Illinois Basketball: 5 observations from the Illini win over Michigan State

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CHAMPAIGN, IL – FEBRUARY 05: Illinois Fighting Illini center Adonis De La Rosa (12) and Illinois Fighting Illini guard Aaron Jordan (23) box out Michigan State Spartans forward Nick Ward (44) during the Big Ten Conference college basketball game between the Michigan State Spartans and the Illinois Fighting Illini on February 5, 2019, at the State Farm Center in Champaign, Illinois. (Photo by Michael Allio/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) /

3. This was a complete game

In many of the observation articles, I have harped on the fact that the Illinois bench doesn’t come through sometimes or the starters have let us down on other occasions. But, this was one of the most complete games I have seen the Illini play this season.

The starters for the Illini, minus a few, really played well. Ayo Dosunmu showed everyone why he was a top 35 recruit in the class of 2018. He dropped 24 points on 8-of-14 shooting from the field. Giorgi Bezhanishvili also came through as well. He had 16 points on 6-of-11 shooting from the field. Trent Frazier had another solid game finishing with 15 points and going 3-of-7 from deep.

I was really impressed by the bench play for the Illini too. Andres Feliz has become one of the best bench players Illinois has had in the last decade. He ended the night with 10 points, three rebounds and two steals. Kipper Nichols finished with four points, Tevian Jones had three points and Adonis De La Rosa finished with two points.

While the starters carried the load, the bench came through with 19 points, five rebounds, four steals, three assists and two blocks. They really helped the Illini win the game against Michigan State. This was a complete game for the Orange and Blue and, hopefully, we can get this night in and night out.

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