Only two days after defeating LIU (3-3) on Saturday, No. 8 Illinois (5-1) is back at State Farm Center to face the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (2-3) Monday at 7 p.m. This is the Illini’s last home game before heading to Madison Square Garden on Friday to play the No. 3 UConn Huskies (5-1), a highly anticipated nonconference matchup at a neutral site.
“I’ve had (UTRGV) marked on my calendar since it came out,” said head coach Brad Underwood. “They play really hard. They’re very well-coached … It’s a quality opponent, and it’s a team that went into Madison last year and played the heck out of them.”
Quick turnaround
Similar to how playing a tough nonconference schedule prepares Illinois for March, so does this weekend. The quick turnaround between these two games was purposeful. Experiencing a short period between games early in the season simulates what it will be like for the Illini to play in tournament settings later in the year.
“(UTRGV) have our full attention,” Underwood said. “I’m very curious to (see) the quick turn and the approach we take. We have to become pretty mature in how we handle that.”
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Especially for the younger, inexperienced players, this NCAA tournament-like time period between games gives them a preview of what March will be like. Both the Big Ten tournament and the NCAA tournament force teams to play games in a short period of time. Preparing for this sooner rather than later can give the Illini a leg-up on opponents come tournament time.
Defensive consistency
Although the Illini defeated the Sharks on Saturday, the defensive end of the floor created frustration for Underwood. Illinois forced plenty of turnovers on Saturday, which helped hold LIU to only 19 points in the first half. Yet, the Illini allowed 39 second-half points from the Sharks, including seven made threes.
“We started the second half great,” Underwood said. “Then I went to our bench, and we were in the toilet. That can’t happen … We give up seven threes in the second half on just horrific closeouts and mental breakdowns and scouting report. That’s stuff we can’t do and shouldn’t be doing. We didn’t have any problem in the first half. We can’t let the score dictate how we play, and that’s where I’ve got to get this group to grow up and understand.”
Playing UTRGV will be a chance for Illinois to improve its defense and contain a team that scores a lot of points. Through five games, UTRGV is averaging 83.6 points per game while shooting 43.2% from 3-point range.
The Illini also face another team with high-scoring guards, which they aren’t strangers to. UTRGV graduate student guard Marvin McGhee III is the team’s leading scorer, averaging 15 points per game on 57.4% shooting from the field. Right behind him is junior guard Koree Cotton, who averages 11.8 points per game and 41.2% shooting from three.
To start the season, senior guard Kylan Boswell has taken on the responsibility of shutting down the opposing team’s best perimeter players. However, freshman guard Brandon Lee is another player who can have that type of impact now that he’s back from injury.
“(Lee’s) a really good player,” said freshman guard Keaton Wagler. “He gets downhill easily, gets by his man, and he’s a dog on defense. We can put him on the other team’s best player if Kylan needs a break from that or someone — he can pick up full-court and harass the ball handler.”
The Illini will also see one of sophomore guard Mihailo Petrović’s Serbian teammates, junior forward Filip Branković. In his first season with UTRGV, Branković is averaging 9.4 points per game while shooting 54% from the field. He can also step out and shoot the three. Containing UTRGV’s top scorers will be a test for Illinois ahead of Friday’s matchup with UConn.
Complete rotation
As long as nothing changes from Saturday’s injury report, Illinois will have its entire roster healthy against UTRGV, with the exception of redshirt junior guard Ty Rodgers. Playing another game before facing another top-10 nonconference opponent this week gives the Illini time for their injured players to become more comfortable and confident.
Although players like Petrović and junior center Tomislav Ivišić are now multiple games back from injury, they’re still adjusting. Monday is an opportunity for them to continue to get their conditioning where it needs to be and work themselves back into the rotation.
“We need practice,” Underwood said. “I told the guys on the bench during the second half (against LIU), I said, ‘I would love to have just a three-hour practice tomorrow and hammer home some of the things we didn’t do well.’ That’s the reinforcement piece.”
@evy_york2
