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Illinois Basketball: 4 keys for the Illini to beat the Wisconsin Badgers

By Rees Woodcock

Feb 2, 2021; Bloomington, Indiana, USA; IIllinois Fighting Illini guard Trent Frazier (1) bumps fists with coaches after defeating the Indiana Hoosiers at Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall. Mandatory Credit: Marc Lebryk-USA TODAY Sports
Feb 2, 2021; Bloomington, Indiana, USA; IIllinois Fighting Illini guard Trent Frazier (1) bumps fists with coaches after defeating the Indiana Hoosiers at Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall. Mandatory Credit: Marc Lebryk-USA TODAY Sports /
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Illinois basketball
Feb 2, 2021; Bloomington, Indiana, USA; Illinois Fighting Illini center Kofi Cockburn (21) dunks the ball in front of Indiana Hoosiers forward Race Thompson (25) during overtime at Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall. Mandatory Credit: Marc Lebryk-USA TODAY Sports /

2. Kofi needs to get going early

It seemed that Kofi Cockburn was sleepwalking in the first half of the game against Indiana on Tuesday. This was frustrating at times because he has dominated this same Indiana team earlier in the year.

Kofi would eventually wake up and have a pretty good night in the win over the Hoosiers. But, against Wisconsin, we are going to need the big man engaged and on-point if we want to take down the Badgers.

A couple of things stick out to me about Wisconsin. The first one is their rebounding. The Badgers are only pulling down 35.1 rebounds per game, which ranks No. 180 in the nation. This is an area the Illini can expose with Kofi. Micah Potter is their best rebounder and he only stands at 6-foot-10. Kofi could be able to bully his way in the lane.

Another area that had me intrigued was the lack of free throws Wisconsin shoots. They are only averaging 17 free throws per game, which ranks No. 241 in the nation. What this means to me is that their inside presence isn’t there. They are a perimeter team and hardly go to the lane. This should also mean that Kofi will be able to have his way with any of the Wisconsin bigs.

The focus for Illinois on Saturday should be to do the polar opposite of what Wisconsin is doing. The Badgers are a three-point shooting team, so the Illini should feed Kofi inside all day long. I believe he could finish this game with at least 20 points and 15 rebounds. He should have a field day with the Badgers.

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