Brad Underwood sends huge message after howling at referee during 71-51 win vs. Indiana originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
Five days after No. 8 Illinois’ 92-90 overtime loss to the Wisconsin Badgers, the Fighting Illini responded with a return to State Farm Center in Champaign Sunday with a 71-51 win against the Indiana Hoosiers.
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Coach Brad Underwood said he was proud of the way his team responded by snapping a two-game losing streak while remaining in the mix for a Big Ten regular-season title with under a month to go until the Big Ten Tournament in Chicago gets underway March 10.
Led by freshman forward David Mirković’s 25-point performance, the Illini (21-5, 12-3 Big Ten) were able to brush off any inconsistency they endured in their losses to the No. 10-ranked Michigan State Spartans (20-5, 10-4 Big Ten) and Badgers (18-7, 10-4 Big Ten) with closing out games.
Against the Hoosiers (17-9, 8-7 Big Ten), there were few concerns. The Hoosiers were held to 13 points the entire second half, but what remained consistent, though, was the officiating.
And not in a good way, Underwood noted.
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Underwood again voiced his concerns about the refereeing treatment toward freshman guard Keaton Wagler not getting proper foul calls.
Underwood noted the inconsistency when speaking to local media following the win, briefly addressing the now-viral heated exchange as the crew of Jeffrey Anderson, Keith Kimble and Earl Walton exited the court at halftime with Illinois leading 38-31.
“I mean, he gets clubbed in the head,” Underwood said of a non-call Wagler should have had. “All of them came out and said they missed it.”
Even though Wagler was able to play through contact by coming away with a productive 18-point outing, Underwood said it continues to get worse from game to game. The victory against the Hoosiers was no exception.
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“Because he’s playing the game the right way [and doesn’t flop] that he doesn’t get those calls,” Underwood said. “And he’s not trying to dupe anybody.”
After playing 11 games in 33 days, the rigorous schedule for Illinois doesn’t let up entirely. A trip to the West Coast to play the USC Trojans (18-7, 7-7 Big Ten) Wednesday night (10 p.m. ET) and the UCLA Bruins (17-8, 9-5 Big Ten) Saturday night (8 p.m. ET) is next.
The Hoosiers, meanwhile, will rematch with the No. 13-ranked Purdue Boilermakers (21-4, 11-3 Big Ten) this Friday (8 p.m. ET) in West Lafayette, as they try to put a dent in their conference title hopes while sweeping the season series.
Indiana had won five of its last six entering Sunday’s contest.
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Should the Illini win those two to increase their would-be streak to three, it could set up a colossal matchup when the first-place No.2-ranked Michigan Wolverines (24-1, 14-1 Big Ten) visit Champaign Friday, Feb. 27.
Nonetheless, a conference title is still up for grabs in arguably the toughest league in college basketball.
And it doesn’t get much better than that.
