2. Will the Illini be smart about three-point attempts?
Brad Underwood has done a great job as the head coach of the Illinois basketball program. He took over a team that wasn’t good and has shaped us into a perennial NCAA tournament program.
One thing we disagree on is the three-point strategy. He is in the camp of taking as many three-point attempts as possible, but I believe that is our weakness. We need to drive the ball to open up the perimeter.
I want to see if we can be smart about three-point shots on Wednesday. Will the Illini use the three-point arc effectively against Penn State?
Illinois is coming off a game where we only made five three-point field goals. While I would like more to go in, this isn’t the number I look at. I am eyeing the 20 three-point attempts by the Illini. While we were only 5-of-20 from three-point range, I will take the 20 attempts every game.
This season, the Illini average 24.7 three-point attempts per game. That ranks No. 55 in the country. Illinois is currently making 34.3% of those three-point attempts as well, which ranks No. 152 in the nation.
20-25 three-pointers per game is a sweet spot in my eyes. When we shoot a lot of three-pointers, the efficiency goes down. In fact, when Illinois attempts 30 or more three-point shots in a game, we are 4-3. When we attempt fewer than 30 three-point shots, the program is 15-3.
Let’s not get complacent against Penn State. The Nittany Lions’ opponents are only shooting 30.7% from beyond the three-point arc. Illinois needs to continue being aggressive, and this should be an easy win.