Illini 24-0 !!!!!!!!!!
http://sports.espn.go.com/ncb/recap?gameId=250390130
Illini will be 33-0 on Selection Sunday
http://sports.espn.go.com/ncb/columns/story?columnist=forde_pat&id=1986971
In religion and sports, the slow converts tend to wind up the most zealous. So now that I've seen the light, I'm ready to proclaim from the pulpit and exclaim from the mountaintop:
If it avoids injury to its key players, Illinois will be undefeated when the NCAA Tournament brackets are unveiled on Selection Sunday. Thirty-three and oh, yo. Write it down.
That might not be a good thing, but it is a sure thing. Mike Davis has a better chance of receiving a supportive phone call from Bob Knight than the Big Ten has of beating its runaway leader.
Those with memories stretching all the way back to (cough) early last week might recall that I said Illinois was still less than a 50-50 proposition to run the table. But that was before the Illini shockingly shot Michigan State out of its own gym, before Iowa sent Pierre Pierce packing, and before Wisconsin swooned at Minnesota.
After those developments, the path is remarkably clear to the first unbeaten regular season in the Big Ten since the fabled Indiana 1976 national champions. For the record, this Illinois team (23-0, 9-0 in the Big Ten) cannot compare to those Hoosiers -- certainly not yet, probably not ever. Indiana rampaged through two straight 18-game Big Ten seasons unbeaten, and in '76 defeated eventual national runner-up Michigan three times. With a 16-game league schedule, Illinois isn't even contesting a full conference round-robin.
But what the Illini have done is special. And even though they're just past halfway in league play, it should be all downhill from here until mid-March. Maybe even late March.
Illinois' final seven regular-season games are against teams with a combined league record of 22-33. The toughest competition (Wisconsin) has to come to Champaign. The toughest road game looked like it would be at Iowa City, but then star Hawkeyes guard Pierce was dismissed from the team. Now it could come down to a coronation game in Columbus against Ohio State to close the regular season -- or a possible upset bid in the Big Ten tournament final.
What would it take for a member of the Trampled Ten to beat the Illini?
"It's going to take a perfect game," said Davis, whose Hoosiers got the most recent look at Illinois in a 13-point loss Sunday. "They have so many weapons. Everybody talks about their guards, but their big guys are really good. They're really overlooked because of their guard play. It's going to take a game where all five guys are off, and it's hard to find that."
Michigan State coach Tom Izzo got to see Illinois on a night when all five guys were on. After watching the Illini make a spectacular 12 straight shots against his Spartans during the second half in the Breslin Center last Tuesday, the coach of the 2000 national champions was duly impressed.
"If they shoot like they shot against us, I don't think anybody can beat them," Izzo said. "I'm not sure any team in the country can beat them. ... They played as well as a team can play against us. It was a big game, for them and for us, and they rose to the occasion.
"They've got to stay away from injuries. ... My worry for Bruce (Weber) and that team, I don't think they have much depth at the guard spot. When you're playing Thursday-Saturday (in the NCAA Tournament), how many minutes can they play? But Deron (Williams) and Dee Brown are tough physically and mentally. I think they can take that."
Weber does ride his guards hard. Williams is logging 34.4 minutes a game in Big Ten play. Brown is a tick below 33 per game. The third (and highest-scoring) member of America's best backcourt, Luther Head, gets 33 a night as well.
But with a group this good, you'd never want to take them out, either.
All three of them can shoot with range, and all three can guard. But what that backcourt does better than any in America is handle and pass the ball.
Nobody in the nation's six biggest conferences can touch Illinois' 1.7-to-1 team assist-to-turnover ratio. It's amazing that a team that passes the ball with as much daring and creativity as the Illini averages just 10.4 turnovers per game.
Since Illinois takes care of the ball and sports a decent rebounding margin (plus-4.3), it gets more shots than its opponents. And makes more shots. The Illini are connecting on 50 percent of their field goals in league play and 40 percent of their 3-pointers, both best in the Big Ten.
