Illinois Basketball: 4 big questions for the Illini against UT Rio Grande Valley

2. Can we win a turnover battle?

Let me preface this slide by saying that Illinois has won the turnover battle against bad teams this season.

The Illini played Jackson State and Arkansas State in the first two games this season, and they won the turnover battle in each contest, albeit by not much. We only had one fewer turnover against Jackson State and five fewer turnovers against Arkansas State.

But, over the past three games against power-five conference programs, Illinois has struggled in the turnover department.

In the one-point loss to Marquette, the Illini had 23 turnovers compared to the Golden Eagles who had 14 turnovers. In the blowout to Cincinnati, Illinois had 12 turnovers compared to 10 turnovers for the Bearcats. And against Kansas State, the Illini had 18 turnovers compared to the Wildcats who had just three turnovers.

So, when we play decent teams, we are losing the turnover battle. When we play against bad teams, we win the turnover battle. Illinois is playing UT Rio Grande Valley on Friday, so this should be a victory in the turnover battle.

With that being said, the Illini shouldn’t just win the turnover battle against Vaqueros, we should dominate the turnover battle. I better see Illinois with fewer than 14 turnovers. I need to see that we can take care of the basketball.

On the flip side, I need to see us forcing turnovers. UT Rio Grande Valley needs to have at least 17 turnovers in this game. Give me a confidence booster when it comes to the turnover battle. I will be keeping an eye on this.