Illinois basketball was playing well coming into the game on Friday night against the Purdue Boilermakers.
The last game against Michigan gave the Illini a lot of confidence. We went up to Ann Arbor and beat the ranked Wolverines program on Senior Day by 20 points. That is a win that can help propel a team to great heights.
Beating Purdue was going to be a bigger challenge, though. The Boilermakers have good guard play and a solid forward big man who can cause chaos. For much of the game, that was the way it was playing out too.
Illinois had a hard time stopping the pick-and-roll that Purdue was flawlessly running. Trey Kaufman-Renn was getting whatever he wanted. Midway through the second half, everything changed. The Illini started playing incredibly well.
From that point on, Purdue didn’t have much of an answer. Illinois was able to get some key stops down the stretch too. With some big shots, Illinois was able to take down Purdue, 88-80.
Here are five massive observations from the Illinois basketball win over the Purdue Boilermakers
1. One of the most clutch shots from Kasparas Jakucionis
Throughout history, the Illinois basketball program has had some pretty big shots.
You can think back to the Brandon Paul game winner in the Big Ten Tournament. For older heads, the Nick Anderson three-pointer to beat Indiana on the road in 1989. Or how about, and I still get goosebumps and remember where I was, the Tyler Griffey game winning layup to beat No. 1 Indiana in 2013.
Those buzzer beaters were massive shots, but all clutch shots don’t have to come at the buzzer. On Friday night against Purdue, Illinois needed a spark. We needed someone to hit a shot to put us over the edge. Who stepped up?
King Kasparas.
Tied at 79 a piece with under a minute left, Kasparas Jakucionis hit one of the most clutch shots in recent memory. This bucket with 40 seconds remaining put Illinois up 82-79 and was a part of a 10-2 run to give the Orange and Blue the lead.
A miss by Jakucionis would open the door for Purdue. The Boilermakers could have come down the court and got the ball to Trey Kaufman-Renn, and he would have likely made a two-point shot and took the lead. That didn’t happen due to Jakucionis’ massive shot.
I feel like it has been a while since we have had a big shot like Jakucionis just made on Friday night. This type of bucket, that type of win, is what will help propel this team in the postseason. What a game.
2. Illinois had one of those special runs
For the vast majority of the game, Purdue clearly had control. Illinois would do its best to keep up with the Boilermakers on the scoreboard, but they were able to control the paint for the most part.
Illinois would edge close, but then Purdue would extend the lead to 5-10 points. The Boilermakers would get the lead up to 10 points with 11:34 left in the second half. That is when Illinois hit one of those switches.
You know what I am talking about. It is a switch that turns this team into the best program in the country. I am not mincing words either. When Illinois flips that switch, we are unbeatable.
That switch was flipped in the second half against Purdue, and specifically, it was in the final 11:05 of the game. The Illini went on a massive run and played incredible basketball.
In that final 11:05, Illinois was nearly flawless shooting the ball. We were 10-of-14 from the field, which included a suffocating 6-of-7 from three-point range. In addition to the great shooting, Illinois was also converting at the free throw line, going 9-of-11 from the charity stripe.
For those counting at home, that is 33 points in the final 11:05 of the game. There is no team in the country that can handle that type of production. Purdue was on the receiving end of one of those special runs. These types of runs give me hope that a deep NCAA tournament push is in the near future.
3. The Illini locked down Purdue from outside
Entering the game on Friday night, one of the keys I had to beat Purdue was to make sure Illinois plays solid perimeter defense. Trey Kaufman-Renn is a really good player, but the Illini couldn’t handle Purdue getting hot from deep.
The main players I was wanting the Illini to focus on were Fletcher Loyer and Braden Smith. This Boilermakers backcourt is sneaky good, and they can tear you apart if you let them. Thankfully, the Illini were ready.
I was impressed with how Illinois came out and shut this duo down. The Purdue backcourt couldn’t get going from the perimeter, and it had a lot to do with Illinois being aggressive on the three-point arc.
There were only a few times Illinois got lazy and would go under screens. This is when Smith would hit a three-pointer. But, for the most part, we worked through screens. Illinois had great communication on switches too.
For the game, Loyer was shut down completely from deep. He was 0-of-2 from three-point range. Smith wasn’t much better either, as he shot 2-of-9 from beyond the three-point arc. Purdue as a team was just 5-of-18, 27.8%, on the night.
Illinois came out and had a good game plan against Purdue. We didn’t let them get hot from three-point range or it would have been a long night. This defensive effort was huge on Friday.
4. Kylan Boswell can impress me without making buckets
I have been frustrated with Kylan Boswell numerous times this season. He has a ton of talent, but sometimes it feels like he settles and doesn’t want to do much on the court.
Over the past few weeks, Boswell has looked different. It seems that he has hit a different mode, and now he is consistently giving Illinois good game after good game. What makes Boswell special is that he has the talent to be effective even when he isn’t making shots.
Boswell’s shooting against Purdue wasn’t anything to write home about. He was 4-of-7 from the field and 0-of-3 from three-point range. Even with those shooting numbers, Boswell still finished with 15 points.
When Boswell gets into the paint, he is one of Illinois’ best players. He finished 4-of-4 from two-point range against Purdue, and he was able to draw a ton of contact. This enabled Boswell to get to the free throw line and go 7-of-9 in the game.
He has been distributing much better too. Boswell has had 16 assists in the past three contests. In the prior 10 games before that, he had 15 assists.
The special thing about Boswell is that he can affect the game without shooting well. That takes a lot of talent. When Illinois gets an engaged Boswell, we can take our performance to another level. That is what happened against Purdue.
5. Tre White is playing the best basketball of his career
When Illinois landed Tre White, I wasn’t completely sure what we would be getting. I was thinking more of a slasher, and that is what I wanted him to be this season.
For about a month of the season, there was a stretch when White averaged just five points per game. He wasn’t being effective, and there were various circumstances that caused this production drop-off.
Over the last four games, White has gotten extremely hot and is playing some of the best basketball of his career.
In the win over Purdue, White put up 20 points, nine rebounds, one assist, and one block while shooting 7-of-9 from the field and 3-of-5 from three-point range. This great shooting performance has been a trend for the star wing too.
Just in the last four games, White is 9-of-15, 60%, from three-point range. In the prior 24 games of the season, White was 10-of-43, 23.2%, from beyond the three-point arc. That is an insane bump in shooting.
I love White’s energy on the court too. He has been aggressive in the rebounding department. He has been skying for rebounds lately, compiling 20 rebounds in the past two contests and having nine against Purdue. Those boards are crucial in Illinois getting more chances to score.
In the past four games alone, White is averaging 17.3 points and 6.8 rebounds per game while shooting 24-of-36, 66.7%, from the field and 9-of-15, 60%, from three-point range. This four-game stretch has been incredible to watch, and Illinois is going to be extremely dangerous if he can keep it up.