Illinois Basketball: 3 things to watch for in the Illini game against Eastern Illinois

3. Will our freshman trio continue being our rock off the bench

I mentioned Jayden Epps at the end of the last slide. I think Epps is going to be a true superstar for the Illinois basketball team this season and as long as he is in Champaign.

Epps is a part of a bench that has amazing ability but doesn’t have much in the way of college experience. This bench also has a trio of freshmen whom I think are the future of this program.

The trio of freshmen off the bench consists of Epps, Ty Rodgers, and Sencire Harris. These three newcomers were all in the top 100 in the class of 2022, and they are all winners on the basketball court. They also make up the majority of minutes off the Illinois bench.

Against Quincy, there were four bench players who received at least 13 minutes. The three freshmen were three of the four, and Dain Dainja was the fourth, who has only played three college games in his life.

I will be watching to see if the trio of freshmen is still going to be our rock off the bench. When I say rock, I mean will these freshmen come into the game, and will Illinois not miss a beat with them on the court?

Our starters have a ton of experience and talent. It is going to be hard to replace them with bench players and not have the quality of play decrease. But, against Quincy, I would argue Illinois received a huge boost from the trio of freshmen off the bench.

Epps was electric and put up seven points, two rebounds, one assist, and one steal. Harris was a great defender for the Illini. He reminded a lot of people of Trent Frazier with his defensive prowess. Harris would have four points, two steals, and one rebound.

I think Rodgers impressed me the most from the Quincy game, though. He would finish the game with seven points, nine rebounds, two assists, and two steals in just 17 minutes. Illinois is going to need someone who can rebound now that Kofi Cockburn is gone. Having Rodgers come off the bench and be second on the team in rebounds is exciting.