2 weeks Ago
To subscribe, click here. Sign up for our daily basketball newsletter here Welcome to “Good Morning, Illini Nation,” your daily dose of college basketball news from Illini beat writer and AP Top 25 voter Scott Richey. He’ll offer up insights every morning on Brad Underwood’s team and college basketball at large: Sunday was a unique experience for me given I watched an Illinois basketball game for the first time already knowing the outcome.
Because it was already halftime in Oxford, Miss., by the time my flight from Portland, Ore., landed back in Chicago, and No.
24 Mississippi had long finished its 91-74 victory by the time I got home. So did knowing that Illinois was on the receiving end of a beating in its charity exhibition game color my opinion as I watched? Not really. The Rebels simply took care of that by not missing a shot and scoring 13 points in the first 2 1/2 minutes of the game.
It was that quick. Still, it was the first time I got to see this new-look Illinois team play, so I had some thoughts: — Might as well start with one of the few positives. I was uncertain what kind of role sophomore guard Dra Gibbs-Lawhorn might play given the additions of Kylan Boswell and Kasparas Jakucionis.
But if Gibbs-Lawhorn plays with the level of energy and effort he had Sunday, there's a spot for him in the rotation. He finished with a team-high 15 points, but the thing that probably endeared him most to Brad Underwood was his defense and willingness to dive on the floor for loose balls. — Tomislav Ivisic also had a solid unofficial debut for Illinois.
His soft touch in the post stood out to me along with his passing and the fact he knocked down a couple three-pointers. On his to do list? Defending a little harder on the perimeter. The Ole Miss big men knocked down some three-pointers against soft closeouts.
A trio of first-half set shots from Malik Dia just made it look worse. — Back-to-back three-pointers from Will Riley was a nice sign. But Matthew Murrell being able to bully the Illinois freshman was an indicator of where Riley needs to go strength wise.
Simple math on that really with a fifth-year veteran having a lot more physical maturity. Something Riley will have to contend with throughout the season. — Kasparas Jakucionis probably tried to do a bit too much.
Finishing with 12 points, six rebounds and five assists is a harbinger of stat sheet stuffing to come. But turning it over four times wasn't ideal. — While Illinois did get in a scrimmage with Butler, this was the first actual game for the Illini's freshmen.
It was concerning, however, how some of the more experienced players fared. Ty Rodgers in particular given he had more turnovers (four) than rebounds (three), assists (two) or points (zero). That Rodgers didn't even attempt a shot is also worth a mention.
Ben Humrichous scoring two points on 1 of 5 shooting, including an 0 of 4 mark from deep, was also a touch troubling. Poor shooting afternoons can be explained away a little bit, though, compared to just being a non-factor..
