Illinois Basketball to Face off against 2023 Cinderella Story

Illinois Basketball to Face off against 2023 Cinderella Story

Illinois Basketball has had a successful start to the season. Despite some slow starts to some early home games, this team is starting to click and look like a national force. To end their non-conference schedule, Illinois basketball will face off against the Fairleigh Dickinson Knights. The Knights are 6-7 to start their year and are 333rd in Kenpom. Despite this, FDU is fresh off a Cinderella run to the round of 32. FDU pulled off the impossible and topped the 1 seed, Purdue Boilermakers in impressive fashion. The Cinderella story was rather impressive and is one that will give Purdue fans nightmares for years to come.

Based on the metrics, however, the knights do not seem to be that same threat. Illinois Basketball should successfully take care of this Quad 4 home game.

Take care of business early.

The goal here should be for Illinois Basketball to finish the job early and to give their depth pieces some run. This is a great opportunity to try some different wrinkles in their offensive scheme in preparation for the difficult start of January. Once the new year starts, Illinois will host the Northwestern Wildcats in what should be a high-octane battle. Afterward, Illinois will head over to West Lafayette to take on the presumed leaders of the Big Ten and the NCAA. That game against Purdue should be a robust litmus test heading into the second half of the season.

Ideally, Illinois can sit their main four offensive weapons so that they can all play for less than 30 minutes. Though Terrence Shannon Jr is a pro, he has played 34 minutes or more in the last 5 games. Shannon Jr will be asked to carry a heavy and physical burden against Purdue. It is essential that he is fresh and ready for the conference games.

Confidence for the bench.

For Illinois to reach their full potential, the players off the bench have to contribute. In a perfect world, some of these guys have to be the main factors in winning a game. In the blowout win vs Missouri and without counting AJ Redd’s bucket at the end, Illinois basketball’s bench scored 8 points total. Though the rotation is short, Justin Harmon and Luke Goode have to be more consistent offensive threats off the bench. Dain Dainja also has struggled in recent games since Coleman Hawkins’ return. The Big fella simply is not quick enough on the defensive end to be effective. Also, is offensive game has become a little bit clunky and tends to overdribble.

Dainja needs to go back to rebounding, playing solid defense, and making quick decisive moves on the low block. His free throws are an issue, however, he needs to find a way to establish a rhythm. Against FDU, I hope to see Harmon, Goode, Amani Hansberry, Dainja, and Dravyn Gibbs-Lawhorn get some extended tick. Eventually, the four key offensive starters will have nights where they are locked down or off. The other players on this team have to show they are capable of stepping up.

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