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It capped one of the most glorious days in Illini sports history as
Illinois completed the hat track. At the first media timeout the
victorious football team was introduced, as they had just returned
home from Happy Valley, PA., after stunning and shocking the #7 Penn
State Nittany Lions on Homecoming, 20-18 in 9 [count ‘em-not a
misprint] overtimes! Earlier in the afternoon, the Illini women’s
volleyball team shut down & throttled Michigan 3-1 with the LDN in
the Huff House, and then it was time for the hoopsters.
The fact that Illinois won this first exhibition 101-34 over St.
Francis of nearby Joliet, IL is immaterial. I know that some fans
don’t like these games against lesser opponents but as a former
player and coach, I can’t stress to you how important they really
are.
*They let you play against someone different to see how well you’ve
learned our stuff.
*They help acclimate all players to the home court [remember the
Illini practice across the street].
* It gives you ample reps to see how far players have progressed.
* It allows a coaching staff to experiment with different rotations
[what does it look like when we go big?/when we go with 4
guards?/what substitution patterns should be employed?/who should
redshirt? Etc. etc.
*It provides dozens of teaching points to help coaches and players
prepare for the games that count.
*It provides a perfect teaching tool to acclimate freshmen,
transfers, and returning injured players slowly into the mix.
AND those are just a few of the reasons that these games are
imperative. In fact, Coach Underwood must agree with us. Some teams
play only one [if any], but Coach and his staff wanted both that are
allowed because they help put a quality season together.
And speaking of a solid year, that brings me to one of my biggest
fears going into the season. The expectations of Illini fans are off
the charts. People have already bought into the hype and several are
already making plans to ride trolley cars and eat beneighs in April.
And yes, I would be happy to join them, but a lot has to happen for
that to happen!
The Illini need to stay healthy. Even though this team has better
depth than I have observed in a while, a key injury or two could
derail the final four express. The continuity and team bonding need
to reach an even higher level. I like what I witnessed last year and
so far with this group. However, in order to get where the Illini
want to go, and all-in approach might make the difference as I see
12-15 teams that look final four worthy to me, and I don’t know IF
we’re amongst that group-at least I don’t know that yet.
I think Illinois’ defense will need to improve and they will have to
rebound the ball ferociously! Last year I noticed teams like
Villanova and the eventual National Champion Baylor Bears [a team we
lost to in Indianapolis] just seemed to be more intense, more
rugged, and exhibited a little more physicality than we did. I’m not
blaming anyone or complaining or even trying to be critical-I just
think we need to be a little nastier. [to top of second column] |
Offensively the word is that we project or should shoot the ball
better- last year our mid-range and long-range shooting wasn’t
good enough to be considered elite. We’re told that we have a
bevy of shooters this season and we can take that one off the
worry list. I’m excited and thrilled to hear this news, but I
will wait a while before I start proclaiming it. My worry with
this group is that so many of them can shoot it, but I sense
that we’re sometimes too happy with a decent good shot instead
of looking and probing for a better or best shot. When we
reverse the basketball quickly and make the extra pass-I think
we are hard to beat.
I love our swagger. I love our confidence. I love our mental
toughness. I love that our players seem to be an extension of
our coaches on the floor. But, and this is a big but, we tend to
get non-cholent and careless at times. A turnover will happen
from time to time with a team like ours playing at the speed,
pace, and tempo that we like. However, unforced silly turnovers
against the best teams can thwart momentum and obviously produce
empty possessions. I thought we really cleaned up a lot of that
last year and hope to see us clean-up even more of that this
campaign.
We need to lock-in on home court advantage. Fans=this is where
you come in. The State Farm Center was a ghost town last year
with no fans allowed. Now that you’re going to be back in the
building-these guys need to hear you! No golf claps! No sitting
on your hands! Get up & make some noise. Winning these games at
home may well be the difference maker as to how many
expectations these Illini can reach.
One thing I don’t love is our brutal schedule. Again, I know
that many of our fans and readers do love it. I’m not afraid to
play a couple of tough games along the way, but this schedule
has a steady diet of them, and it can take a toll on any team,
much less one that has as many expectations as we have for this
ball club. I’ve long said that our Big 10 Conference is the best
league in the country, and I don’t think it’s a close contest.
However, I have also long believed that when our top teams go
thru the gauntlet and make it to the NCAA tournament-out teams
always look to me like we’re out of gas. Until the Big 10 wins
another NC-I’m sticking to my story [by the way, last Big Ten
team to win a title=MSU in 2000] …I’m not as crazy as you’ve
been led to believe.
So, it’s on to exhibition game number two Friday versus Indiana
PA. [By JEFF MAYFIELD]
Respond to the writer at
jeffqmay@gmail.com.
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