Illinois Basketball: 5 observations from the Illini win over Alabama A&M

2. Best game for Matthew Mayer

I will be the first to say that Matthew Mayer didn’t impress me much in the first eight games this season. I was excepting a tall player who could shoot the ball and be a pain in the butt to opposing teams, but he wasn’t that through eight games.

But in the past three contests, Mayer has really flipped a switch. He has gone from a middle-of-the-road player to one of the best, if not the best, players on the Illinois basketball team.

Mayer ended up dropping 21 points on 8-of-10 shooting from the field and 5-of-5 from three-point range against Texas. He was the only life we had against Penn State with his 14 points on 4-of-11 shooting and 2-of-8 from three-point range. Not a great outing, but still showed us something.

On Saturday night, Mayer would save the Illini with his play down the stretch. Alabama A&M narrowed the margin to a few points, but Mayer flipped a switch and took over. He would finish with 21 points on 9-of-12 shooting from the field and 3-of-6 from three-point territory.

To add to Mayer’s great offensive game, I think his defense is extremely underrated. He can hold his own in the paint, and when an offensive player gets the ball around him, he is really good at defending.

Mayer has had six blocks in the past three games, which included three blocks on Saturday night. He also had seven rebounds and two steals to go along with his block fest.

I love what Mayer is bringing to the table right now. Illinois is still figuring some things out, and when we do, I think this team is going to be extremely dangerous.