Illinois Basketball: Recap of the Illini non-conference season

In non-conference play, there were a lot of ups and downs for the Illinois basketball team.

So, what can be taken away from the non-conference season heading into round two of conference play?

The Fighting Illini finished the non-conference schedule at 10-3. While this record is pretty solid, the Illini very easily could have gone 13-0.

The Illini lost their three non-conference games by a combined 19 points at the hands of Wake Forest, UNLV, and New Mexico State. The first two games listed were on the road, while the New Mexico State game was at the United Center in front of a diminished crowd.

While it would have been very nice to win all of these games, I wouldn’t consider any of them a “bad loss” per se. The worst loss would have to be against Wake Forest, who is currently ranked No. 139 in the RPI. But this was a tough game, especially since it was the first true road game for the Illini.

UNLV is also ranked relatively low at No. 112. But, the Rebels are sitting at 11-3 and have a very good chance at making the NCAA tournament out of the Mountain West Conference. So, this isn’t a bad loss either.

The New Mexico State loss is probably the most disappointing in my eyes. The Illini had this game and gave it away at the end. The Aggies are a very good basketball team, though, and are another team who should make it to the NCAA tournament. In fact, just after the Aggies defeated the Illini, they beat undefeated and No. 8 ranked Miami at the Hawaiian Airlines Classic. This team is legit, and this is explained by their No. 37 rank in the RPI.

Outside of those three losses, the Illini picked up a few quality victories along the way. This is, of course, headlined by the Braggin’ Rights win over Missouri on December 23. Missouri will likely be a tournament team, as they are currently ranked No. 25 in the RPI with a 10-3 record.

The win this past weekend against Grand Canyon might actually be a solid win too, as GCU might contend with New Mexico State for the WAC title.

All in all, the non-conference season should be considered mediocre. Yes, it would have been very nice for Brad Underwood & Company to pick up another win or two, but the Illini won all of the other games they should have and picked up a win over Missouri. They put themselves in position to still be in contention for an NCAA tournament berth.

Now, the question remains whether the Illini can pull out some much-needed wins in conference play. Their 0-2 start put them in a deep hole, but I really think they have the capability to dig themselves out of it.

Their first two games to resume conference play will be huge tests, as the Illini travel on the road to Minnesota and Michigan. They need to pull out at least one of these games to avoid digging themselves an even deeper hole.

I think the Illini need to go 10-8 overall in the Big Ten at the very least to give themselves a chance to win a couple games in the Big Ten Tournament and making it to the dance. This is very attainable, but the Illini will need to rack of some W’s early in conference play so they don’t have to climb back at the end of the season.

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I think things are starting to click a little for the Illini. They have reeled off a couple wins in a row and have to be feeling good heading into Minneapolis on Wednesday. This will be a very tough game as The Barn is a tough place to play in general, and Minnesota is a very good team. But, they have won there before, and I wouldn’t be surprised to see them come out firing on all cylinders.