5 huge observations from the Illinois basketball win over Wisconsin

5. Terrence Shannon Jr. is playing some of the best basketball of his career

I don’t know what will happen with Terrence Shannon Jr. after the season. No one does. He still awaits his preliminary hearing in court on a charge of rape, which will take place in May.

On the court, which is a far less important topic, Illinois fans are witnessing one of the best stretches of basketball out of Shannon we have ever seen. He is playing incredibly well and is a big reason why we continue to win games.

Shannon continued his hot play on Saturday when he torched Wisconsin for 23 points on 6-of-13 shooting from the floor and 3-of-6 from three-point range. He also got to the free throw line nine times and made eight of those attempts.

For the season, Shannon is now averaging 22.0 points, 4.4 rebounds, and 2.2 assists per game. While those numbers are great, he has elevated his game in the last seven contests.

It all started in the Michigan State game back on February 10. This is when Shannon started playing at a different level. In the last seven games, Shannon has averaged 26.4 points, 5.1 rebounds, and 1.6 assists per game. He is also shooting at a high clip by going 53-of-108, 49.1%, from the field and 19-of-52, 36.5%, from three-point range.

Just think about that for a second. Over the last seven games, Shannon is averaging closer to 30 points than 20 points per game. He had a 12-point stinker in there against Iowa too.

When it is all said and done, I don’t know what Shannon’s legacy is going to be. But, as of right now, he is playing some of the best basketball of his career. I believe he is cementing himself as a first-team All-Big Ten player, and he could end up being a first-team All-American as well. This kid has a special talent on the basketball court.