Illinois basketball is back, and head coach Brad Underwood’s new roster didn’t disappoint in its exhibition game against Illinois State on Sunday afternoon. The Illini defeated the Redbirds 92-65 behind strong performances from both the Illini veterans and newcomers.
“You get out of this what you want,” Underwood said. “You play in front of fans. You see who can play with the lights on. You see who can make the right plays at the right time when the heat is on, and that was nice to see.”
Four Illinois players finished the contest in double figures, scoring in various ways both inside and out. Freshman forward David Mirković was the Illini’s leading scorer with 19 points. Right behind him with 17 points in his debut was freshman guard Brandon Lee, who came alive offensively during the second half.
“I’ve said all along, I thought our freshmen were advanced in terms of not being lost,” Underwood said. “You know, it’s October. This group, in part because of some of the injuries … they’ve got a ton of reps. We’ve had 10 or 11 (players) in practice, so they are getting a full dose.”
Europeans shine early
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In their debuts, Illinois’ European newcomers showed the unique skill sets they will bring to the roster this season. Both Mirković and junior center Zvonimir Ivišić were versatile offensively and, even with their size, played guard-like.
They also contributed to the Illini’s fast-paced play. Once players such as junior guard Andrej Stojaković and freshman guard Mihailo Petrović return to the lineup, that style of play will only be enhanced.
“It’s gonna keep getting better even when they come back, because they can do same things better than us,” Mirković said.
Even at 6-foot-9 and 250 pounds, Mirković pushed the ball a lot on the fast break, showing off his guard skills, while also putting his strength near the basket on display. Mirković ended the first half with 10 points and nine rebounds, nearly a double-double. The freshman quickly grabbed his 10th rebound early into the second half, ending the game with 14. He rounded out his stat line with six assists as well.
“He’s (Mirkovic) an amazing passer,” Ivišić said. “He has amazing vision. We’ve already seen everything. It wasn’t a surprise. We were expecting it.”
While Ivišić didn’t rebound as well as Mirković, he still made his presence known. Ivišić had 15 points and started the game 2-3 from deep. He ended up shooting 30% overall from the three-point line, having some trouble finding the net in the second half, despite good looks.
Ivišić also had moments where he ran the fastbreak for the Illini, including a massive transition dunk that got the crowd and the bench fired up. However, Ivišić did receive a technical foul on the play for hanging on the rim.
“Coach (Underwood) wasn’t mad,” Ivišić said. “He said to keep playing, but I’ve got to stop doing that.”
Keeping Illinois State out of the paint
With multiple key players absent from the projected starting lineup, Illinois had to adjust. Underwood decided to start a bigger lineup out of the gate, including the 6-foot-9 Mirković, 6-foot-9 graduate student forward Ben Humrichous and the 7-foot-2 Ivišić. This benefited the Illini defensively by forcing Illinois State to take more threes and limiting 7-foot-1 senior forward/center Brandon Lieb from getting going in the paint. Lieb ended with just 9 points.
“I thought defensively in the first half, I was as pleased with that as maybe anything,” Underwood said.
Illinois State didn’t convert on its increased three-point opportunities, only shooting 27.6% from three. The post was taken away, which prevented the Redbirds from doing much offensively. Although it is only the first game of the season, the size of the Illinois roster is already making a positive impact on its defense.
“(The Illini) play a lot of pressure on the ball,” said Illinois State sophomore forward Jack Daugherty. “Their defense was difficult just cause of how aggressive they are.”
Rebounding leads to second-chance points
The bigger lineup not only helped the Illini defense, but their offense too. Illinois had 14 offensive rebounds and converted those into 18 second-chance points. The offensive rebounds created chances for both put-back layups and kick-out threes.
Alongside the increased size of the lineup, pure hustle for second chances on offensive possessions and high energy in the passing lanes also contributed. Continuing to play with that same hustle each game will benefit the Illini this season when they may play schools with more competitive size and athleticism than the Redbirds.
Veterans off to a strong start
Having veteran players is a key difference between this season and last season’s rosters. Senior guard Kylan Boswell and Humrichous led the Illini on both ends by doing a bit of everything, from making plays for their teammates to capitalizing on their own opportunities.
By playing with a faster pace on the open floor, Boswell found success. He was able to drive the lane for layups multiple times on the break and find his teammates for open shots, totaling six assists. All around, Boswell was consistent from the field, scoring 14 points on 5-9 shooting, and his experience showed through how comfortable he looked on the floor.
For Humrichous, his physicality was a positive and helped him score his nine points in other ways besides from the three-point line. When he was near the basket, Humrichous seemed more at home than he was last season. Underwood complimented Humrichous’ offseason work, which improved his physicality.
“You saw some booty ball with him (Humrichous),” Underwood said. “There can be a lot more of that. We feel really comfortable. We’ve spent a lot of time with him in the offseason with him in that area, and I would love to see him take advantage of mismatches one way or the other, get to the foul line more.”
Outside of Boswell and Humrichous, other returning players also contributed. Junior forward Jake Davis and redshirt freshman center Jason Jakstys tallied four and five points, respectively. The pair also snagged three rebounds each. The depth of Underwood’s roster was on full display in the matchup and will be useful the rest of the season, especially when they have multiple starting-caliber players return.
“I like what we’re doing and I’m excited to see it when we get (Andrej) Stojakovic, when we get Tomi (junior center Tomislav Ivišić),” Underwood said. “Then, these freshmen just got to keep growing, but I like what they did today.”
