The Illini overwhelmed a lesser Syracuse team in the second half to pull away for the victory
It wasn’t the prettiest performance from the Illini against Syracuse’s zone defense, but they made it work with a 73-44 victory. My biggest takeaway from the game is: wow, the Syracuse program is in a BAD spot. They don’t have any semblance of a legitimate offense with zero flow or efficiency. The Illini are more talented and just flat-out better, that was the biggest difference in this game.
The Good Things
- Key Stats
- 21 assists on 24 field goals
- 7 turnovers
- 7 steals and 6 blocks
- 17 offensive rebounds
The Illini found their groove against Syracuse’s zone late in the first half, thus tallying 21 assists on 24 field goals (they should probably have more than 24 field goals, but still). They also followed up a sloppy effort against Lindenwood with just seven turnovers, which is great. They also dominated the offensive glass with 17 rebounds on that end, it was a joy to see them crashing the boards.
The Bad Things
- Key Stats
- 39 three-point attempts
- 14-for-22 at the free throw line (1-for-5 in the first half)
- Skyy Clark – 0-for-10 from the field and 0-for-7 from the three-point line
Not too much to complain about with this game, but they were brutal at the line. They salvaged it by going 13-for-17 in the second half, but the first half was bad. It was a tough night for Clark, but it’s no surprise that he struggled a bit after an elite performance on Friday night. I’m also not surprised that they took 39 threes, they had to shoot like this against the zone defense.
Three Studs of the Game
Stud #3 – Terrence Shannon Jr. (Illini) – 17 points, 7 rebounds (5 offensive), 2 assists, 2 blocks
It wasn’t an efficient showing from Shannon Jr. in this game, but he had a good line overall and played solid. He took 15 threes and only made five, but I thought he did a lot of good things in this game. His athleticism was on display tonight.
Stud #2 – RJ Melendez (Illini) – 15 points, 6 rebounds, 2 assists, 2 steals
A confident Melendez is here to stay it appears, he looked as confident as he did on Friday against Lindenwood. He’s aggressive with the ball and used his athleticism well in this matchup. Despite two early fouls, he rebounded from that and played well overall. He was also 7-for-8 from the free throw line that stretch.
Stud #1 – Coleman Hawkins (Illini) – 7-11 FG, 15 points, 10 rebounds, 10 assists, 1 steal
FINALLY, an elite performance from Hawkins against a power conference opponent. He was tremendous in every way tonight. He stood in the middle of that zone and picked his spots to run the offense, maybe now we know what Brad Underwood means when he talks about how great Hawkins is. Congrats to Hawkins on a TRIPLE DOUBLE, it’s a major accomplishment.
Onto the Next One
Next up for the Illini: Friday, December 2nd at Maryland (8 PM CST / Big Ten Network)
It’s going to be a tough test for the Illini at #22 Maryland. The Terps are 7-0 with dominant wins over Saint Louis and Miami. The Illini always seem to struggle with Maryland, and that could be the case again in this game. It’s going to be a high-level battle between these two teams.
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