Illinois Basketball: 5 observations from the Illini win over Syracuse

4. Despite a bad game, Skyy Clark is still effective

When you are a young player, sometimes you are going to struggle greatly. Sometimes freshmen are just going to freshmen.

Against Syracuse on Tuesday night, that is what I am going to attribute Skyy Clark’s bad game to. He is a freshman who just had a really bad game and will learn from it moving forward.

Clark would end the Syracuse game with two points, five rebounds, three assists, and two steals while going 0-of-10 from the field and 0-7 from three-point range. That isn’t a typo. Clark didn’t make a single shot from the field.

I don’t believe Clark is a bad shooter. In fact, I think he is actually pretty good at shooting the basketball. Coming into the game on Tuesday, Clark was 9-of-18 from three-point range in the first six games. He has been sensational from behind the three-point arc.

Sometimes players just have bad nights. But what I love about Clark’s game is the fact he can still make a positive impact on the game despite shooting the ball poorly. Clark still led the Illini in steals and was second on the team in assists. That is what I want to see out of any player, let alone a true freshman.

I think these bad shooting nights out of a freshman are good. It will show Illinois fans how mentally strong Clark is. If he can come back next game and start hitting shots again, it will tell you a lot about his character and mentality. I think he will be just fine.