A massive game is approaching, and the Illinois basketball team has a chance to get revenge.
Less than a month ago, the Illini traveled to East Lansing and almost knocked off Michigan State. The Spartans are a good team, and Illinois was injured and ill at the time. That didn’t matter, as the Orange and Blue about clipped one of the top teams in the country.
An 80-78 loss was brutal. Illinois is now fully healthy and playing some good basketball. Michigan State has hit a rough patch of their own. Hopefully, this is a combination that will give the Illini another win on Saturday.
Here are three keys for the Illinois basketball team to beat the Michigan State Spartans
1. Kasparas Jakucionis needs to play B+ or better
Illinois basketball has a chance to do something on Saturday that hasn’t been done since early January. Win three games in a row.
The Illini hit a rough patch in the past month or so, and a lot of that has to do with injury and illness. A big hit to the roster was when Kasparas Jakucionis went out with an arm injury. He returned to action in mid-January, but he wasn’t the same player.
So, a big key for Illinois to come away with the win against Michigan State is if Jakucionis can play at least a B+ game. If that happens, then I think we are good.
Jakucionis did play in the first matchup between the two teams. This was only his second game back from the arm injury. The game against the Spartans was the start of some rough basketball for the talented freshman too.
In the two-point loss to Michigan State, Jakucionis had three points, three assists, one block, and one steal in nine minutes of action. The reason he only played nine minutes was that he was constantly in foul trouble and would eventually foul out of the game.
Despite not having Jakucionis for much of the contest, Illinois still nearly won that game. That is why, if Brad Underwood can get just a B+ game out of the freshman sensation, then I think Illinois comes out victorious.