Illinois Basketball: 4 keys for the Illini to beat Wisconsin

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Feb 6, 2021; Champaign, Illinois, USA; Illinois Fighting Illini center Kofi Cockburn (21) Wisconsin Badgers forward Micah Potter (11) and forward Giorgi Bezhanishvili (15) battle for the rebound during the first half at State Farm Center. Mandatory Credit: Patrick Gorski-USA TODAY Sports /

2. Keep the Badgers off the three-point line

The three-point line can kill anyone if the opposing team gets hot. Illinois has experienced this firsthand a few times this season.

In the first game against Ohio State this season, Illinois enabled the Buckeyes to shoot 52.4-percent from behind the three-point arc. That is an insane number, and the fact we only lost by six points is nothing short of a miracle.

Illinois has proven that they can be susceptible to a good three-point shooting team. On Saturday, the Illini will be going up against a Wisconsin bunch that can shoot with the best of the best.

The Badgers are currently hitting 35.9-percent of their three-point shots this season, which ranks No. 75 in the nation. The biggest culprit; Brad Davison. Davison is shooting 38-percent from three-point range, which is a solid number. The scary part about Wisconsin is that almost the entire team shoots in the mid-to-high 30s.

There is one caveat to all of this, though. Illinois has proven they can stop Wisconsin’s three-point barrage. In the first game in early February, the Illini held the Badgers to just 16.7-percent shooting from distance. They were only 4-of-24. That is amazing defense.

I am realistic and don’t expect Wisconsin to shoot that bad this time around. But if we can keep Wisconsin to somewhere in the high 20s or low 30s in three-point shooting, then I think we come out ahead.

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