Illinois Basketball: 5 observations from the Illini win over Northwestern

4. Defense cracked down in the second half

I would argue that I watched Illinois play the worst half of basketball we have played all season long on Thursday night. That first half against Northwestern was u-g-l-y ugly.

Giving up 37 points to a Northwestern team that averages 68.5 points per game this season is not good. On top of giving up that many points, the Illini were getting shredded from three-point range in that first half.

Northwestern would end up going 8-of-16 from three-point range, which is a great number. Illinois was extremely lazy getting around screens or we would go under the screens. This would leave players like Boo Buie with, essentially, a practice three-pointer.

The second half was a different story for the Illini, though. The halftime speech had to have woken the Illinois players up. We came out of the gates with a different energy.

Illinois actually fought through screens, and we weren’t going under the screener. This forced Northwestern to drive the ball inside, where they were shut down. The Wildcats would go 1-of-5 from three-point range in the second half.

In addition to the great defense against the hot-shooting Northwestern squad, the Illini would also cause more turnovers in the second half. The Wildcats would have seven of their 10 turnovers come in the second 20 minutes of the game. These turnovers helped change the momentum completely.

The Illini had to have this game. We came out in the second half and played some great basketball. Our defense really helped turn the tides.