As coach Bruce Weber put it, “it’s a season that hasn’t quite gone right.
Illinois, just three years removed from being in the NCAA finals, has easily been the Big Ten’s most disappointing team. A preseason pick to contend in the conference, the Fighting Illini (11-17, Big Ten 3-12) have struggled late in games. They have lost 12 contests in which they either led or were tied with less than two minutes to play.
The lack of an impact scorer has significantly handicapped the Illini, who average just 64.7 points per game. Last week against 4-10 Michigan, the Illini shot just 32 percent from the floor and finished with less than 45 points for the second time this month.
To make matters worse, the team lost senior forward Brian Randle, its third-leading scorer, to a shoulder injury that will keep him on the sidelines for at least three weeks.
Still, there is reason to believe Illinois will pose some problems for opponents in the Big Ten tournament. The team is third in the conference in rebounds, led by senior center Shaun Pruitt, whose presence down low could create some mismatches in the guard-heavy conference,
“The Big Ten tournament gives everybody a second chance,” Weber said. “We’ve been able to compete, not win, but compete, and that’s the positive attitude we have to take.”
With three games remaining, Illinois will have a chance to gain some momentum going into tournament play and, if the bounces go their way, could make some noise.
Tate to the rescue
Iowa’s season has been defined by its unpredictability. The Hawkeyes (12-16, 5-10) have accumulated important wins against Big Ten elites Michigan State and Ohio State and then struggled mightily against cellar-dwellers Michigan and Northwestern.
Many of the team’s problems have come from its inability to put the ball in the basket. Last year Iowa finished third in the conference in scoring, led by the Big Ten’s leading scorer, then-senior guard Adam Haluska. This season, with Haluska gone, the team has fallen to last in total offense, scoring just 56 points a game.
Still, Iowa has stayed competitive thanks to a feisty defense. The Hawkeyes have held opponents to just 57.8 points, including giving up just 36 points in their January 12th win over Michigan State, a record low for the Spartans.
Part of their recent defensive success has come from the emergence of junior forward Cyrus Tate as a positive presence in the paint.
“Cyrus is playing to his strengths,” coach Todd Lickliter said. “He never concedes position down low and treats every shot like it’s pass, so he fights hard for his rebounds.”
Tate could also be the key to solving the team’s offensive woes. His 26 points last week in a loss to Michigan State were the most by an Iowa frontcourt player this year.
With a strong perimeter offense, led by guards Tony Freeman and Justin Johnson, Tate’s continued offensive output would give the Hawkeyes a more balanced attack that could make them a threat once tournament play begins.
Big Ten Notes
Tate was named Big Ten Player of the Week … The Big Ten continues to have four teams ranked in the top-20 (No. 9 Wisconsin, No.12 Indiana, No. 15 Michigan State and No. 19 Purdue)…Wisconsin’s Brian Butch and Penn State’s Jamelle Cornley become the sixth and seventh active player in Big Ten history to amass 1,000 career points.
