Illinois basketball: Illini report card against the Missouri Tigers

The Illinois basketball team fell to the Missouri Tigers 81-78 in the annual Braggin’ Rights game on Saturday night.

This one stings…a lot. The Illini were ranked as the No. 6 team in the nation heading into Saturday night’s battle against an unranked 4-0 Missouri Tigers team. After the huge win over Duke on Wednesday, the performance against the Tigers was disappointing, to say the least. The Illini have now lost 4 straight Braggin’ Rights games.

The Offense: C+

The Illinois basketball team shot 52.7-percent from the field in this one. Ayo Dosunmu, Kofi Cockburn, and Andre Curbelo had an amazing 69 of the Illini’s 78 points, displaying the lack of support that the big-three had throughout this game.

Illinois went an appalling 17-of-28 at the free-throw line, which made a huge difference in this game. They also shot just 3-of-13 from three-point range. The combination of these two stats was, arguably, the difference between a win and a loss.

The Defense: C

If it wasn’t for the 9 steals and 18 forced turnovers, this grade would be lower. Illinois’ defense came out flat in the first half, surrendering 49 points to the Missouri offense. The biggest difference-maker in this one was rebounding, or the lack thereof.

The Illini grabbed 20 rebounds compared to Missouri’s nine offensive rebounds, giving the Tigers too many second chances. The Missouri offense didn’t shoot lights out by any means, as they were just 47.2-percent from the field. However, the Tigers, unlike the Illini, were able to capitalize on their free throws, going 26-of-31 from the charity stripe in this game.

Ayo Dosunmu: A

Ayo Dosunmu single-handedly took on the Missouri defense, scoring a career-high 36 points. The Tigers just did not have any answers for the preseason All-American. Dosunmu was able to weave through the defense without effort, capitalizing on open lanes and challenging opposing defenders.

Despite putting the team on his back, Dosunmu did have six turnovers in this one and made a questionable shot at the end of the game. I will chalk that blunder up as a moment of frustration from the lack of support he received all game, but watching him in this one reminded Illini fans just how special he is.

Andre Curbelo: A-

This game turned me into an Andre Curbelo believer. One of the few players that offered support for Dosunmu, Curbelo continues to get better every game in his young career.

Amassing 14 points and playing 27 minutes, Curbelo showed flashes of greatness in this one. The Puerto Rican native had several drives where his handling and passing skills looked like one of the best in the country.

I expect Curbelo to keep racking up minutes if he keeps playing like this. He plays with energy and was even shown talking to Dosunmu after a tough foul call, showing his ability to be a leader at a young age. With just two turnovers, I was thoroughly impressed with the freshman.

Kofi Cockburn: B+

To me, this was Kofi Cockburn’s best game of the season. He put up 19 points, which second-best on the team. However, he still seemed to lack a true presence in the paint, gathering only six rebounds.

There were several moments where Cockburn just did not handle the ball well, and he seems to be too anticipatory on defense at times, rather than playing the ball. Unfortunately, he ended the game with a very debatable flagrant-one call. However, this game offers some ground for the center to build off of after getting off to a slow start to the season.

Da’Monte Williams: C

The grades really start to drop off after the “big three”. Da’Monte Williams gets more of a pass in this one because he is more of a defender than a scorer. Williams played solid defense but faded offensively scoring just three points in the game.

Trent Frazier: D

With only 1 assist and 3 points, I was really expecting the senior to step up in such a huge rivalry game. I was waiting for Trent Frazier to pull up with a huge three-pointer at some point, but that point never came and the senior faded along with the rest of the offense.

Adam Miller: D

The freshman once again came out of the gate firing, only to fade as the game went along. Adam Miller went only 1-of-6 from the field in this one, finishing with just two points. He did display some defensive prowess, though, snagging two steals early on in the first half.

The grade may seem harsh for a true freshman, but I really was hoping for Miller to compliment Ayo Dosunmu and create more open looks to spread the offense. I hope Miller can take this as a learning experience and move on from this tough performance.

Giorgi Bezhanishvili: F

Giorgi Bezhanishvili has been one of the more pleasant surprises this season, coming in clutch off the bench for Kofi Cockburn. However, he was a non-factor against Missouri. He had 4 personal fouls and 2 turnovers in just the 13 minutes of action. He had zero points and really failed to make any sort of an impact all game.

Final Takeaways

The lack of depth, which was supposed to be a huge strength for the Illini this season, was absent in this very winnable game. Aside from the free throws, there were no huge glaring issues that I noticed.

However, the Illini have to come into every game with the same energy if they are going to be one of the top teams in the nation by the end of the season. Let’s hope they can pick things up against their first conference matchup Tuesday against Minnesota.