Underwood On Preparing Illinois Basketball For Red-Hot UCLA

It’s Kofi Cockburn Night in Champaign, as the Illinois Basketball legend returns to the 217 to see his jersey raised to the rafters of the State Farm Center. The celebration sets the stage for a marquee matchup, with the Fighting Illini taking on a surging UCLA Bruins team at 7 PM CST (2/11).

The Bruins roll into town riding a wave of momentum, boasting a seven-game winning streak after rebounding from a season-low four-game skid in January.

4-Game Losing Streak: Nebraska, Michigan, Maryland, Rutgers.

7-Game Win Streak: Iowa, Wisconsin, Washington, USC, Oregon, Michigan State, Penn State.

Undoubtedly, Illinois Basketball has also faced its fair share of inconsistency, dropping 5 of their last 9 games on the conference slate. With a tough road ahead, including 5 ranked matchups, a home victory could help the Illini stabilize heading into the final stretch of the regular season, as the team continues to get healthy.

Former Illinois Basketball transfer G Skyy Clark, as well as G Dylan Andrews, form an imposing defensive backcourt for coach Mick Cronin, helping the Bruins rank 5th nationally in turnover margin and 10th in forced turnovers per game. Beyond their relentless backcourt pressure, the Bruins additionally boast a highly productive frontcourt led by F Tyler Bilodeau. The big man currently leads the way in scoring for UCLA with 13.8 points, 4.5 rebounds, and 1.4 assists per game, while also shooting a highly efficient 50.2% from the field.

According to coach Brad Underwood, the Fighting Illini are preparing for quite a battle at home.

Jan 30, 2025 – Los Angeles, California. UCLA Bruins guard Skyy Clark (55) looks to pass around Oregon Ducks guard Jackson Shelstad. Credit: Alex Gallardo-Imagn Images

Underwood on UCLA

“UCLA – a team that has seen, really, a couple of extremes in the Big Ten. A four-game losing streak and now they are on a 5 game winning Streak,” says Underwood. “Very talented. A very typical… most don’t know, but a very typical Mick (Cronin) team. Good guards, I think they’re one or two in the country in turnovers. I think they had 24 points in their last game against Penn State. They won that battle 24-0 (turnover ratio).”

“The (Kobe ) Johnson Kid is one of their elite defenders, I think PAC-12 defensive player of the year last year.” coach Underwood states. “Skyy (Clark) and Dylan ( Andrews) do a great job defensively, and on the perimeter, they are very handsy. They’ll press a little bit. Then, they’ve got some very very good front-court scoring guys.

He concludes, “So, a very very good team. We’ll have to play well – they are playing exceptionally well. Hopefully, it’s a game where we can match the energy that they bring, and continue to play well.”

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