Illini rob the bank, pick up second top 5 road win this season.
- Feb 2
- 5 min read
February is the month where the real contenders separate themselves from the rest of the country. On the first day of the month, we were treated to a matchup for the ages in Lincoln. #5 Nebraska and #9 Illinois met for the second time this season, and the road team came out victorious once again. Both teams entered this game 9-1 in league play and were looking to join Michigan at 10-1. The Big Ten Title race is going to be one of the best all time, and matchups like these go a long way in deciding them. Illinois' 78-69 victory over Nebraska is one that will not be forgotten for many reasons.
Lincoln, Nebraska and Pinnacle Bank Arena were buzzing. There has not been a top 10 home game for Nebraska ever. It was evident the crowd was electric and was going to play a factor all afternoon. Nebraska got off to an early 9-4 lead and had the Illinois offense all out of sync. The first media timeout seemed to calm the Illini. The Ivisic twins feasted in the dunker spot and got some easy layups and dunks. Illinois' weak side cutters also tore apart the Cornhusker defense. Illinois built a 31-25 lead after Jake Davis hit three free throws. Everything seemed perfect until Nebraska finally landed a punch as the home team often does. Nebraska rode a 14-2 run into the break. Braden Frager and Pryce Sandfort made the Illini pay with their 2-3 zone by knocking down threes. Illinois trailed 39-33 at half and it could have been more if not for a Ben Humrichous block on a Pryce Sandfort look after a turnover. It was the most overlooked play of the game, in my opinion. The top of the building would have came off if Sandfort drilled that 3.
Trailing by 6 at half, Illinois continued to do what it does. They put their head down and cut into the lead immediately. Keaton Wagler had one of his worst halves all season, but All-Americans usually respond to terrible halves, and Wagler did just that. On Illinois' first possession of the half, Keaton converted on a nice move on the baseline. A couple of possessions later, he drilled a stepback three to tie the game at 44. I said the most overlooked play of the game was the Humrichous block because the most obvious play of the game was a Tomislav Ivisivc assist to Jake Davis for a corner 3 to put the Illini up 4 midway through the half. A David Mirkovic layup forced Fred Hoiberg to call a timeout with 8 minutes remaining. Illinois had taken firm control of the game. Was Nebraska going to make surge like they did in the first half or would Illinois continue keep the door closed on the road? The answer was the latter. Keaton Wagler and the Illini made some more winning plays. One of those was another Ben Humrichous block. This time, Ben came from the weakside to help cover Rienk Mast slipping to the basket. What looked like an easy layup for Nebraska turned into another defensive stop for Illinois. I am pointing this out because Humrichous had another poor shooting night (0-6), but his 20 minutes were overall great. Keaton Wagler's second half was much needed to win, but so were plays like those from the surrounding cast. Illinois continues to show their toughness and togetherness, which now that I typed this, I am chuckling a little because I realize this comment may have triggered PTSD from the John Groce Era so apologies in advance for those who know (check embedded video below if you are still confused).
It was a collective effort for the Illini. Keaton Wagler's Big Ten Player of the Year and All-American hype gets stronger and stronger every game. I'd have to do some research to confirm this, but I would expect him to rack up another Big Ten Player of the Week. I know Jeremy Fears had an excellent week, but Michigan State lost a game, so we'll see what happens. Wagler finished the night with 28,5,5. Jake Davis was the team's second leading scorer with 13. He hit some huge threes in the second half to get Illinois back in the game and take a lead. He is also sneakily the best rim protecter in transition of all time. I'm not kidding, he always goes straight up and was able to get a block on one today. Tomislav Ivisic had one of his best games of the season with 12 points, 8 rebounds and 3 assists. He is fully back at this point. David Mirkovic was solid with 10 points and 8 rebounds. He had a couple of baskets around the rim with nice touch. Andrej Stojakovic had a disastrous first half. He had tunnel vision when driving and was just out of control. He had a strong second half as a cutter and some solid defense. Zvonimir Ivisic had 7 points on 3/3 shooting and 7 rebounds in 20 minutes. He was a nice sparkplug off the bench. As I alluded to earlier, Ben Humrichous was scoreless, but his minutes were defiantly not empty. Illinois seems to be set on running a 7-man rotation while Kylan Boswell is out, and man, if the Illini get contributions like this from all 7, not many teams can beat Illinois.
What this means:
Well, remember two weeks ago when we received the news that Kylan Boswell was going to be out for a month? Yeah, so Illinois fans called the Big Ten Title out of reach, and we should just simply focus on earning a 3 seed for the NCAA Tournament. I have some good news for the fans who thought that way like me. Illinois will now be the top 2 seed in the country in every Bracketology. Illinois should be playing for a chance to be a 1 seed this month. With 5 Quad 1A wins, Illinois has one of the best resumes in the country. Not many teams will be able to say they have road wins against teams of Nebraska and Purdue's caliber. I think there would have to be a disaster for Illinois to not be a top 3 seed at this point. A 1 seed is very possible, and a 2 seed is expected now. I know it's a month away so I shouldn't be too excited, but there is a real chance Illinois gets the St. Louis to Chicago to Indianapolis pathway. The Final Four and National Championship is no longer an unreal possibility for Illinois. There is a palpable buzz in Champaign and for good reason.
In terms of the Big Ten, Illinois is now 10-1 with Michigan. I think you will have to go 18-2 to win the conference outright and 17-3 to get a share. There are 5 teams that can say they are in the mix. 10-1 Illinois and Michigan are obviously two of them. Michigan State and Nebraska are both 9-2. I am still not counting out Purdue who is 8-3 because they still have matchups against the three non-Illinois teams listed. Illinois has the upper ground at the moment. They have the best record and only see these teams twice more and one of those will be at home with the atmosphere of the year against Michigan.
Enjoy scrolling your feeds for the next few days as Illinois receives all the love. Illinois will look to complete the season sweep of Northwestern on Wednesday in the State Farm Center.
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