Illinois Basketball: 5 observations from the Illini win over Colgate

The Illinois basketball team looked good, as we took down Colgate on Sunday afternoon.

This wasn’t a cakewalk for the Illini throughout, though. Illinois hit the Crest of the mountain early in the second half, but Colgate stormed back to narrow the deficit.

Illinois took Aim at the Raiders, and eventually put them away, though. The Illini were too strong for Colgate, as the length of our Arm was too much, and we laid down the Hammer on the undersized mid-major program.

Okay, enough of the toothpaste puns.

Here are the five observations from the Illinois basketball win over Colgate

1. Illinois length gave Colgate problems

The Illinois basketball team needed to have a good game on Sunday, and the Orange and Blue came away with the victory over Colgate. A big reason for the win was Illinois’ tremendous length on the court.

Each game, the Illini start a lineup with the shortest player standing at 6-foot-6. That gives opponents some tough matchups to deal with. The Raiders felt the Illini length early and often.

Terrence Shannon Jr. was a menace at guard. He was quick and the Colgate guards had trouble getting the ball up and not turning it over. Shannon ended the game with five blocks, and the two backcourt players for the Raiders shot a combined 1-of-11 from three-point range.

I loved what I saw out of Coleman Hawkins and Quincy Guerrier in the paint as well. Hawkins displayed quick hands all game long, and Guerrier is just an athletic freak. Even the top-echelon teams have a hard time handling him.

There were some issues that I had with the Illini throughout the game, but I had zero problems with the defense. We were all over the court, and Colgate couldn’t handle us. It was another impressive defensive outing for the Illini.