A trip to the Final Four is up for grabs on Saturday night as No. 3 Illinois prepares to take on No. 9 Iowa at the Toyota Center in Houston. While it will be a clash of two Big Ten programs with a historic rivalry between them, it still feels like an Elite Eight matchup more than anything, according to Illinois head coach Brad Underwood. The Hawkeyes may be the lower seed, but they have been the underdog in every game so far in this tournament, and the Illini can’t overlook that.
Iowa is also not the same team that Illinois faced in its 75-69 win in Iowa City, Iowa, in early January. Like the Illini, the Hawkeyes have improved, made adjustments and settled into the roles that have helped them get to where they are in postseason play. Illinois has a chance to make its first Final Four since 2005, but before then, it must defeat a well-improved, hungry underdog.
“It’s what we strive for every year,” Underwood said about reaching the Final Four. “It’s where I think we should be. I think it’s where this program should be. It’s my expectation to get this program there, and you’ve got to keep knocking on the door. It’s a hard thing to do.”
Hawkeyes’ freshmen holding their own
A large part of Iowa’s offensive identity is its 3-point shooting, and that was evident from its first game against Illinois, to now in Houston, playing for a chance to go to the Final Four. Two of the Hawkeyes’ top threats from outside the 3-point line happen to also be freshmen, and they are stepping up to the plate when it matters most in March. Freshmen guard Tate Sage and forward Cooper Koch have only become more confident in their shooting abilities since playing the Illini the first time, and that’s only made them more dangerous.
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“They played a shooting lineup a lot yesterday with Cooper and Sage,” Underwood said. “I think that both those young men are better. They’re not freshmen anymore, not playing like freshmen. They’re playing like chiseled veterans.”
Koch and Sage are No. 2 and No. 3 on the Iowa roster in 3-point field goal percentage, shooting 40.3% and 37.7% respectively from deep. While the Hawkeyes’ overall 3-point shooting performance was better in the last three games than it was against the Illini in January, their freshmen are the ones who have taken off from beyond the arc. In Thursday’s Sweet 16 win over No. 4 Nebraska, the pair shot a combined 7 for 15 from three to help lift Iowa to the Elite Eight.
Koch and Sage both thrive within the framework of the Hawkeyes’ offense. With senior guard Bennett Stirtz as the focal point, bringing the ball up the floor and playing as the main facilitator, the freshman sharpshooters can get open looks from three due to Stirtz’s willingness to be a distributor. When Stirtz drives the lane, defenders help off Koch and Sage, which gives them opportunities to knock down threes confidently as they’ve done all tournament long.
The Illini defense is prepared to be tested by the Hawkeyes’ 3-point snipers, but it proved that it can shut down perimeter offensive threats in the win over the No. 2 Houston Cougars. Illinois held Houston to shooting just 28.1% from three on Thursday, heavily contesting all attempts and not allowing second-chance point opportunities. Staying sharp defensively by understanding the scout will be important for Illinois to continue to play 40 complete minutes of strong defense again against Iowa.
“I think Iowa’s a team that’s not going to go away,” said freshman guard Keaton Wagler. “When we played them, we got up early on them, and then we let them back in the game. We can’t get lackadaisical on that side of the ball on defense, just stick to our process throughout the whole game.”
Stirtz stays a defensive focus
While Sage and Koch are finding their footing at just the right time in the season, the engine of Iowa’s offense hasn’t taken its foot off the gas all season. Stirtz finished the regular season as the fifth-highest scorer in the Big Ten, averaging 19.7 points per game plus 4.4 assists per game, too. The statistic that shows just how important Stirtz is to this Iowa team isn’t solely the scoring, but the amount of minutes he plays, too. In the NCAA tournament, Stirtz hasn’t sat out a single time through three games while also only committing one turnover.
“His impact on this basketball team is, it’s not understated,” Underwood said of Stirtz. “He is fabulous; he elevates everybody else.”
Yet, what has been different for Stirtz in this NCAA tournament run is that head coach Ben McCollum has decided to play him off the ball more than he did during the regular season. That hasn’t decreased Stirtz’s production, though, as he’s averaging 16.3 points through the first three games of The Big Dance. Playing off the ball has allowed Stirtz to conserve his energy to stay on the floor at all times while also staying productive.
“They’re giving him some breaks where he’s just not on (the ball) constantly,” Underwood said. “He’s still No. 1 in the country in ball screen usage and scoring. He’s very effective, he’s going to have the ball in his hands late clock.”
When he’s not on the ball, it will only become more important for Illinois’ defense to keep track of where Stirtz is at all times. The NCAA tournament hasn’t been kind to Stirtz in terms of 3-point shooting, as he went 0 for 9 from deep in the upset win over No. 1 Florida. The thing about Stirtz, though, is that he won’t stop shooting, and it can click for him at any moment, as he improved to 3 for 9 from three against Nebraska on Thursday.
For Illinois to contain Stirtz, it needs to play with the same defensive intensity it did on Thursday against Houston star freshman guard Kingston Flemings. Senior guard Kylan Boswell and the rest of the Illini defense held Flemings to just 11 points on 4 for 10 shooting from the field. Taking Flemings out of the game was a huge part of the game plan that ultimately led to the victory. Boswell contained Stirtz before, holding him to 12 points on 5 for 17 from the field in the first matchup, but this time, the stakes are higher as a trip to the Final Four is on the line.
“Honestly, probably the most unsung hero in their entire program is Boswell,” McCollum said. “I mean, he is the edge that they need; he’s the alpha. He’s good. He’s physical, he gets downhill, he defends, he’s got great energy. I think he is the leader of that defense.”
Improved rebounding
As a team, Iowa has improved in one main area throughout this tournament run that has led it to this point, only one win away from the Final Four as a No. 9 seed. In the Hawkeyes’ January matchup with the Illini, they got out-rebounded overall 38 to 31, but they actually recorded one more offensive rebound than the Illini. Since then, their effort on the offensive glass has only increased, which was the X-factor in their wins over No. 8 Clemson and Florida.
“They played big against Clemson,” Underwood said. “Obviously, they matched Florida on the glass, which is very impressive. We scrimmaged Florida. We know how challenging that was.”
Each game has highlighted a different Hawkeye that dominated the glass, whether that was junior forward Cam Manyawu in the first round with 10 rebounds, senior forward/guard Tavion Banks in the second with six or Sage in the Sweet 16 by grabbing eight boards. Illinois must remember that this isn’t the same team on the glass they faced in early January. Everyone will crash the boards now, even the guards, and the Illini are ready for the challenge after Wagler’s 12 rebounds and freshman forward David Mirković’s 10 against Houston.
“I think we’ve all got to be ready to go,” Stirtz said. “They crash five, and they’re the best rebounding team in the Big Ten … It starts with the bigs, but it also starts with the guards. Keaton had 12 rebounds, so me, Kael (Combs) and the other guys, Tate, we really got to be ready to go, and it’s not even take one possession off, you got to do it every possession.”
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