3 key questions for the Illinois basketball team against Arkansas

2. Does Illinois backcourt size cause issues?

I touched on the size of the two big men in the previous slide, but they aren’t the only players who could have physical size come into play.

Last season with the Illini, I was always amazed by how big the rotations were. The shortest player in our starting lineup was 6-foot-6. There is a similar trend with this year’s team too.

Kylan Boswell is by far the shortest player Illinois trots out there in our starting lineup, and he is 6-foot-2. But our backcourt also consists of 6-foot-6 freshman Kasparas Jakucionis and 6-foot-7 Tre White.

Jakucionis and White in the backcourt have caused problems for teams this season because of their great size. Something to watch when Illinois takes on Arkansas is if the Illini backcourt size gives the Razorbacks some issues on the offensive and defensive ends of the court.

While Illinois sends out a big lineup, Arkansas doesn’t have a ton of size in the backcourt. They are a smaller and quicker team that can play fast.

Arkansas’ starting backcourt consists of DJ Wagner and Johnell Davis, both players checking in at 6-foot-4. They also have Boogie Fland, who is 6-foot-2. That isn’t great size by any means.

I think Illinois has a chance to really give the Razorbacks’ backcourt some issues. They are going to have to shoot over Illinois, and that is tough when the player guarding you has multiple inches on you. I am excited to see Jakucionis and White specifically lock some players up defensively.