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Illinois Basketball: 4 keys for the Illini to beat Purdue

By Rees Woodcock

Dec 23, 2020; University Park, Pennsylvania, USA; Illinois Fighting Illini center Kofi Cockburn (21) blocks Penn State Nittany Lions guard Izaiah Brockington (12) during the second half at Bryce Jordan Center. Illinois defeated Penn State 98-81. Mandatory Credit: Matthew OHaren-USA TODAY Sports
Dec 23, 2020; University Park, Pennsylvania, USA; Illinois Fighting Illini center Kofi Cockburn (21) blocks Penn State Nittany Lions guard Izaiah Brockington (12) during the second half at Bryce Jordan Center. Illinois defeated Penn State 98-81. Mandatory Credit: Matthew OHaren-USA TODAY Sports /
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Illinois basketball
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) /

3. Hound Sasha Stefanovic the entire night

The Purdue Boilermakers seem to have the same makeup every season. They have some tough big men and then one or two shooters who can absolutely kill you from the outside.

Sasha Stefanovic is a player who Illinois needs to hone in on this season. The kid is the heart and soul of the Purdue three-point attack, and he will tear the Illini apart if there isn’t someone hounding him the entire night.

Purdue averages shooting 23.3 three-point shots per game, which is No. 116 in the nation. So, they put up the deep shot a solid number of times throughout a contest. Stefanovic is the main culprit when it comes to their three-point shooting, though. 24.2-percent of the three-point attempts by the Boilermakers come from the talented guard.

On top of Stefanovic shooting a tremendous number of three-pointers, he is making them at a high clip as well. Through 11 games this season, he has hit 50-percent of his three-pointers. That is an insane number for someone who is shooting the most three-pointers on the team.

Who should we put on Stefanovic? Well, duh, Da’Monte Williams.

Williams is going to be able to shut down the talented shooting Stefanovic. Illinois seemed to have success against him last season. Stefanovic went 5-of-15 from the field and 2-of-7 from three-point range in the two games they played against the Illini in January 2020. We need that same fire on Saturday.

I believe we can cause Stefanovic problems without changing anything on the team. Let’s have Williams cover him the entire night. If we can do that, then I think we hold the sharpshooter to a below-average night.

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