Thoughts about A 71-51 loss to the Illini:
Indiana put together a solid first half and did what it could against this talented Illini team.
But in the end, the Hoosiers once again fell victim to an opponent with superior size and physicality. They also had to rely heavily on Lamar Wilkerson to generate offense again for extended periods of time. This Illinois team isn’t hyper-athletic, but that doesn’t matter. The offense is ranked first in the country on KenPom and has weapons everywhere. And the Illini didn’t even need a strong or typical performance to beat Indiana by 20 points.
In league play, Illinois came into the game with the highest number of 3s and scored 44 percent of their points, which ranked second in the conference. But the Illini shot just 7-of-31 (23 percent) this afternoon, accounting for 29.5 percent of their points. Instead, Illinois enjoyed more inside, beating Indiana 40-25.
One of the bigger reasons why? Illinois recovered 42 percent of its misses, leading to 17 second-chance points. Even when Indiana had position, the Illini, the top team in the country, were able to work over the top of the Hoosiers for rebounds. Time and time again, Illinois gave itself extra chances, leaving Indiana exhausted after 40 minutes of action.
Keaton Wagler was able to get past every defender Indiana threw at him for points at the rim today. He shot 6-for-11 on 2s and continued his surging freshman season (18 points). The Hoosiers also had no answer for David Mirkovic, who scored on all three levels and connected on 10-for-16 from the field, including 3-for-6 from deep. He led all scorers with 25 points. And the return of Kylan Boswell to the lineup (4-for-10, nine points) gave the Illini a new dimension on both sides of the ball, as his backcourt power was a welcome returning addition. Illinois turned the ball over on just four percent of its possessions (two turnovers).
Despite today’s tough challenge, Indiana performed quite well in the first half and did not appear overwhelmed or hampered by the road environment.
But once outside the break, that changed. The Hoosiers made just two baskets and scored just seven points in the first 10:29 of the second half, all coming from Wilkerson. It wasn’t until a Sam Alexis dunk at 9:31 that another Indiana player scored. To try to steal this one, Indiana would have to be hot from three-point range, but deep into the second half it made just 2-for-11. The Hoosiers also scored just seven baskets in the final 20 minutes (7 of 21) and scored a paltry 0.71 points per possession according to the live box score. Besides Wilkerson and Alexis, only Tucker DeVries (2-of-7) scored in the second half for Indiana.
Overall, the Hoosiers were just 6 of 24 (25 percent) from deep today. And against an elite Illini team (No. 1 in the country) that made no mistakes, Indiana shot just six free throws, making five.
Indiana was unlikely to pull this one out. Today’s results showed that too. Because of his problems? Another tough road game against Purdue at Mackey Arena. If the Hoosiers fall short there too, they will need to get some wins at home to keep pace for a berth in the NCAA Tournament.
(Photo credit: IU Athletics)
See more: The minute after, Illinois battles Illini
#minute #Illinois