Basketball

By Brad Sturdy - IlliniGuys Insider/Analyst

December 7, 2022

(Cover photo courtesy Brad Penner/USA Today Sports)

Horns Down

The 17th ranked Fighting Illini trailed by as many as 10 points in the second half before battling back to beat the #2 Texas Longhorns in overtime in the JimmyV Classic at Madison Square Garden by an 85-78 score. Matthew Mayer scored a career-high 21 points, keeping Illinois alive in the first half, before Jayden Epps (11 points) made big plays down the stretch and Terrence Shannon took over with 12 points in overtime (16 overall) to give the Illini the win over the previously unbeaten Longhorns. 

The Illini move to 7-2 and now have another big non-conference win over a national program heading into Big Ten play. 

Here’s what we saw.

By IlliniGuys Staff December 6, 2022 (Cover photo courtesy […]

Jimmy V Classic // #17/17 Illinois (6-2) vs. #2/2 Texas (6-0)
Dec. 6, 2022 // 6 p.m. CT (7 p.m. ET) // New York, N.Y. // Madison Square Garden
TV: ESPN – Dan Shulman (Play-by-Play), Jay Bilas (Analyst), Holly Rowe (Reports)
Radio: Busey Bank Illini Sports Network – Brian Barnhart (Play-By-Play), Deon Thomas (Analyst) // SiriusXM 134/195, SXM App 957

• No. 17 Illinois returns to the East Coast on Tuesday night, facing No. 2 Texas in the Jimmy V Classic at Madison Square Garden (6 p.m. CT, ESPN).

• Illinois’ two losses are away from home to undefeated teams: 7-0 Virginia in Las Vegas and at 8-0 Maryland. No. 2 Texas is Illinois’ fourth ranked opponent in nine games to open the season, and third top-10 Kenpom foe. Illinois is 1-2 versus ranked opponents this season and has won 12 of its last 20 games against Top 25 teams.  Illinois is 11-5 in their last 16 games versus top-10 teams. Illinois is a combined 7-40 all-time against teams ranked in the top 2 of the AP poll.

IlliniGuys Staff

December 5, 2021

(Cover photo courtesy Illinois Athletics)

Long before our Larry Smith was an IlliniGuy, he was a sports anchor for CNN and more recently an award-winning news anchor in Washington, D.C.  So, the Illini's game at Maryland Friday night gave him a chance to not only cover his favorite team for us, but engage in a wide-range of conversations from the BTN broadcast team to Jayden Epps' family to Maryland's legendary national championship-winning coach Gary Williams.

He offered his thoughts the day after the Illinois loss to our premium members on the IlliniGuys' message forum, the site of countless insider nuggets and expert observations.  You can read Larry's contributions as well as those of our team of experts and analysts by signing up for your free 7-day trial right here on IlliniGuys.com: https://illiniguys.com/subscribe/

(From Illini Sports Information Department)   BLOOMINGTON, Ind. -- Illinois […]

The Hoosiers have claimed the last 13 meetings of this series and in order to make it a rivalry again, Shauna Green's first meeting with Indiana has to set a tone.

Matt Stevens, IlliniGuys Staff Writer

December 4, 2022

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. -- The Big Ten Conference office isn’t going to allow Shauna Green to settle into her league schedule and in her mind that’s why she came to Illinois. 

By Larry Smith - IlliniGuys Staff

December 3, 2022

COLLEGE PARK, Md. - There is something to be said about firsts.

The first time you had a wreck on your bicycle.  The first time you walked into a new classroom.  The first time getting behind the wheel of a car.  That first kiss.  Just to name a few.

All cause moments of apprehension or fear.  The hope is to survive them with as few scars as possible.

Friday night at Maryland was the first time #16 Illinois walked onto the home court of another team after five games at State Farm Center and a pair of contests at a state-of-the-art arena in Las Vegas.

Brad Sturdy, Co-Host IlliniGuys Sports Spectacular

December 3, 2022

Illini Can’t Close

The Illini fell 71-66 in College Park on Friday night in front of a raucous crowd.

Despite a second half rally, Illinois loses Big Ten Conference opener at No. 22 Maryland 71-66 as the Terrapins shoot 9 of 23 from three-point range. 

