Illinois Basketball: 4 observations from the Illini win over Drexel

3. Stat-stuffing bench

Most of the time, when it comes to the bench, I am looking for points. I want to see the point production high. While the point production wasn’t through the roof against Drexel, the bench managed to be well-rounded.

By the end of the game, the Illini bench scored 14 points, which is a solid number. But they also did everything else well too. They had 10 rebounds and 7 assists to go along with their 14 points. That is an impressive night. Side note, I am only counting Giorgi Bezhanishvili, Andre Curbelo and Da’Monte Williams as the bench, as they were the ones who played when the game was on the line.

Curbelo was the most impressive bench player for the Orange and Blue. The kid is just an absolute magician for the Illini. He finished with 8 points, 3 rebounds and 5 assists on the night. The most impressive part of his game was the fact he played 23 minutes and only had one turnover. His efficiency continues to increase with his production. That is incredibly impressive.

Williams was his usual well-rounded self on Friday. He finished the game against the Dragons with 4 points, 4 rebounds and 2 assists. He was 2-of-3 from the field, both of which were two-point shots. That was a surprise to me. He had to hurry a shot on the baseline just inside the three-point arc and nailed it. I loved seeing Williams expand his game a little bit.

The final bench piece was Giorgi. I am mentally starting to settle into the idea that Giorgi is just there to roughhouse with the opponent. While he only had one foul, he is a great option behind Kofi Cockburn right now. He finished the game with 2 points, 3 rebounds and 1 block.

Illinois’ bench, once again, was big for the program. They stat-stuffed all night long, and that is what we need moving forward.