It’s a holiday affair for Illinois (5-1) as it prepares to take on No. 19 Arkansas (5-1). It’s a matchup with many connections between the two teams, and they’ll meet at a neutral site in Kansas City, Missouri.
Holiday special
When the ball is tipped at 3 p.m., it will be Illinois’ sixth Thanksgiving game in program history. The Illini are 4-1 in previous matchups on Thanksgiving and would love to keep that success rolling.
Coaching connections
Head coaches Brad Underwood and John Calipari have exchanged assistant coaches in the last few years. Orlando Antigua and Chin Coleman spent time in Champaign with Underwood before leaving for Kentucky in 2021.
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When Calipari left Kentucky for Arkansas this offseason, Coleman followed, but Antigua returned to Illinois. Each assistant coach knows the style of the head coaches and is excited to implement their game plans.
“(Illinois) is one of the top teams in the country in offensive rebounds,” Coleman said to reporters this week. “You may not believe this; I worked for Brad Underwood for four years. So I kind of know all his tricks.”
Brotherly love
Sophomore center Tomislav Ivisic has made waves in his first season with Illinois, but his last name won’t be unique on the court on Thursday. Sophomore center Zvonimir Ivisic will face his Illini brother for the first time in the United States on Thanksgiving, making it a special matchup.
Both brothers play important roles in their respective teams. Tomislav Ivisic is the second-leading scorer for Illinois. He’s averaging 15.5 points and 8.7 rebounds through his first six collegiate games. Meanwhile, his brother is Kentucky’s third-leading scorer, posting 12 points, four rebounds and nearly three blocks per contest. All eyes will be on the 7-foot brothers with bragging rights and a Quad 1 win on the line.
A true NBA matchup
Whether you are critical of Calipari’s tournament success or not, it’s hard to ignore his developmental abilities. Kentucky leads the way with the most players currently in the NBA, and it isn’t close. Calipari has done this for a while, and he has more than a few guys on his current roster at Arkansas who are likely to leap.
Underwood is still working his way to building up an NBA track record, but he’s had a couple of players in recent years. Those guys have paved the way for the current roster, which makes this game especially exciting.
Three players in this Thanksgiving special are projected first-round picks in next year’s NBA draft. Freshman guard Kasparas Jakucionis, freshman forward Will Riley and Arkansas freshman guard Boogie Fland are all listed, but plenty more could be selected.
The talent on both sides will be on full display on CBS for the late afternoon game, and the implications are high. Illinois had two dominant games after its first loss, and team chemistry seemed to grow. Now is the time to show it and insert themselves back into the rankings after a busy Thanksgiving week slate.
@benfader7
