3 key questions for the Illinois basketball team against Arkansas
Illinois basketball fans have a lot to be thankful for, and one of the many things is basketball on Thanksgiving.
The Illini are coming off of a 58-point pounding of Arkansas Little Rock, and the mindset now is, why not just take over the entire state?
Illinois now takes on the flagship program, the Arkansas Razorbacks. This is a program that had a complete makeover the last year. John Calipari is now the head coach, and he brought in his own team, which is essentially what Kentucky would have looked like this season.
The Illini are playing some great basketball right now, but Arkansas is a different animal. We need to prove that we can beat these top teams. Winning on Thursday would be a big step in the right direction.
Here are three key questions for the Illinois basketball team against Arkansas
1. Who wins the Ivisic brothers matchup?
There are plenty of storylines heading into the Thanksgiving matchup between Illinois and Arkansas. One of the most interesting things to note is that there are two brothers going up against each other.
Illinois is trotting out our starting center, Tomislav Ivisic. He is a sophomore in his first year in college, but he has been an incredible addition to the roster. Ivisic has a rare combination of athletic ability and size that Illinois fans have rarely, if ever, seen in Champaign.
Tomislav won’t be the only Ivisic on the court on Thursday, though. Arkansas also has an Ivisic. His brother, Zvonimir, suits up for the Razorbacks. He was with Kentucky last season but followed John Calipari to Arkansas.
This season, Illinois’ Ivisic has put up better numbers than Arkansas’ Ivisic, as Tomislav is averaging 15.5 points and 8.7 rebounds per game. Zvonimir, on the other hand, is checking in at 12.0 points and 4.0 rebounds per contest.
On the surface, this is a fun matchup. How often do you get to see two brothers go up against each other? From a basketball standpoint, it is going to be interesting to see which brother wins out. Both players are roughly the same size, but I think Tomislav is more athletic and limber.
The frontcourt is going to be a big part of the game on Thursday. If Illinois can get Tomislav to play well and put up better numbers than his brother, I think we come out ahead.