Illinois Basketball: 4 keys for the Illini to beat the Loyola-Chicago Ramblers

4. Try to prevent the dreaded drought

Illinois played a nearly flawless game on Friday against Drexel. But there was a time or two where the Orange and Blue went on a mini drought. That needs to not happen against Loyola-Chicago.

The Ramblers don’t need any help on the defensive end of the court. They are already holding their opponents to a low scoring average. In fact, Loyola-Chicago is the best team in the nation in points per game allowed. They are only giving up 56 points per game.

That means Illinois is going up against, technically, the best defense in college basketball. That is a scary thought. It also means that the Illini need to find ways to score the basketball.

As mentioned in the previous slide, Kofi Cockburn should be a point of emphasis against the Ramblers. Their big man isn’t nearly as big, so Kofi should be able to overpower him. But that also worries me when it comes to fouls. Hopefully, Kofi can stay out of foul trouble.

Loyola-Chicago’s defense only giving up 56 PPG also means Illinois needs to keep moving with the ball. They can’t get stagnant. This happens every once in a while, where the energy goes out of their bodies and the opposing team scores a few baskets. The high-level of energy needs to be there throughout the game. I believe Andre Curbelo and Giorgi Bezhanishvili help the energy level a lot.

At the end of the day, let’s just do what we do best and everything will be fine. The Illinois players know how to score the basketball. Let’s put a lot of points on the board early so there isn’t a doubt who will win this game in the second half.