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Illinois Basketball: 3 things to watch for in the Illini game against Bethune-Cookman

By Rees Woodcock

Dec 10, 2022; Champaign, Illinois, USA; Illinois Fighting Illini head coach Brad Underwood reacts off the bench during the first half against the Penn State Nittany Lions at State Farm Center. Mandatory Credit: Ron Johnson-USA TODAY Sports
Dec 10, 2022; Champaign, Illinois, USA; Illinois Fighting Illini head coach Brad Underwood reacts off the bench during the first half against the Penn State Nittany Lions at State Farm Center. Mandatory Credit: Ron Johnson-USA TODAY Sports /
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Illinois basketball
Dec 22, 2022; St. Louis, Missouri, USA; Illinois Fighting Illini head coach Brad Underwood reacts as he talks to guard Terrence Shannon Jr. (0) during the second half against the Missouri Tigers at Enterprise Center. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Curry-USA TODAY Sports /

2. When do we stop turning the ball over

Illinois currently has a .923 assist-to-turnover ratio. This ranks No. 211 out of 363 DI basketball programs. That is bad.

When a team has a bad assist-to-turnover ratio, it could mean that the team just doesn’t have a ton of assists. That isn’t the issue with the Illini, though. We are averaging 14.1 assists per game, which ranks No. 95 in the nation.

The biggest issue for the Illinois basketball program is turnovers. We are coughing the ball up at an extremely high rate, and it is concerning. The Illini average 15.3 turnovers per game this season, which ranks No. 323 in the nation. Remember, there are just 363 teams in DI basketball.

So, this brings me to ask the question, when do we stop turning the ball over? I am going to see if Illinois can stop with the high turnovers against Bethune-Cookman. These have been getting us into trouble, and they need to stop.

Look at some of the worst games Illinois has played this season. In the 22-point loss to Missouri, the Illini had 17 turnovers. In the struggle against Alabama A&M, the Illini had 18 turnovers. There have only been two games this season where Illinois has had fewer than 12 turnovers. That is an insane stat.

If we want any chance of being successful this season, the Illini will have to control the turnovers more often. We can’t keep giving the ball up at that high of a rate. Just think, each turnover is, potentially, a four-to-six-point swing. That makes a huge difference.

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