Illinois Basketball: 5 observations from the Illini loss vs Purdue

2. Illinois is still one of the best teams in the country

The end score is ugly, and there is no reason Illinois should be losing by 16 points to Purdue. But I am not throwing up the white flag on the season or the potential of Illinois being a national title contender.

I had multiple people tell me on Twitter that Illinois just isn’t as good as Purdue. That the Boilermakers are a better team all-around and the Illini aren’t an elite level program. I just don’t believe that.

What those fans are reacting to is literally one half of basketball. Let’s break down what we have seen against Purdue this season.

In the first game, the Illini took the Boilermakers to double overtime only to fall just short. So, we were good enough to compete with Purdue back in mid-January.

On Tuesday night, Illinois was beating Purdue by two points at halftime. So, in the first three halves of regulation this season, Illinois was leading the Boilermakers by two points.

What it comes down to is the fact the Illini laid an egg in the second half on Tuesday night. That is plain and simple. Trent Frazier, Jacob Grandison, and Da’Monte Williams weren’t hitting shots, and Purdue got hot in the second half.

When a top-five team gets hot for a half of basketball, as Purdue did on Tuesday, then it is hard to beat them. The Boilermakers shot 64.5% from the field and 50% from three-point range in the second half of basketball against the Illini. Even if we are playing well, that is hard to beat.

So, let’s take a breath and evaluate the two games Illinois has played against Purdue. We shouldn’t overreact to a bad half of basketball that ended up in a Boilermaker blowout. Illinois is still an elite team and a national title contender.