A red-hot Illinois basketball team is back in action on Saturday against the USC Trojans.
The Illini are coming off a big win over Penn State. Despite being a man down, Illinois pulled through and put the Nittany Lions away early. This win was an eye-opener for many, as the Illini have a ton of talent and can suffocate teams even without our best player.
USC is up next. This isn’t a great Trojans program, but you always have to be ready in the Big Ten. USC is going to give us their best shot.
Here are three keys for the Illinois basketball team to beat the USC Trojans
1. Dominate the rebounding department
Coming into the Penn State game this past Wednesday, Illinois had a massive rebounding advantage. The Nittany Lions didn’t have much size besides one player, and the size difference showed.
Illinois ended up winning the rebounding battle against the Nittany Lions, 57-32. That is a massive margin and one that you can’t easily make up. The crazy part is, I think Illinois could have a bigger margin against USC.
So, one of the ways to beat the Trojans on Saturday is to absolutely obliterate them in the rebounding department.
USC is an extremely small squad. On top of the size issues, the Trojans aren’t good at rebounding the basketball. Their best rebounder is Saint Thomas who is 6-foot-7, and he is averaging 5.9 rebounds per game.
For the season, USC is logging 32.1 rebounders per contest. That is bad enough to rank No. 300 out of 364 teams in DI basketball.
Tomislav Ivisic and Morez Johnson Jr. have a chance to feast on Saturday. Ivisic has a natural built-in advantage being 7-foot-1. He is extremely athletic and nimble for his size too. I don’t think USC is going to have an answer for him.
Johnson is coming off his second double-double of the season. While only 6-foot-9, Johnson is one of the best rebounders I have ever seen for the Illini. This kid is a magnet for the ball.
My bold prediction for the game against USC is that not only will Johnson get another double-double, but I think both Illinois big men see a double-double. These two are going to have a massive day.