Illinois Basketball: 4 big questions for the Illini against Minnesota

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Dec 11, 2021; Champaign, Illinois, USA; Illinois Fighting Illini guard Trent Frazier (1) shoots the ball during the first half against the Arizona Wildcats at State Farm Center. Mandatory Credit: Ron Johnson-USA TODAY Sports /

2. Can the Illini stay hot from deep?

Illinois basketball has been one of the best teams in the nation when it comes to the three-point arc. It seems that everyone in the program has been hitting their shots from deep on a consistent basis.

The leader of the three-point barrage is Alfonso Plummer. He is shooting 7.8 three-pointers per game and converting them at a clip of 44.7%. That is three-point shooting that I have never seen before in the history of Illinois basketball.

As a team, the Illini are hitting 39.7% of their three-point shots, which is No. 9 in the nation. This is an even better clip than last season when the team was hitting 37.3% of their shots from deep. But Illinois is going up against a tough three-point shooting defense in Minnesota on Tuesday night.

Minnesota, in general, is a good defensive team. They are only giving up 63.1 points per game, and that ranks No. 49 in the nation. Three-point defense is their specialty, though. The Golden Gophers are only allowing opponents to shoot 24.8% from the three-point arc, which ranks No. 3 in the nation.

So, Illinois, the No. 9 three-point shooting team in the country, is going up against Minnesota, which has the No. 3 three-point shooting defensive in the nation. Something has to give here. I will be watching to see if Illinois can stay hot from three-point range.

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