5. Can Illinois rack up the rebounding total?
Illinois has proved to be a great rebounding team this season. So far, through 10 games, the Illini have pulled down an average of 43.3 rebounds per game, which ranks No. 6 in the country.
A huge part of this great rebounding ability is the fact Illinois has guards who are active on the glass. Ty Rodgers is a nice wing who can go up and pull down a rebound. Marcus Domas is 6-foot-6, and you will see him flying to get a rebound as well.
I want to see if Illinois can keep up this great rebounding. I believe we can blow Missouri out of the water when it comes to rebounding the basketball. So, can Illinois rack up the rebounding total?
While Illinois is great at rebounding the basketball, Missouri is on the opposite end of the spectrum. They are only pulling down 32.8 rebounds per game. This is bad enough to rank No. 283 in the country.
Missouri is also allowing opponents to rebound the basketball at a high rate. Opposing teams are pulling down 36.9 rebounds per game against the Tigers, which ranks No. 243 in the nation.
I think this is an area where Illinois can really see big margins. Missouri is not a good rebounding team, and that probably has to do with the lack of size. Illinois should be able to win the rebounding battle by double-digits, and I look for the Illini to also have quite a few offensive rebounds. This will give us second-chance points.