No. 19 Illinois (6-1) will head to New York on Monday to take on Canisius (1-5). Illinois is coming off its first loss of the season, falling to No. 14 Kentucky 53-76. This is the first true road game for the Illini this season.
The opponent
Canisius has struggled out of the gate, with its only win against Saint Francis (1-8). They enter Monday on a three-game losing streak. Monday’s game is a good chance for the Illini to regain momentum, both for the team and individual players.
The Golden Griffins struggle with ball movement. Its starting guards have 45 combined assists this year, and the rest of the team has only 20. On top of that, eight players have double-digit turnovers on the season, and they average 24.8 turnovers per game, the second worst in all of Division I women’s basketball. The Illinois defense should dominate against Canisius’ offense.
The home team has had some roster troubles as well. Canisius has started four different forwards throughout the season. This bodes well for Illinois as it has a solidified starting frontcourt in senior forward Brynn Shoup-Hill and fifth-year forward Kendall Bostic. Additionally, only one player averages more than five rebounds per game for the Golden Griffins.
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As a team, the Illini should find success under the basket. Individually, Bostic should feast. The Indiana native, who is coming off a down game, has an opportunity to bounce back in a big way.
Canisius has allowed 30 or more points in the paint in four of its six games. Bostic, who operates primarily in the paint, will likely get plenty of looks throughout the game. If she can be more consistent with her shooting, the Illini should dominate in the paint.
As for outside the paint, Canisius has held its opponents to 25% shooting from three this season. The Illini, who average 27.1% from beyond the arc, might see their struggles continue. With the weakness of Canisius being inside the paint, Bostic will likely be the team’s offensive focal point.
Big test looming
For Illinois, the game Monday is its last chance to get right before it faces off against No. 11 Ohio State. It will mark its third ranked opponent of the young season. It’s 1-1 in such contests, beating No. 19 Florida State and losing to No. 14 Kentucky.
It will also mark its first game against a Big Ten opponent this season. A solid win against Canisius would be good for Illinois’ momentum before its big game on Sunday against Ohio State.
Injury bug
Since the season began, Illinois has been plagued by injuries. Sophomore center Lety Vasconcelos suffered a torn ACL in October, ending her season before it began. Junior forward Shay Bollin has yet to play this season, although her injury is considered a day-to-day injury.
Five-star freshman forward Berry Wallace was ruled out after the game against Florida State and is considered week-to-week. The most recent addition to the list is sophomore guard Jasmine Brown-Hagger, who has been out since last Friday’s game against Oregon State.
The Illini have been playing with limited numbers all season, and the injuries keep coming. The conference games continue to inch closer as they try to get healthier, but until then, they’re down to just nine available players.
@ben_some16
