Matt asks: Was E’Twaun Moore’s big night spontaneous or does he have more of that? If so, how do you tell Kirk Hinrich to step back?

Last Thursday night, Russell Westbrook led the Oklahoma City Thunder into the United Center in a matchup against the Chicago Bulls that was lopsided on paper. Recently, Westbrook has produced triple-doubles at the same rate that I produce empty fruit snack packets around my apartment.

Who on the Bulls could stop Westbrook’s wrath? Derrick Rose? Hurt. Jimmy Butler? Hurt. E’Twaun Moore? Bingo.

My Purdue-fan roommate and I were watching the game Thursday and joked the entire time about Moore. He actually got some minutes for the first time in a while and took full advantage of the newly allotted playing time.

In 22 minutes, the 26-year-old Purdue product poured in 19 points on 9-of-10 shooting and collected a team-high two steals.

Not to mention, Moore hit the game-winning three with 2.1 seconds remaining.

In my mind, the most impressive stat of the night was that when Westbrook was guarded by Bulls not named Moore, he scored 20 points on 7-of-13 shooting and only turned the ball over once.

When Moore guarded him, Westbrook only scored six points on 2-of-12 shooting and committed four turnovers.

His 19-point, heroic effort against the Thunder was a bit spontaneous and not something to be expected in every game.

That being said, he should, without a doubt, be playing over Kirk Hinrich.

I understand that there was a time when Hinrich’s hard-nosed, defensive attitude carried weight for the Bulls, but that time is over.

Hinrich is shooting less than 30 percent from the field in his last five games and hasn’t scored more than eight points since early January.

If you have watched him pass the ball lately and plan on continuing to do so, I recommend you purchase an eye-washing station for your home.

Moore is not the answer for all of the Bulls’ problems, but there is no question as to who should be playing backup point guard minutes in Rose’s absence.

Michal asks: Will the State Farm Center renovations make a difference in student attendance and the overall game atmosphere?

I got the opportunity to travel to West Lafayette, Indiana, this past weekend to cover the Illinois-Purdue basketball game. I had never been to Purdue or Mackey Arena.

It was one of the most incredible college basketball environments I had ever witnessed.

Mackey is not the largest arena by any means, with a capacity of about 14,000, but the place was jam-packed.

Not only that, but the fans were loud.

Annoyingly loud.

Not just loud when Purdue was playing well. Purdue was down 15-2 at one point, but the crowd never wavered. It stayed in it the entire time.

Even though they might not admit it, I would guess that the fans absolutely got into the heads of the visiting Illini.

Annoyingly loud is not fun when you are trying to write a game story, but it sure is when you are a fan base trying to deter the opponent.

I have covered Illinois basketball all season long and attended numerous games since being at Illinois, and not once have I witnessed a crowd as intense as the one that showed up to Mackey on Saturday.

Arena renovations are attractive, but they do not make fans that were not showing up before actually show up.

I notice that Illinois basketball fans can get loud, but have a hard time maintaining that volume for the entirety of a game.

A major part of home court advantage is crowd noise, and the Purdue fans know that quite well.

Shiny new seats and scoreboards don’t create an intimidating environment for visiting teams.

Fans do.

Alex asks: What will be Illinois’ fate in the Big Ten tournament?

Illinois basketball needs wins. Illinois basketball really needs wins.

Before the Big Ten tournament, the Illini sit at 19-12 and open up Big Ten tourney play on Thursday against Michigan.

Michigan is a beatable opponent. The Illini should have probably beaten the Wolverines in Ann Arbor, Michigan, earlier in the season, and eventually beat them in Champaign.

By no means will that opening game be easy, but it is a game that the Illini must win if they want any chance at an exciting Selection Sunday. A loss certainly means a return trip to the NIT.

If the Illini defeat Michigan in the opening round, they go on to play Wisconsin.

I really don’t see any way that Illinois will beat Wisconsin, but I will try to evoke some hope in you.

College basketball, specifically Big Ten basketball, is wacky and always will be. Especially when March rolls around.

Crazier things have happened, and there is a chance that the Illini take down the Badgers, but first they have to get passed the Wolverines.

I see Illinois taking down Michigan and losing to Wisconsin.

If this happens, Illini nation will be sweating it out on Selection Sunday.

Sam is a senior in Media.

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@sam_sherman5