
Illinois basketball finally gets the chance to erase the ugly double-digit loss to Northwestern back on January 4.
In that first game, the Illini were handled fairly easily by the Wildcats. I haven’t seen that often in my lifetime, and I don’t want to ever see it again.
This is probably the best Northwestern team I have ever seen, though. The game on Thursday night is going to be huge for the rivalry, but more importantly, this game is going to be huge for the Big Ten standings. There are a few things that I believe could turn the game in favor of one team or the other.
Here are three things to watch for in the Illinois basketball game against the Northwestern Wildcats.
1. Can RJ Melendez keep it up
It has been a long time coming, but RJ Melendez finally had a big-time game. At this point in the season, I was starting to think it was impossible for Melendez to put up solid numbers on any given night.
Coming into the win over Minnesota, Melendez scored a total of 14 points in the prior six games combined. He scored those 14 points while shooting 4-of-25 from the field and 1-of-14 from three-point range.
Melendez would get the starting nod against Minnesota thanks to Terrence Shannon Jr. being out with a concussion. In this game, he would look like his old self again, and it was so exciting to see. So, I am going to be keeping an eye on if Melendez can keep up the good play.
Illinois needed Melendez to perform well against the Golden Gophers. This wasn’t an easy game despite the nine-point victory. The talented wing would end up going for 10 points, 11 rebounds, and one block while shooting 4-of-8 from the field and 1-of-4 from three-point range.
I think Illinois has a chance to do some damage in the Big Ten and NCAA tournaments if Melendez can play like this consistently. He would give us another weapon. Let’s see if he can put back-to-back games together.