Everything is going pretty well for the Illinois basketball program, and that means the basketball Gods have to intervene.
Sitting at No. 11 in the country, the Illini have won seven in a row. This team has five players scoring double-digit points on average, and everyone is pitching in to get to the ultimate goal of a national championship.
On Tuesday, Brad Underwood broke the bad news that Illinois will have to continue their winning ways without a key member of the program for another month.
In his pregame press conference, Underwood announced that Illini point guard Kylan Boswell had fractured his hand in practice on Monday. He also mentioned that a mid-February return for Boswell is the expectation at this point.
For most teams, this would be a huge loss. Boswell is second on the Illinois basketball team in both points and assists, logging averages of 14.4 points, 4.2 rebounds, and 3.4 assists per game through 18 contests this season.
Illinois basketball has a great backup plan with Kylan Boswell shelved for a month
While losing Boswell is obviously going to hurt, the Illini are uniquely equipped to handle this type of roster blow.
Entering this season, Mihailo Petrovic was projected to be a starter for the Illini, but with injuries and the emergence of Keaton Wagler, he has taken somewhat of a backseat in regard to the rotation.
Weirdly enough, Petrovic has started to get more minutes lately. He has averaged six minutes per game in the last four contests, and in the last game against Minnesota, Petrovic was key in rallying Illinois with his four points and three rebounds in seven minutes.
Yes, Boswell is out, and that isn’t good, but thankfully, Underwood has built the Illinois roster to withstand an injury like this one. It is Petrovic’s time to shine.