Illinois Basketball: 3 things to watch for in the Illini exhibition against Quincy

3. What does the bench look like

At the end of the day, Illinois has the talent in the starting lineup to compete with any team in the country. The big question for the Orange and Blue is what can we get out of our bench play this season.

Illinois’ bench took a big hit when Luke Goode announced he was having foot surgery and would be out for the first half of the 2022-23 campaign. He was, most likely, going to be our sixth man this season. But that doesn’t mean we don’t have depth coming off the bench.

The biggest worry I have with the bench is youth and inexperience. Illinois has a ton of talent, though. I want to see what Ty Rodgers can do against Quincy. I think he immediately steps into the sixth man for the Illini. He could be a starter for a majority of teams in college basketball as a true freshman. Getting him up to speed is going to be important for the rest of the year.

Jayden Epps is another player I am going to be watching on Friday night. He has a well-rounded game, so I am curious if Brad Underwood is going to use him in multiple roles.

Heading into the 2022-23 campaign, I expected Sencire Harris to not play much and to potentially take a redshirt. That went out the window when Goode got hurt. Can Harris pick up the speed of the game quickly? That is something I am going to keep an eye on. I would get goosebumps if Clark, Epps, Rodgers, and Harris were all on the court at the same time.

Lastly, the bench needs a solid big man. I want to see how well Dain Dainja does on the court. He has the physical framework to be good, but can he develop into a solid Big Ten big man is the question.