Illinois Basketball: 5 observations from the Illini loss to Indiana

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CHAMPAIGN, IL – MARCH 07: Illinois Fighting Illini Head Coach Brad Underwood and Indiana Hoosiers head coach Archie Miller look on during the college basketball game between the Indiana Hoosiers and the Illinois Fighting Illini on March 7, 2019, at the State Farm Center in Champaign, Illinois. (Photo by Michael Allio/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) /

The Illinois basketball team had a chance to ruin Indiana’s NCAA tournament run but failed to do so on Thursday night.

Illinois came out of the gates firing in the first half. We were making shots to start the game and actually had a 16-12 lead at one time. That lead would quickly dwindle, though, as the Hoosiers came storming back.

Indiana would snag the lead 18-16 on an Evan Fitzner three-pointer. The Hoosiers continued to shoot well the entire first half. By the 10-minute mark, Indiana had a 23-18 lead over the Illini. This lead would continue to grow. The first double-digit lead for the Hoosier came with 5:43 left in the first half when they went up 37-26. Illinois would try to fight back but went into the halftime locker room down 52-42.

The second half was uglier. Indiana continued to dominate and got their first 20-point lead with 13:13 left in the game. The deficit would hover around this mark for the rest of the contest. Illinois got it back to 13 points a few times, but Indiana was just too much for the Orange and Blue on this night. The Illini fell to the Hoosiers 92-74.

Here are five observations from the Illini loss to Indiana.

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