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Illinois Basketball: 5 observations from the Illini loss to Notre Dame

By Rees Woodcock

MINNEAPOLIS, MN - MARCH 02: Genesis Bryant #1 of the Illinois Fighting Illini dribbles the ball against the Rutgers Scarlet Knights in the second half of the game in the second round of the Big Ten Women's Basketball Tournament at Target Center on March 2, 2023 in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The Fighting Illini defeated the Scarlet Knights 81-55. (Photo by David Berding/Getty Images)
MINNEAPOLIS, MN - MARCH 02: Genesis Bryant #1 of the Illinois Fighting Illini dribbles the ball against the Rutgers Scarlet Knights in the second half of the game in the second round of the Big Ten Women's Basketball Tournament at Target Center on March 2, 2023 in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The Fighting Illini defeated the Scarlet Knights 81-55. (Photo by David Berding/Getty Images) /
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CHAMPAIGN, IL – JANUARY 18: Adalia McKenzie #24 of the Illinois Fighting Illini brings the ball up court during the game against the Indiana Hoosiers at State Farm Center on January 18, 2023 in Champaign, Illinois. (Photo by Michael Hickey/Getty Images) /

3. One of the best games I have seen from Adalia McKenzie

Illinois has a talented trio of guards who will take this program a long way in 2023-24. Genesis Bryant and Makira Cook will get all of the shine on this run, but Adalia McKenzie is also a superstar in the making.

While Bryant was dropping a big number in the scoring department, McKenzie was being Illinois’ Swiss Army Knife. She was doing everything on the court for the Illini, including putting up a decent number of points.

McKenzie finished the game against Notre Dame with 17 points on 6-of-12 shooting from the field and was 5-of-7 from the free throw line. Illinois all game long struggled to rebound the basketball, but when McKenzie was around the hoop, she was able to hold her own despite being a few inches shorter than Notre Dame’s paint players.

I was impressed by the eight rebounds McKenzie was able to pull down against the Irish. Two of those rebounds were on the offensive end of the court as well.

All game long, McKenzie was able to get into the lane and draw contact. She wasn’t settling for bad shots, and this helped Illinois tremendously. Her leadership and aggression were huge for the Illini and a big reason we only fell to Notre Dame by 11 points. I can’t wait to see what McKenzie does for the rest of this season.

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