5 big questions for the Illinois basketball team against Minnesota

4. Do the Illini come to play in the first half?

One of the more frustrating areas for the Illinois basketball team this season is how we start games. We come out of the gates looking lethargic, and this bites us in the butt.

Illinois usually has to rally and come back in the first half to narrow the margin by halftime. The Illini were losing to Iowa 20-17 less than nine minutes into the game. We were down 16-7 just over five minutes into the Penn State game. Maryland had the lead 15 minutes into the game 27-26.

I believe Illinois is a much better team than all three of the programs mentioned above, but we allow those teams to hang around. So, do the Illini come to play in the first half against Minnesota?

Unlike the Illini, the Golden Gophers start games strong. They have been tied or had the lead nine minutes into the game in four out of the past five contests. They have only been losing at halftime in one out of the last five games as well.

Minnesota can light up the scoreboard in the first half. The Golden Gophers average 36.2 points per game in the first half this season, which ranks No. 77 in the country.

This will be an interesting matchup. While Illinois doesn’t start games strong, we finish the first halves with a flurry. The Illini average 39.8 points per game in the first half this season, which ranks No. 13 in the nation. Let’s see if Illinois can come out of the gates looking engaged. If we are mentally in the game from the jump, this team can be extremely dangerous.