Indiana men’s basketball fell to Illinois on the road in a 71-51 blowout that in all honesty wasn’t difficult to see coming.
The Hoosiers are a team built primarily on scoring in the backcourt without much size, lacking any true 7-footers in their rotation. The Fighting Illini, on the other hand, are the tallest team in the country by average height according to KenPom. Their 15-4 advantage on the offensive glass shows they know how to use that size.
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Here’s five things we learned from that game.
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Indiana didn’t get enough scoring from everyone not named Lamar Wilkerson. The Hoosiers entered the second half with the game somewhat in reach after some less-than-ideal looks fell in the first half. They weren’t going to outscore the Illini in the paint, but there was a path to staying competitive if 3-pointers fell. That didn’t happen. Wilkerson went for 21 points in the game with 7 of those coming in the second half while just two other Hoosiers managed double figures. Indiana was able to win recently with some acceptable scoring totals from Tucker DeVries and Nick Dorn’s emergence and the former managed 13 points while the latter put up just 1 on a free throw.
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The Hoosiers get too loose with the ball when games get away. Indiana needed a miraculous turnaround to make the game competitive in the second hand but made that just about impossible with seven turnovers, several of which came off of ill-advised passes in the halfcourt that Illinois jumped on. That helped turn the game into the blowout it became and kept it there.
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Indiana’s rotation has shortened significantly as of late. Trent Sisley’s minutes have given way to Tucker DeVries spending just about the entire game on the court as a secondary playmaker while Indiana boosts its backcourt with Jasai Miles in lieu of Tayton Conerway. This has dragged Indiana’s desired tempo down and let Illinois play the game in something of a comfort zone. This is a natural part of the season, but Illinois’ bench offers considerably more than Indiana’s and that’s not a winning formula for a team that needs to go fast to win games like this.
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That’s an Illinois team that has a realistic shot at a national title. There’s star power in Keaton Wagler, size all around the roster, perimeter defense from Kylan Boswell and strong 3-point shooting at every spot on the court.
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Indiana is too small. The Hoosiers’ options weren’t ideal with a team entirely built in the transfer portal, but this isn’t an overall formula that can compete with the top of the Big Ten on most nights. It’s worth wondering what the long term vision is for Indiana, if it goes all in on playing small or joins the top of the conference in loading up on size with skill.
