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Illinois Basketball: 4 observations from the Illini loss against Rutgers

By Rees Woodcock

PISCATAWAY, NJ - FEBRUARY 16: Kofi Cockburn #21 of the Illinois Fighting Illini reacts during the second half of a game against the Rutgers Scarlet Knights at Jersey Mike's Arena on February 16, 2022 in Piscataway, New Jersey. Rutgers defeated Illinois 70-59. (Photo by Rich Schultz/Getty Images)
PISCATAWAY, NJ - FEBRUARY 16: Kofi Cockburn #21 of the Illinois Fighting Illini reacts during the second half of a game against the Rutgers Scarlet Knights at Jersey Mike's Arena on February 16, 2022 in Piscataway, New Jersey. Rutgers defeated Illinois 70-59. (Photo by Rich Schultz/Getty Images) /
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EVANSTON, ILLINOIS – JANUARY 29: Illinois Fighting Illini guard RJ Melendez #15 dunks in the first half against Northwestern Wildcats forward Robbie Beran #31 at Welsh-Ryan Arena on January 29, 2022 in Evanston, Illinois. (Photo by Quinn Harris/Getty Images) /

The Illinois basketball team played one of their worst games in years on Wednesday night against Rutgers.

I am confident when I say the Illini have a better team than Rutgers. From top to bottom, we have more talent than the Scarlet Knights every day of the week and twice on Sundays. That is one of the reasons why losing to Rutgers 70-59 frustrates me greatly.

The loss to the Scarlet Knights tops off a three-game stretch that has been brutal to the Illini. We got blown out by Purdue last week, and then Northwestern gave us a scare this past Sunday. Now we have lost two out of the past three games.

Here are four observations from the Illinois basketball loss against Rutgers.

1. It is frustrating that RJ Melendez isn’t playing more

Illinois basketball needed a spark on Wednesday night, and at times we received that spark. RJ Melendez was the spark the Illini needed, but sadly, he didn’t get a chance to play much against Rutgers.

One would think after a 14-point performance, in which Melendez was one of the main driving forces behind a victory over Northwestern, he would have received more minutes in the following game. Melendez had a chance to play 17 minutes against the Wildcats, so we should probably shoot for that number against the Scarlet Knights, right?

I feel like that is way too much logic, though. None of that happened against Rutgers. In fact, Melendez saw reduced minutes for some reason.

Melendez would only play 11 minutes against the Scarlet Knights, but he would perform well. He finished the game with 10 points, two rebounds, one assist, one block, and one steal while shooting 2-of-4 from the field and 1-of-2 from the three-point arc. He also made all five free throws.

Throughout the game, and still this morning, I sit here in disbelief that the Illinois coaching staff didn’t play Melendez more against Rutgers. It is almost like they forgot he was on the bench. I put this blame squarely on Brad Underwood. I don’t care if you have 100 super seniors on the team, you need to play the best players. Melendez is one of the five best players on the team without a doubt. Play the kid.

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