Illinois Basketball: 5 observations from the Illini loss to the Iowa Hawkeyes

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Iowa forward Payton Sandfort, left, looks to pass as Illinois guard RJ Melendez (15) defends during a NCAA Big Ten Conference men’s basketball game, Saturday, Feb. 4, 2023, at Carver-Hawkeye Arena in Iowa City, Iowa.230204 Illinois Iowa Mbb 013 Jpg /

4. RJ Melendez is getting savvier

I have been extremely hard on RJ Melendez for much of the 2022-23 campaign. What is the reason for the criticism? Well, quite frankly, he has been terrible when on the floor.

Melendez is having one of the worst offensive seasons I have seen from an Illinois player in my lifetime. In the three games prior to Saturday night, Melendez was shooting 3-of-17 from the floor and 0-of-10 from three-point range.

Somehow, Illinois is managing to win despite Melendez’s bad play. On Saturday against Iowa, I was proud of Melendez. He only shot the ball one time in the 15 minutes he was on the court. It was a miss on a wide-open three-point shot, but he is starting to move the ball more and stopped taking so many shots.

Melendez is valuable on defense. I love the way he guards the opposing teams. He is also willing to take charges, and he hustles for rebounds. Overall, I love the way Melendez plays the game, but I wish he could make shots.

I think only shooting the ball once helped Illinois on Saturday. We weren’t wasting possessions, and this allowed other players to score. Melendez would finish the Iowa game with two points and three rebounds. It was a savvy game from the sophomore.

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