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Illinois Basketball: 5 thoughts from the Illini box score against the Madrid All-Stars

By Rees Woodcock

Dec 4, 2012; Champaign, IL, USA; The Big Ten logo displayed on the court before the game between the Western Carolina Catamounts and the Illinois Fighting Illini at Assembly Hall. Mandatory Credit: Bradley Leeb-USA TODAY Sports
Dec 4, 2012; Champaign, IL, USA; The Big Ten logo displayed on the court before the game between the Western Carolina Catamounts and the Illinois Fighting Illini at Assembly Hall. Mandatory Credit: Bradley Leeb-USA TODAY Sports /
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Mar 16, 2023; Des Moines, IA, USA; Illinois Fighting Illini forward Coleman Hawkins (33) reaches for the ball against Arkansas Razorbacks forward Makhi Mitchell (15) during the first half at Wells Fargo Arena. Mandatory Credit: Reese Strickland-USA TODAY Sports /

2. You get a turnover, and you get a turnover

I know, I know, it is an exhibition so I need to take everything with a grain of salt. But I think a good mindset should be that you practice as you play.

Even though this was just an exhibition against the Madrid All-Stars, I would hope that Illinois is taking it seriously. There were only 122 in attendance, so the vast majority of fans didn’t get to watch the game. But there was one stat that piques my interest in a negative way.

In 2022-23, Illinois was one of the worst teams in the country in turnovers per game. We were coughing up the ball at a clip of 12.9 turnovers each night. That ranked No. 231 in the country. In the exhibition against Madrid, that number would get blown out of the water.

Only two Illinois players would finish the game on Sunday without a turnover. That honor goes to Luke Goode and newcomer Justin Harmon. The rest of the crew at least had one turnover on the night.

Who had the most turnovers? That would go to Terrence Shannon Jr., who would play 21 minutes and have five turnovers. Five different Illinois players would have at least two turnovers against Madrid.

By the end of the game, Illinois’ turnover total would eclipse 20, as we would finish with 21 turnovers in the game. We would also carry a 0.48 assist-to-turnover ratio, which is pretty bad. Again, it is only an exhibition game, but this seems like a high number.

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