Illinois Basketball: 3 ways the Illini can take down Iowa

1. You can’t stop but at least contain Luka Garza

Luka Garza is in the running for national player of the year. He is an unstoppable force who will get his points and rebounds. But I want the Illini to at least contain the big man.

In the last game back in early February, Garza was sensational against Illinois. He ended the game with 25 points, 10 rebounds, 1 assist, 1 steal and 1 block. He shot 9-of-16 from the field and 4-of-9 from three-point range.

This was a frustrating game because every time Kofi Cockburn would body up against Garza, the Iowa big man would score. Garza would then step out on the three-point arc and hit shots from distance. It was incredible to watch. The kid was unstoppable.

How can we contain Garza? How is that even possible? I believe we need to go to more of a zone on defense. This will keep Garza from having easy buckets inside. It will give Kofi an extra defender down low. A solid 3-2 zone should give Garza more troubles.

Overall, I know we can’t stop Garza, but I just want to contain him. He is arguably the best player in the nation. Let’s give him troubles on the inside and hope he doesn’t step out and hit three-pointers.