Matt Stevens, IlliniGuys Staff Writer

December 2, 2022

All of Jahmir Young’s four three-point shots were devastating to Illinois’ effort to win its Big Ten Conference opener but none of them were bigger than the game-sealing he swished with 14 seconds left.

IlliniGuys Staff

December 2, 2022

#16 ILLINOIS (6-1, 0-0) Basketball Game Notes

at #22 Maryland (7-0, 0-0)

Dec. 2, 2022 | 8 p.m. CT (9 p.m. ET) | BTN | College Park, Md. | Xfinity Center

Makira Cook celebrates her 21st birthday by dropping 22 points against an overmatched Pittsburgh squad in a 21-point road victory for Illinois. 

Matt Stevens, IlliniGuys Staff Writer

November 30, 2022

Makira Cook celebrated her 21st birthday by delivering Illinois its first true road win of the 2022-23 season. 

By Brad Sturdy - IlliniGuys Insider/Analyst

November 30, 2022

(Cover photo courtesy Joe Clark/IlliniGuys)

Coleman Hawkins posted a triple double, while the Illinois defense held Syracuse to 44 points in a 73-44 thrashing that saw no Orange players in double figures. RJ Melendez showed out with 15 points and Terrence Shannon had 17 as Illinois moved to 6-1 heading into a tough stretch of games beginning at Maryland on Friday. 

Here’s what we saw.

In a 73-44 win over Syracuse, Illinois head coach Brad Underwood is basking in the beauty of how his team figured out how to thrive in what might be considered by others as ugly basketball. 

By Matt Stevens - IlliniGuys Staff Writer

November 30, 2022

(Cover photo courtesy Ron Johnson/USA Today Sports)

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. -- In a 29-point blowout win in its ACC/Big Ten Challenge matchup, this Illinois squad accomplished something that their head coach has been talking about since he arrived in Champaign.

Brad Underwood, who is entering his sixth season leading the Illini program, constantly has spoken about his affection for finding the beauty in what a majority of basketball fans might see as ugly play. Specifically, Underwood is always looking for examples of when his basketball team finds ways to succeed on nights when jump shots aren’t falling. The 73-44 win over a struggling Syracuse team was the 2022-23 Illini’s ability to hang their version of a Jackson Pollack painting inside State Farm Center while their head coach applauded the grotesque.

By IlliniGuys Staff November 29, 2022 (Cover photo courtesy […]

Game Preview: Syracuse at #16 Illinois

Date/Time/Place: Tuesday, Nov. 29, 2022: 6:30 p.m. CST, State Farm Center

Capacity: 15,544

Records: Syracuse 3-3; Illinois 5-1

Betting Line: Illinois by 12.5

Series notes: Illinois leads the all-time series 46-45-6 but the two teams haven’t played since Syracuse won 75-64 in Honolulu on Dec. 27, 1995. It’ll be Syracuse’s first trip to State Farm Center and the last Illini win was in the 1989 NCAA Tournament Regional Final round in Minneapolis. This will be the last year of the ACC/Big Ten Challenge series. 

TV: ESPN - ESPN – Dave Pasch (Play-by-Play), Fran Fraschilla (Color Analyst)

Radio (Illinois): Brian Barnhart (PBP), Deon Thomas (analysis), & Scott Beatty with Loren Tate (Pre/HT/Post) - The broadcast can be heard live on TuneIn online radio, Sirius/ XM satellite radio & SiriusXM Internet and at FightingIllini.com.

Illinois head coach Brad Underwood admits to being more patient with junior forward Coleman Hawkins now that he’s a veteran leader on this 2022-23 squad

By Matt Stevens - IlliniGuys Staff Writer

November 29, 2022

(Cover photo courtesy Ron Johnson/USA Today Sports)

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. -- Brad Underwood’s logic is Coleman Hawkins has earned more of his trust simply by obtaining veteran wisdom. 

The sixth-year head coach at Illinois has previously repeated that he was verbally and emotionally strict on the 6-foot-10 forward in his first two years inside the program and “harder on Coleman than anybody probably had been before”. This back-and-forth relationship, which led to Hawkins seeing more of the bench than he likely wanted and Underwood seeing less on-floor consistency than he likely wanted, culminated in an awkward postseason media session last April where Hawkins wouldn’t publicly commit to returning to Illinois for the 2022-23 season.