Illinois wins in Kylan Boswell's return, snaps two game skid

Early on Sunday morning, hours before Illinois was about to tip-off with Indiana, the Illini received excellent news. Senior guard Kylan Boswell was announced cleared to go and able see the floor for the first time in 7 games. While the news was great, there was one caveat to that. Wing Andrej Stojakovic was announced out as he is dealing with a high ankle sprain. Illinois is still looking to becoming whole once again, and the Illini might have to wait until after the California trip. Getting Kylan Boswell back was a huge step in the right direction, as his presence was felt this afternoon. Given the opponent, Illinois may have carded their best defensive performance of the season. Kylan Boswell being back certainly helped with that. The Illini held Indiana to just 20 second half points en route to a 71-51 victory.

Illinois was in a desperate spot after losing their last two games. While the team showed no signs of discomfort, there was most definitely some turmoil within the fanbase, and the State Farm Center was at the center of those attacks. Seemingly every year the Orange Krush and the environment at the SFC goes under scrutiny. This year felt a little different, however. The discourse seemed to be at an all-time high, and while some of the criticisms were not fair, the overall message was. The building simply needed to be louder. Whether you were for or against the online disputes, everyone had one common goal, and it was to make sure the State Farm Center was loud.

If I am going to criticize, I better give credit when it is earned. The atmosphere was electric and not something we have been accustomed to seeing against unranked opponents in recent years. We all know how loud the building can get when there is a legendary matchup in store. There is no reason to be scared that the crowd won't show up for Illinois' next home game against Michigan. The issue is that the building is quiet in other games. It was clear early on that the crowd and the Orange Krush were going to make a true impact on the game. The sea of orange and blue put on a show with the best production crew in the country in town. Playing on CBS is a treat, and it was good to see the fanbase show up for them.

For the actual basketball, there was a lot of encouraging signs for Illinois. I'll have to begin with the freshman because this is not a normal freshman class. David Mirkovic has flown under the radar all season as all the freshman hype has been taken by his teammate, Keaton Wagler. Mirkovic is putting together an All-B1G caliber season, and it is going completely unnoticed because he shares the court with a future lottery pick. David Mirkovic had his best game all season. He had one of his worst games all year against Wisconsin. Mirkovic texted Coach Underwood immediately after the game, taking full responsibility and claiming it won't happen again. He responded to his own callout. Mirkovic finished with a game high 25 points and grabbed 7 rebounds. He was the only Illini to knock down multiple threes. Those shots opened the floor even more for him and he worked well on the inside against a weaker Indiana frontcourt. Wagler scored 18 points and was in command of the offense once again. Who would have thought that the freshman seasons by Kasparas Jakucionis and Will Riley would be outmatched just one year later? Wagler and Mirkovic are doing things we have never seen. Tonight, they did it with Jakucionis and Riley in the building too.

Illinois absolutely dominated the glass. It's Illinois' identity. If they aren't hitting shots, they're going to keep getting the ball until they do so. The last two games this identity had faded, and with a smaller IU team here, it was a perfect time to remind the Big Ten who the Illini are. Illinois shot 7/31 from 3 and still won by 20. Indiana could not get a body on anyone. Illinois grabbed 15 offensive rebounds and each one felt as if it were crushing the soul of Indiana. It wasn't even just the Illinois big men too. Kylan Boswell grabbed 4 and Keaton Wagler grabbed 3 offensive rebounds. Teams have serious problems keeping Illinois off the glass, and it gives Illinois an ability to raise their floor for when an off-night shooting occurs like today.

Turnovers also played a key role in today's game. Carelessness with the ball due to fatigue was why Wisconsin was able to walk into the State Farm Center on Tuesday and win. On Sunday, Illinois did an excellent job taking care of the ball. There were just two turnovers, and one of them was on a questionable charge call after a couple offensive rebounds. Illinois is not known for turning teams over, but with Kylan back, there was a sense of additional pressure brought by Illinois. Early in the second half, Illinois sent some double teams for the Hoosiers' ball handlers, and it was extremely bothersome. Indiana had 3 straight turnovers in that stretch. They had 9 in the game. Illinois' ability to take care of the ball better might have been the number one reason this game was a blowout.

What this means:

Illinois avoided turning a speedbump into a complete blockage. With this win, Illinois is now 21-5 overall and 12-3 in Big Ten play.

Every win keeps Illinois alive in the Big Ten Title Race. It does not seem like anyone can catch up to Michigan, but the Wolverines still have to make their way to Mackey Arena and the State Farm Center. Asking for a title with 4 losses would just be wishful thinking. Illinois has to win out to have a chance for a Big Ten Title, and this was the first step in doing so.

Illinois has little room for error in their NCAA Tournament 2-seed chances. Once all the bracketologies, update, Illinois will be somewhere on the border between a 2 and 3-seed. With all the quad 1 opportunities awaiting, Illinois is in a great position to earn a 2-seed, and a 3-seed should still be the floor. The NCAA Selection committee is coming out with their 1-4 protected seeds next Saturday morning. Illinois will see their name in that and will truly know where they stand in the eyes of the committee. But before that, Illinois takes on USC on Wednesday night.