That's where Illinois is winning in conference play. It's not the defensive end, where the team surprisingly ranks last in opponents' 3-point shooting percentage and ninth in field-goal percentage defense.
So it's possible that someone can shoot the lights out on the Illini down the stretch. But that team has also got to keep the Illini from shooting the lights out, too -- much easier said than done.
Here's a game-by-game look at the remainder of Illinois' regular season:
Feb. 8, at Michigan (12-11 overall, 3-6 in the Big Ten, No. 135 RPI): The Wolverines suspended point guard Daniel Horton for allegedly assaulting his girlfriend, and went into a free-fall. They've now lost six straight. The last three have been particularly embarrassing: a 29-point loss at last-place Purdue, a 17-point home loss to Minnesota and a 26-point rout at Ohio State. Does this sound like a group that can upset Illinois? The tight turnaround from the game Sunday against Indiana might test the Illini, but the Wolverines won't.
Feb. 12, Wisconsin (15-5, 6-3, No. 18 RPI): The Badgers gave Illinois a major test in Madison before being out-executed and overrun in the final four minutes. This is the best opponent left on the schedule, but the game will be in Champaign. Wisconsin has been an ordinary team on the road (losses to Minnesota, Indiana, Marquette and Pepperdine). And Illinois gets one more day than the Badgers to rest and prepare.
Feb. 16, at Penn State (7-14, 1-7, No. 202 RPI): If the Illini are favored by double digits in the above two games, this one could be a 20-point spread -- yes, even on the road. You don't find many teams talking about how tough it is to go into the Bryce Jordan Center.
Feb. 19, at Iowa (15-6, 3-5, No. 45 RPI): The Hawkeyes came closer than anyone to date to beating the Illini, taking them into overtime in Champaign. But Pierce was close to a one-man offense in that game, and without him slumping Iowa will be seriously up against it. This looked like the opportunity to break the streak, but not any longer.
Feb. 23, Northwestern (10-11, 3-6, No. 155 RPI): Bill Carmody plays the kind of annoyingly deliberate style that can gum up a rip-and-run strategy, but the Wildcats shouldn't be in the game long enough for frustration to set in on the Illini.
March 3, Purdue (5-15, 1-8, No. 206 RPI): Gene Keady's farewell tour of the Big Ten has been one rotten ride, bottoming out last week when he didn't go to Ohio State after being stricken with the flu. Keady said he felt so bad, he neither watched nor listened to the game.
"I hurt so bad, my hair hurt," Keady said. "I didn't want to eat, didn't want to do nothing. I just wanted to lay there and hope I would die."
The feeling might be similar when his Boilermakers are served up as the sacrificial opponent on Senior Day at Assembly Hall.
March 5, at Ohio State (16-7, 5-4, No. 50 RPI): This could be tricky. The Buckeyes have won four straight under first-year coach Thad Matta and will undoubtedly have their best home crowd of the year. But that four-game winning streak was as much schedule-driven as anything (home games against Penn State, Purdue and Michigan and a game at Northwestern). If Minnesota could win in Columbus, it's hard to see Illinois failing to close a perfect regular season there.
But that's only the beginning. Illinois then gets to play the Big Ten tournament in Chicago, where it should corner the ticket market and get the easiest draw. It shouldn't expect a challenge until the tourney final, when it could face Michigan State or Wisconsin again.
And after that? A No. 1 seed should result in a short trip to Indianapolis for the first two rounds, followed by a trip back to cozy Chicago for the regional semifinals and final. Depending on seeding and bracket developments, it's possible that Illinois might not face an opponent capable of looking it squarely in the eye until the elite eight, some 6½ weeks from now.
In the meantime, Illinois is a lock to beat every Big Ten opponent remaining in its path. Remember where you read it first. And forget what you read here last week.
"And forget what you read here last week" LMAO!!!!
Yea Baby!!!!!!!
Hog
