Illinois Basketball: 5 observations from the Illini win over Rutgers

3. We got good Coleman Hawkins on Saturday

If you are an Illinois fan, you know the ups and downs of Coleman Hawkins. Yes, the entire team has their ups and downs, but the most noticeable roller coaster has to be the talented 6-foot-10 forward.

Hawkins is two different people on the court at times. He has the ability to look like a lottery pick in the upcoming NBA Draft. Hawkins will pass the ball well, and his three-point shooting can be lights out.

But then there are other times when Hawkins looks like a deep bench player for a mid-major. He chucks the ball away, doesn’t look like he is engaged, and takes bad shots.

On Saturday, Illini fans got the good Hawkins. We got the player who could seriously be looked at as a top pick in the upcoming draft.

Hawkins would log 37 minutes, and he dazzled for nearly every second. He would finish the game with 18 points, eight rebounds, four assists, and one steal while going 8-of-13 from the field. Hawkins was aggressive with the ball, and he had energy getting rebounds.

I loved what I saw out of Hawkins against Rutgers. I would argue that he needed this big game. Over the past month, Hawkins has struggled at times. He needed a big breakout performance, and it happened to come at the right time. Big-time players come through in big-time games.