Illinois basketball has a lot on the line tonight, as we take on the Michigan Wolverines.
The Illini need a victory as there are NCAA tournament and Big Ten Tournament seeding implications involved. Coming off a bad loss to Ohio State, Illinois fans also need a morale boost. We didn’t look good in the last game. That needs to change.
Here are three things to watch for in the Illinois basketball game against Michigan.
1. Who is going to step up for Illinois
Illinois has a very sporadic team this season. You never know who is going to step up each game that is played.
The Illini have had six leading scorers in 29 games so far. We have had three different leading scorers in our last three contests. Illinois needs someone to step up on Thursday night.
So, I will watch to see which Illini player takes the reins and leads this team to victory. It has been a while since I have seen consistent play from someone.
In the last game against Ohio State, Illinois’ leading scorer was Coleman Hawkins. He ended up dropping 14 points on 6-of-13 shooting from the floor. A 14-point leading scorer is not going to win the Illini too many games.
Two games ago, Illinois had Terrence Shannon Jr. go off for 26 points. 24 out of the 26 points had to come in the second half or we would have dropped that game. It wasn’t a consistent night for the talented guard.
I want to see an Illinois player come out of the gates strong and finish strong. We need someone to take over. I know this player isn’t currently on the team, but we need an Ayo Dosunmu-type leadership right now.