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Illinois Basketball: 5 big questions for the Illini against Marquette

By Rees Woodcock

Nov 10, 2023; Champaign, Illinois, USA; Illinois Fighting Illini head coach Brad Underwood reacts off the bench during the first half against the Oakland Golden Grizzlies at State Farm Center. Mandatory Credit: Ron Johnson-USA TODAY Sports
Nov 10, 2023; Champaign, Illinois, USA; Illinois Fighting Illini head coach Brad Underwood reacts off the bench during the first half against the Oakland Golden Grizzlies at State Farm Center. Mandatory Credit: Ron Johnson-USA TODAY Sports /
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Nov 10, 2023; Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA; Marquette Golden Eagles guard Kam Jones (1) shoots against Rider Broncs forward Tariq Ingraham (33) during the first half at Fiserv Forum. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Hanisch-USA TODAY Sports
Nov 10, 2023; Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA; Marquette Golden Eagles guard Kam Jones (1) shoots against Rider Broncs forward Tariq Ingraham (33) during the first half at Fiserv Forum. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Hanisch-USA TODAY Sports /

2. Can the Illini stop Kam Jones?

Through two games this season, Illinois hasn’t allowed any guard to go off for a big night. The highest-scoring guard in the Eastern Illinois game had nine points, and the highest-scoring guard in the Oakland game had eight points.

Illinois is going up against a different monster on Tuesday night. Marquette has a great guard in Kam Jones who is tearing up the competition this season.

Jones is currently averaging 21.5 points, 4.5 rebounds, and 4.0 assists through two games. He is only averaging 24 minutes of action as well. Those are incredible numbers for essentially playing a half of basketball in each game.

A big question I have for Illinois is; can we stop Kam Jones?

The specialty for Jones is three-point shooting. He has been on fire this season, as Jones has hit 8-of-16 from deep. That is a dangerous number, but I feel like the Illinois guards can shut him down.

Illinois is only allowing opponents to hit 29% of three-pointers this season. That is good enough to rank No. 106 in the country. We can’t have lazy closeouts or Jones will start hitting shots. The thing that excites me is the fact our guards are long. We can defend a 6-foot-5 Jones all night long. There are going to be some intriguing matchups.

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