Wow, what a roller coaster of a win for the Illinois basketball team over the No. 2 ranked Texas Longhorns.
One of the sloppiest games for the Illini turned into a big deficit late in the game. This deficit quickly dissolved, as Illinois had one of the craziest comebacks in recent memory. I would venture to say, with the way we were playing against Texas, that not many people thought we had a chance to make a comeback.
Some brilliant play by our freshmen enabled the Illini to take the game into overtime. That is when Terrence Shannon Jr. came to the rescue and finished off his old coach at Texas Tech. Illinois would win the game in overtime, 85-78.
Here are five observations from the Illinois basketball win over Texas.
1. Terrence Shannon Jr. is our closer
This was honestly one of the most confusing games I have ever seen. Illinois didn’t play quality basketball for the vast majority of the contest, but we still came out ahead.
In the first half, the Illini went into the halftime locker room up 37-34. We managed to carry the lead despite Terrence Shannon Jr. having two turnovers and zero points on 0-of-3 shooting from the field.
It was by far Shannon’s worst half of basketball since transferring into the Illinois program. Somehow, we managed to still have the lead, though.
Shannon would score his first point just 20 seconds into the second half. Illinois would extend their lead to five points after that bucket. Things then started to go downhill, though. Shannon wasn’t heating up, and Illinois would see a five-point lead turn into a 10-point deficit quickly.
The Illini would flip a switch, and somehow we managed to get the game into overtime. This is when Shannon would put on his cape and close the game out for the Illini.
In the first 40 minutes of action, Shannon was 2-of-10 from the field for four points. He was awful. In the five-minute period of overtime, he was 3-of-4 from the field and 5-of-5 from the free throw line for a total of 12 points.
If Illinois fans were looking for someone who can close out a game, I think the obvious answer is Shannon. This kid showed why NBA mock drafts have him in the top 60 prospects. When he flips a switch, he is one of the best players in all of college basketball.