Coming into the game on Sunday, the Illinois basketball team finds itself in a pretty good position nationally.
Currently, the Illini sit 8-3 overall and are ranked No. 24 in the latest AP Top 25. One of the biggest metrics for telling where a team sits nationally in the NET rankings.
Illinois is doing even better when it comes to said NET rankings. We just moved up one spot to No. 13 in the country. This NET rankings include Illinois being 2-3 in Quad 1 games and 1-0 in Quad 2 games. That is on pace with much of the top 20.
Sunday’s game against Chicago State won’t have any positive ramifications when it comes to NET rankings. It literally can only have a negative impact or a neutral one. A win by the Illini won’t garner any favor in the NET rankings and, honestly, the AP Top 25.
A loss, on the other hand, would send Illinois spiraling down both rankings. It would mean a Quad 4 loss, which is a gut punch come NCAA tournament time. I also believe Illinois would not just fall outside the AP Top 25, but I think we would have a hard time getting back in within the next month or so.
At the end of the day, I don’t think this is going to be much of a game. The Cougars are 0-14 this season with just one of those losses by single digits. Some major programs Chicago State has played include Texas, a 105-58 loss, and Wisconsin, a 74-53 defeat.
Despite Chicago State and their poor play, this is still a pivotal game for the Illinois basketball program
I know Chicago State is a bad team, but when it comes to college kids, you can’t overlook any team. Who knows how the Cougars play and what Illinois comes out looking like on a Sunday afternoon?
While I do believe Illinois takes Chicago State for a 20+ point loss, this is still a big game in my eyes.
Obviously, moving to 9-3 is important so we can continue being in the national rankings and in line for a nice NCAA tournament seed. I would also like to add, beating Chicago State would give Illinois back-to-back-wins.
Sure, back-to-back wins don’t seem like a big deal, but it would be the first time Illinois has won back-to-back games in December this season. The last time we pulled off this feat was November 25 & 28.
I also want Illinois to look good in this game. A sluggish team out there against one of the worst teams in the country would make a lot of fans uneasy. If we come out and let Chicago State make this competitive late in the first half or even into the second half, then it would not look good.
Lastly, I think a convincing win over the Cougars is needed heading into the main Big Ten schedule. This upcoming Thursday and Sunday, Illinois is on the road against No. 9 Oregon and Washington, respectively. Those are going to be two tough games on the west coast. A win against Chicago State is needed to help build momentum heading into that west coast swing.