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Illinois Basketball: Brad Underwood’s rebounding woes should be fixed

By Rees Woodcock

Mar 2, 2016; Richmond, VA, USA; An official ball bounces on the court during a stoppage in play in the game between the Virginia Commonwealth Rams and the Davidson Wildcats during the second half at Stuart Siegel Center. The Rams won 70-60. Mandatory Credit: Amber Searls-USA TODAY Sports
Mar 2, 2016; Richmond, VA, USA; An official ball bounces on the court during a stoppage in play in the game between the Virginia Commonwealth Rams and the Davidson Wildcats during the second half at Stuart Siegel Center. The Rams won 70-60. Mandatory Credit: Amber Searls-USA TODAY Sports /
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There are some new and exciting times coming to the Illinois basketball team.

With new head coach Brad Underwood leading this program into the future, I expect there to be a fun up-tempo style of play we haven’t seen in years.

Even though there are a lot of butterflies in the stomach about the possibilities that are on the horizon, there is still one stat that is kind of concerning with Underwood. That stat is rebounding.

As a team, Illinois hasn’t been good at rebounding over the last five seasons. They need someone who can come in and teach them how to rebound well. But, Underwood hasn’t exactly had a great track record of rebounding either.

In Underwood’s first season with Stephen F. Austin, the team finished No. 229 in the nation averaging 33.8 rebounds per game. The following season the team made a jump to 34.8 RPG, which was No. 147 in the nation.

The last season Underwood spent with the Lumberjacks, the team averaged 35.3 RPG and that was only good enough for No. 221 in the nation. He then moved on to Oklahoma State where the team pulled down 36.7 RPG, which was No. 121 in the nation.

Feb 8, 2017; Stillwater, OK, USA; Oklahoma State Cowboys head coach Brad Underwood coaches his team against Baylor Bears during the second half of a NCAA basketball game at Gallagher-Iba Arena. Baylor won 72-69. Mandatory Credit: Alonzo Adams-USA TODAY Sports
Feb 8, 2017; Stillwater, OK, USA; Oklahoma State Cowboys head coach Brad Underwood coaches his team against Baylor Bears during the second half of a NCAA basketball game at Gallagher-Iba Arena. Baylor won 72-69. Mandatory Credit: Alonzo Adams-USA TODAY Sports /

So over the four years Underwood has been a head coach, his teams have failed to finish higher than No. 121 in the nation in rebounding. This looks bad on the surface, but once you dig a little deeper you will find out that he hasn’t had the talent to pull down the boards.

Underwood hasn’t had a ton of size in his coaching tenure. The leading rebounders in his four seasons coaching were 6-foot-6 Jacob Parker (7.1RPG), 6-foot-5 Thomas Walkup (6.5RPG and 6.9 RPG) and 6-foot-6 Jeffrey Carrol (6.6 RPG). He has managed to still win without being able to rebound and without having a big man who can dominate the paint.

But, now that Underwood is with the Illini, he will be inheriting some big talent on the team. He has Leron Black coming back who is listed at 6-foot-7 but I believe he is taller than that. He also averaged 6.3 RPG last season.

Michael Finke will be returning as well. While he only averaged 4.2 RPG last season, there is still plenty of room to grow and he is 6-foot-10. The Illini also have a decent amount of 6-foot-6 and 6-foot-7 guys who are athletic and can go get a rebound, given the opportunity.

Let’s not forget about the class of 2017 either. Jeremiah Tilmon is coming in, who is 6-foot-10. He will be the best player Underwood has ever coached and he is big so he will be able to pull down rebounds like we haven’t seen in Champaign in years.

So while the rebounding isn’t there in Underwood’s past, the future still looks bright. Illinois already has a handful of players on the team that can rebound or has the size to rebound. They also have a superstar coming in that will be able to man the paint.

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Underwood has made the NCAA tournament in all four years he has coached and he made the second round twice without the ability to rebound. Just imagine what he can do with an Illinois team that has the players to control the paint.

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