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Illinois Basketball: 4 observations from the Illini loss to Cincinnati

By Rees Woodcock

Nov 22, 2021; Kansas City, MO, USA; A general view of the center court logo before the game between the Cincinnati Bearcats and Illinois Fighting Illini at T-Mobile Center. Mandatory Credit: Denny Medley-USA TODAY Sports
Nov 22, 2021; Kansas City, MO, USA; A general view of the center court logo before the game between the Cincinnati Bearcats and Illinois Fighting Illini at T-Mobile Center. Mandatory Credit: Denny Medley-USA TODAY Sports /
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MILWAUKEE, WISCONSIN – NOVEMBER 15: Darryl Morsell #32 of the Marquette Golden Eagles and Trent Frazier #1 of the Illinois Fighting Illini fight for a loose ball in the second half during a college basketball game at the Fiserv Forum on November 15, 2021 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. (Photo by Mitchell Layton/Getty Images)
MILWAUKEE, WISCONSIN – NOVEMBER 15: Darryl Morsell #32 of the Marquette Golden Eagles and Trent Frazier #1 of the Illinois Fighting Illini fight for a loose ball in the second half during a college basketball game at the Fiserv Forum on November 15, 2021 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. (Photo by Mitchell Layton/Getty Images) /

3. Need to adjust the minutes

This observation kind of goes hand-in-hand with the previous slide. Brad Underwood needs to change up who is receiving minutes and how many minutes each player receives.

Let’s go down the roster. Coleman Hawkins was clearly struggling. This is his first year starting. He had two points and four fouls in 23 minutes of action. Especially in the times he is struggling, Hawkins should see fewer minutes until he is more acclimated to the game.

I would shift some of those minutes over to Benjamin Bosmans-Verdonk. He only received six minutes against Cincinnati and put up two points and two rebounds. I think Bosmans-Verdonk could end up being a solid piece for the Illini this season. Let’s use his big body to control the paint.

I need to see more minutes from Alfonso Plummer. The sharpshooting three-point specialist only received 19 minutes against the Bearcats. The kid transferred in from Utah and probably had expectations of being one of the guys on the team. Not only isn’t he a starter, but he isn’t even the sixth-man on the roster.

Underwood needs to boost Plummer’s minutes while also reducing Da’Monte Williams’ minutes. I like Williams but he is way too ineffective on the offensive end of the court. He doesn’t move around the court because his spot on the three-point arc is out on the wing. But even his spot this season is not working. Williams has been a big liability for this Illinois offense. I need to see Williams receive fewer than 18 minutes per game.

I broke down what I want the minute’s distribution to look like moving forward. I know there is more nuance to the situation in a game, but this is a rough outlook of what I want.

Starters: Andre Curbelo 25 minutes, Trent Frazier 25 minutes, Jacob Grandison 17 minutes, Coleman Hawkins 19 minutes, Kofi Cockburn 29 minutes.

Backups: Alfonso Plummer 23 minutes, Austin Hutcherson 15 minutes, Benjamin Bosmans-Verdonk 10 minutes, RJ Melendez 8 minutes, Da’Monte Williams 8 minutes, Brandin Podziemski 8 minutes, Luke Goode 7 minutes, Omar Payne 6 minutes.

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