Illinois Basketball Looks To Rebound in Ann Arbor

The Illinois Basketball team suffered their first ‘bad’ loss of the year on Sunday, dropping a home game against Maryland. Maryland was the more physical team, scoring 52 points in the paint. Now the Illini travel to Michigan to take on the spiraling Wolverines. After a quick start to the season, Michigan has had a gaggle of on and off the court issues and sit in 11th in the Big Ten. However, they can still provide the Illini some issues, and Brad Underwood will need to have the team ready to go.

1. Dig Deep

Michigan has a number of talented players despite their record. As the game will be played at home, the Wolverines will have leading scorer Dug McDaniel available to play. They have two other players averaging double digits, and one more at 9.9. However, after their best five or six players, there is a steep drop off. Their bench players will play hard, but don’t provide much scoring punch. Illinois similarly has not used their bench much after the suspension of Terrence Shannon Jr., but this is a game where they have a clear advantage on the bench. If the Illini can get some key players into foul trouble, they can really put the Wolverines into a hole. Dain Dainja and Dra Gibbs-Lawhorn haven’t been able to find a consistent way to produce, but this can be a good spot for them to step up.

2. Boat Race

Michigan has been one of the worst teams in the country on defense. They have good athletes. They have good size. However, despite this they have struggled to show consistent cohesion on that end. Illinois has to avoid a shootout with the Wolverines, especially in their home arena. The Illini need to work to get Domask on good matchups like McDaniel or Terrence Williams III. If they can get good shots, keep Michigan out of transition and make the Wolverines play uphill the emotional cracks on their team can come to the surface. Michigan is holding onto their tournament hopes with their fingertips. Illinois can’t give them any hope at a resume win.

3. Bigger Picture

Terrence Shannon Jr. has his preliminary hearing this same day. The Illini have done well without their star but have to be prepared for him to continue to be away from the team. When Shannon Jr. was suspended, the Illini were top 20 on KenPom in both offense and defense and were leading the Big Ten. Now they are 10th on offense and 31st on defense. They have also fallen to fourth in the league. If they can continue to tread water, they can put themselves in a good position if Shannon Jr. returns. If he does not, the Illini need to get back to winning ways to build momentum. They likely cannot win the conference with him out, as Purdue is a powerhouse, and Wisconsin has a very easy conference schedule. The Big Ten doesn’t have a lot of highly regarded teams, so Illinois need to avoid as many bad losses as possible.

Thank you for reading Armchair Illini. For more Illinois Athletics and Big Ten content from Armchair Illini, follow us on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram.  For feedback, questions, concerns, or to apply for a writing position, please email our Publisher at [email protected]. Please use our Seatgeek code for 20$ off your purchase on Seatgeek.com: ARMCHAIRILLINOIS. It is because of your support that we have become one of the fastest-growing Illinois media outlets around!