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Illinois Basketball: 3 observations from the Illini victory over Northwestern

By Rees Woodcock

EVANSTON, ILLINOIS - FEBRUARY 27: Alan Griffin #0 of the Illinois Fighting Illini reacts after making a three point basket in the second half against the Northwestern Wildcats at Welsh-Ryan Arena on February 27, 2020 in Evanston, Illinois. (Photo by Quinn Harris/Getty Images)
EVANSTON, ILLINOIS - FEBRUARY 27: Alan Griffin #0 of the Illinois Fighting Illini reacts after making a three point basket in the second half against the Northwestern Wildcats at Welsh-Ryan Arena on February 27, 2020 in Evanston, Illinois. (Photo by Quinn Harris/Getty Images) /
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WEST LAFAYETTE, IN – JANUARY 21: Illinois Fighting Illini guard Da’Monte Williams (20) clinches his fists as he gets into a defensive position during the Big Ten Conference college basketball game between the Illinois Fighting Illini and the Purdue Boilermakers on January 21, at Mackey Arena in West Lafayette, Indiana. (Photo by Michael Allio/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) /

2. The stat line doesn’t do Monte justice

Da’Monte Williams is not a scorer of the basketball for the Illini. Can he put the ball in the hoop? Sure, but he isn’t asked to do that. He does everything else and that is why he is such a vital part of this team.

The stat line won’t show how important Williams is to this team. He finished the Northwestern game with 2 points, 3 rebounds, 2 assists and 1 block. Those are okay numbers on paper. But the ability of Williams to make key plays in big moments is incredible.

I would say this was probably the best game I have seen Williams play since he joined the Illinois program. There were so many instances where he came up big that stuck out to me in the game.

One play that comes to mind was midway through the second half. The Wildcats were hanging tough and had the game down to a seven-point margin. Williams pulled down a rebound, pulled it back out to the three-point line and threw a perfect alley-oop to Alan Griffin.

Another instance that stood out to me was when Illinois was starting to get stagnant on offense. Northwestern’s zone was giving us some trouble, and Williams runs from the three-point arc down to the free throw line to get a pass. This opened up Alan Griffin for a three-pointer as Williams hit him perfectly.

It is the little things like that which makes Williams so valuable to this team. The stat sheet isn’t going to show his impact. This kid is a glue piece to help this program win games. My tune has changed on him completely.

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