The Illinois basketball team has the talent to go deep in the NCAA tournament, but putting that talent together is the tricky part.
It has been one of the weirder seasons in recent memory. The Illini haven’t fielded a healthy team often in the past month or so, and the record hit has reflected the roster issues.
At one time, Illinois was 12-3 overall and 4-1 in the Big Ten. We had just rattled off five straight wins which included two games of scoring over 100 points and a win on the road against No. 9 Oregon by 32 points.
Injury and illness then struck the program. Since that point, Illinois had dropped five out of eight games entering the contest against Minnesota on Saturday.
Illinois was still, essentially, missing two players in Dra Gibbs-Lawhorn and Tre White in this contest. Both players actually suited up, but they were also both sick and you could tell. Combined, they played roughly four minutes and had zero points, one rebound, one assist, one turnover, and five fouls.
Even with two players still on the mend, I think the picture of Illinois basketball is getting much clearer. Brad Underwood needs to continue getting the ball inside and attacking the basket. Stop settling for three-pointers every time down the court. Utilize the strategy we played with against the Golden Gophers.
The other major piece in the picture is the fact that, as long as Illinois has our Big 3 on the court, I think we can handle health issues with other players.
Who is the Big 3 you ask? It is Kasparas Jakcuionis, Tomislav Ivisic, and rising star Will Riley. These three are the engine that makes Illinois basketball run, and as long as they are on the court, we have a chance to win a lot of games.
The sample size is small, but the Illinois basketball team has a special Big 3 brewing in Champaign
The Big 3 element of Illinois basketball is relatively new this season. The emergence of Riley has made this a real possibility, as he has come onto the scene strong in the past couple of weeks.
Riley was given the green light in the last four games. In that stretch, he has gained confidence and flourished on the court. In the last four games alone, he is averaging 21.3 points, 4.8 rebounds, and 3.8 assists per game while shooting 51.7% from the field and 45% from three-point range.
In that great four-game stretch, Illinois has only had a healthy Big 3 in two of those contests. The Big 3 played full games in both the Ohio State and Minnesota games, both of which were victories. Tomislav Ivisic missed the Nebraska game with mono, and he went down with an ankle injury against Rutgers late in the game.
The game against Minnesota was the first time I realized that, wow, this could really be a thing. Illinois has a true Big 3 rising to the surface right now. In the game against the Golden Gophers, the Illini Big 3 combined for 69 points, 24 rebounds, 13 assists, three blocks, and one steal while shooting 27-of-40, 67.5%, from the field and 6-of-10, 60%, from three-point range.
As time goes on, the Illinois Big 3 will get healthier and healthier. That will only make the Illini scarier and scarier. This program is just tapping into the potential of what could be a legendary Big 3 in Champaign.