happened several times this year. Contagion.
The reverse also happens. A guy hits two and three and begins to feel invincible. The crowd and his teammates acknowledge... ‘He’s Hot! Get Him the Ball!’. And his teammates begin to feed off those positive vibes and the team scoring machine gets turned on.
And it stays on until the Game resets to its normal ebb-and-flow of back-and-forth volleys... or you start to miss a few and the whole downward cycle starts over again.
That’s why every Team needs at least one guy who is their rock. The guy who doesn’t get flustered and who can deliver a score any time you need one. And who doesn't get tight or panic when the ball isn't falling. And often... it’s that same guy who ends up with the ball at the end of a tight game.
Games are won in the Mind before anybody ever takes a shot. And they can be lost there just as quickly.
We will be the trendiest 12/5 upset
What's the over under on MADE practice FT's?
skyIdub
Winged Warrior
9,115
Zed Key just injured himself on a wide open dunk with 30 seconds left in a game that was already decided. Was escorted to the locker room. Something to monitor.
As the 5 or the 12?
CleaverName
- Chicago but not there anymore
Osu must have gone off in the second half. I didn’t watch it but scoring 56 pts is a lot.
Now we will be in the same situation we were just in with IU. OSU just crushed IOWA ending their 5 game losing streak coming into our place Tuesday.. 93-77. Yikes…
I feel like Epps is going to be that dude before he's gone. He's had some odd moments here or there on offense, but generally looks like he's been playing high level D1 ball for awhile. I love this freshman class.
altgeld88
- Arlington, Virginia
I cherish these entries, truly. You need to compile a collection and call it Basketball's Little Instruction Book. Common sense and conventional wisdom about the game that is neither common nor conventional.
You need to compile a collection and call it Basketball's Little Instruction Book. Common sense and conventional wisdom about the game that is neither common nor conventional.
Fist bump. Or High Five. Your choice. The Family of Orange reaches far and wide.
altgeld88
- Arlington, Virginia
The best part of your most recent entry for me was the vivid memory of games 40 years ago that this passage evoked:
You – or your Team – miss a couple shots and doubt begins to creep in. Then other guys start to miss. The other team goes on scoring and you start falling back. Now you’ve fear and panic. The legs and arms get tighter and throws off your natural shooting motion. And the longer this goes on... the more you get frustrated you get until someone breaks the cycle and finds the bottom of the net again and the pressure starts to ease.
Anyone who played has been there. I read that and felt my gut tighten.
The other observation that resonated is that every team needs their rock. The guy (or gal) who demands the ball when the game is on the line, it's a one-possession contest, you're down one (these were days before the arc), everyone is completely gassed, and 30 seconds remain. Those players possessing the talent and poise to rise to that occasion and take it home are rare. They're golden when you've got one.
Keep writing.
Think Rayvonte Rice.The best part of your most recent entry for me was the vivid memory of games 40 years ago that this passage evoked:
You – or your Team – miss a couple shots and doubt begins to creep in. Then other guys start to miss. The other team goes on scoring and you start falling back. Now you’ve fear and panic. The legs and arms get tighter and throws off your natural shooting motion. And the longer this goes on... the more you get frustrated you get until someone breaks the cycle and finds the bottom of the net again and the pressure starts to ease.
Anyone who played has been there. I read that and felt my gut tighten.
The other observation that resonated is that every team needs their rock. The guy (or gal) who demands the ball when the game is on the line, it's a one-possession contest, you're down one (these were days before the arc), everyone is completely gassed, and 30 seconds remain. Those players possessing the talent and poise to rise to that occasion and take it home are rare. They're golden when you've got one.
Keep writing.
One additional note about Contagion. Anyone who has played or watched ball for any length of time has seen this (more than once)...
It happened again this afternoon in the Arizona-UCLA game. With about three minutes to go, Arizona had a nice comfortable lead. And so, they played the ‘Your Opponent Is The Clock’ game. With each possession, they would run the clock down but far too long on their possessions and then throw up a bad forced shot. Several possessions. UCLA began to press them and they got a now-panicky Arizona to make turnovers... which were usually quickly converted to points by UCLA. Big lead evaporating quickly.
Arizona held on for a 58-52 win. But they came very close to blowing the game. Why? They Quit Playing.
They were so concerned with running the clock down that they quit running their regular offense and ended up with mostly nothing. UCLA being the good team they are – sensed the panic and jumped on Arizona and very nearly pulled off a stunning win at the end. Would have been soul-crushing for Arizona and their fans.
Arizona’s a good team too. And yet they fell into that end-of-game trap again of not playing their regular game (with too much time left) and just trying to mostly just run out the clock. And it almost cost them big.
The lesson? Yes, the Clock IS your opponent at that point in the game. But you cannot stop playing your regular game (too soon). Run off some time but don’t wait so long that you have to throw a force-up brick of a shot because you waited too long. And you always have to remember that your opponent is playing energetic and do-or-die defense and making it tougher for you to get that good shot off as the clock runs down.
That fear of what might happen if you just kept on playing your game. That lingering fear of your opponent. Your fear of failure. In basketball (and Life)... that kind of fear is lethal.
Illini in Indiana
- Indiana
My thoughts before each game.
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