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Illinois Basketball: 4 reasons Illini G Ayo Dosunmu wins the Wooden Award

By Rees Woodcock

CHAMPAIGN, IL - MARCH 01: Ayo Dosunmu #11 of the Illinois Fighting Illini celebrates after a three point basket during the second half against the Indiana Hoosiers at State Farm Center on March 1, 2020 in Champaign, Illinois. (Photo by Michael Hickey/Getty Images)
CHAMPAIGN, IL - MARCH 01: Ayo Dosunmu #11 of the Illinois Fighting Illini celebrates after a three point basket during the second half against the Indiana Hoosiers at State Farm Center on March 1, 2020 in Champaign, Illinois. (Photo by Michael Hickey/Getty Images) /
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Feb 12, 2021; Lincoln, Nebraska, USA; Illinois Fighting Illini guard Adam Miller (44) and center Kofi Cockburn (behind Miller) and guard Da’Monte Williams (20) and guard Trent Frazier (1) and guard Ayo Dosunmu (11) huddle during a break in the first half against the Nebraska Cornhuskers at Pinnacle Bank Arena. Mandatory Credit: Steven Branscombe-USA TODAY Sports /

3. Team Success

Naturally, team success is a qualifier for being the John R. Wooden Award winner. If your team isn’t competitive and one of the best in the nation, then you don’t even belong in the discussion.

Team success is a huge reason why I believe Ayo Dosunmu should win the Wooden Award. While all five players have a team in the top echelon of college basketball, I believe Ayo’s team success has been even more impressive.

In the preseason rankings, Illinois was projected as the worst team compared to the other three programs that house the four competitors. Gonzaga and Baylor were interchangeable at the No. 1 and No. 2 spots. In the preseason AP Top 25, the Bulldogs had the top spot while the Bears took the top spot in the Coaches Poll.

Iowa wasn’t too far behind Baylor and Gonzaga in the polls. In the AP Top 25, the Hawkeyes checked in at No. 5 and in the Coaches Poll, they were No. 6 and even got a vote to be No. 1. So, these three teams were projected better than Illinois this season.

Illinois was inside the top 10 to start in the AP Top 25, as they had them as the No. 8 team. The Coaches Poll only had the Illini at No. 10, though. Illinois wasn’t projected as good as the other three teams.

Now that we are almost finished up with the 2020-21 season, let’s look at where everyone is ranked. Gonzaga and Baylor are still No. 1 and No. 2, respectively. Illinois is actually a solid No. 5 in the nation. Iowa has dropped, though. They are outside the top 10 at No. 11 in the AP Top 25 and No. 14 in the Coaches Poll. The strongest competition for the Wooden Award, Luke Garza, has his team dropping in the rankings.

While Illinois did fall to Baylor toward the beginning of the season, the fact remains that both Baylor and Gonzaga have not gone through nearly as tough of a schedule as the Illini. It is easy to stay atop of the rankings when half of our games are against Quad 3 and 4.

So, Illinois’ No. 5 ranking in both of the polls signifies that Ayo has Illinois rolling. He is the leader of this team, and the Illini are surpassing expectations of their preseason ranking. Meanwhile, Iowa is falling back and is currently outside the top 10.

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