Hoops4theSoul

Mar

5

Illini Need to Have Revenge on Mind

Filed Under Commentary, NCAA Basketball

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Mike Davis and Mike Tisdale Gear Up for Penn State Tonight Illinois Head Coach Bruce Weber Mike Tisdale and the Illini Battle Penn State Tonight 33 freaking points.

That’s all Bruce Weber should have to put on the whiteboard to motivate his Illinois Fighting Illini before they take on the Penn State Nittany Lions at the Bryce Jordan Center tonight.

A little more than two weeks ago, Illinois was humiliated in the ugliest game ever played at the Assembly Hall.

Illinois shot 15-50 from the field and failed to get to the free throw line in that 38-33 home loss, which served as further evidence to naysayers who cringe at and criticize the “three-yards-and-a-cloud-of-dust” style of basketball played in the Big Ten.

Of course, Illinois needs tonight’s game more than what turned out to be a loss to Michigan State this past Sunday.

For a team that has been a pleasant surprise, Illinois still has some convincing to do with the NCAA Tournament two weeks away.

Is Illinois really a team that can win a game or two in the NCAA Tournament and maybe surprise from there, or is it a pretender that will bow out early?

For the most part of the Big Ten season, the Illini have not looked like the same squad that tore through its non-conference schedule by playing with intensity, moving the basketball and suffocating the opposition with stingy defense.

While still being one of the more shocking teams in the country this season, Illinois has had its fair share of stinkers in that home loss to Penn State and road defeats to Minnesota (36 points) and Wisconsin. And they looked dead for 35 minutes against Northwestern before stealing a victory in Evanston.

Tonight’s game will tell you a lot about the mentality of this Illinois team and how successful it will be in the coming weeks.

With Penn State fighting for their tourney lives, the Illini better be prepared to come out from the get go and play, especially Demetri McCamey and to a lesser extent Mike Davis, both of whom have been known to get off to very slow starts.

If not, another loss will be in store.

For a team that is guaranteed the first day off in the Big Ten Tournament and will return to the NCAAs after a one-year hiatus, now’s not the time for Illinois to sleepwalk as it has on several other occasions this season.

The Illini need this game and a win or two in the Big Ten Tournament to ensure themselves of a four seed (in an ideal world) or a five seed (more likely). A stumble here, combined with an early exit in the Big Ten tourney, and the Illini may drop to a sixth seed and maybe even a seventh seed when considering what happens during the chaotic weekend that is conference tournament play.

Of course, take all of these factors out of the equation, and the answer to why Illinois needs this game tonight is simple.

The Illini scored 33 points last time out against Penn State.

If that’s not a reason for this team to be prepared, then what is?

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