3. Can Illinois continue dominating the paint?
As a team, Illinois can go 2-of-13, 15.4%, from three-point range against Florida State and still come away with a win. That is extremely hard to do, but the dominance of the paint had a lot to do with the victory.
Most of Illinois’ success came within the paint. Cook managed to score 20 points despite going 1-of-5 from three-point range. She was aggressive and got to the basket a lot.
Adalia McKenzie had one of the best games of her career. She finished with 20 points on 8-of-10 shooting from two-point range, most of which came from the paint.
Illinois also has a couple of big-time towers in the paint. The combination of Kendall Bostic and Brynn Shoup-Hill was huge in game one this season. They combined for 23 points, 19 rebounds, and three blocks.
So, can Illinois continue this great paint play? Can we dominate the paint against Marquette?
Last season, Illinois came close to knocking off Marquette. The leader in that game was Camille Hobby, though. She and her buttery jump shot departed the program. Illinois will need the likes of Bostic and Shoup-Hill to step up. They only had 18 points and 10 rebounds combined in the game last season.
Who knows, maybe this will be a chance for Wallace to get more minutes and be effective in the game. Illinois is going to need to make up for the 18 points, seven rebounds, two steals, and one assist that Hobby gave us last year. This is another big test in game two of the young season.