Official 2004-2005 Fighting Illini Basketball Thread

[Clarkmeister]

Since it seems we have a few Illini on these boards.

For those who don't know, a good place for Illinois discussion is at http://mb9.scout.com/fillinoisinsiderfrm1

For those who don't know, this is a huge year for Illinois. Like most schools a cut below the "elite" programs like Duke, Carolina, Kansas, UConn and Arizona, Illinois really only has a chance to contend for a national championship about once every 3-4 years. This is our first such year since we were a #1 seed in the 2000-2001 season.

So far we are off to a great start at 2-0, but will quickly find out how good we really are when we play Wake Forest in a little over a week from today. Feel free to post any and all comments about the team, season, etc here.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v260/Clarkmeister/Chief_magnet.jpg


http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v260/Clarkmeister/illinois-trophy.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v260/Clarkmeister/Brown0122-lg.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v260/Clarkmeister/buddy_weber2.jpg

Go Illini!

[bugstud]

The Buddy Christ is overboard...gotta photoshop it for Illini purposes /images/graemlins/grin.gif


All I've got to say is there is no possible way basketball will be worse than football, even if they completely tank it.

[Clarkmeister]

If we didn't tank last year, there's no way we can tank this year. With all the injuries, player rebellion, new system, negative press, etc and they still managed to win the Big Ten outright.

In my view, an Elite 8 is a good but not great year. Anything further is great, anything less is a big disappointment.

It's important to have a strong regular season too since that would allow us to stay home in Chicago for the regional finals and then move on to St. Louis for the Final Four. Man, lots in our favor this year.

[andyfox]

One hopes they'll be better than the football team. /images/graemlins/smirk.gif

[Clarkmeister]

[ QUOTE ]
One hopes they'll be better than the football team. /images/graemlins/smirk.gif

[/ QUOTE ]

Here's what all non-Illini need to understand about our football team.

We won the Big Ten Championship with a 10-1 record and went to a BCS bowl in 2001-2002. That's enough to keep us Illinois fans happy for about 20 years. /images/graemlins/smile.gif

[andyfox]

My nephew goes to the University of Illinois (he's on the road back to L.A. as we speak) and goes to every football game, so I get a blow-by-blow of the futility.

I like him, and I like you, so here's hoping your basketball dreams come true.

[andyfox]

You can see how excited people are about this. There have
been more views and responses to a John Cole war photography post. /images/graemlins/smile.gif

[Aces McGee]

Hey Clark

I'd be interested to hear, if you'd be so kind, your honest assessment of Williams and Brown.

-McGee

[Drac]

I'm a Big Ten fan but not a big Illini guy. Saw them play the Gophs last year. I really like Williams as a player but I think Brown will be their downfall. He has too many bad games and I think he'll kill them in the NCAA's. I also like that doofy big guy Smith. With Augestine, Smith and Head they have some good role players to go with Williams and Brown. More Williams, less Brown, better results. At least their coach shouldn't cost them the season.

BTW, I'm a big Hoosier fan so it's going to be a loooong, tough season for me. I just want a couple teams from the Big 10 to do well. It's my only hope, Obi Wan.

[bugstud]

Deron is a stud, Dee can be but is very inconsistent. I'm hoping someone fills in the center and that we get a time machine so Randle doesn't break his hand /images/graemlins/mad.gif

[Aces McGee]

He's had so much hype, especially before last season, when he supposedly played so well with USA Basketball over the summer. But even though his scoring average went up, he took a step back in the pretty much all other statistical categories.

I've only seen him in his national TV games, and when I have, he's always had a pretty cold shooting night. My impression has been that he clearly has the athleticism and scoring ability to be a terrific player, but his floor game needs a lot of improvement. However, I figured that Clark and other Illini/Big Ten fans have seen more of him than I have, so I'm willing to defer to them at this point.

-McGee

[Clarkmeister]

Deron (pronounced similar to Darrin) Williams is one of the best players in college hoops. He can literally take over a game at will, D's up nasty, and can distribute the rock too. He's a lottery pick next year. Preaseason Big Ten player of the year.

Dee had the great freshman season and struggled most of last year. The reasons were several. First, he was injured most of the year and it wore him down. Second and related to the first point, he came into the season worn down after playing a ton in the offseason. Third, he really took a long time to adapt to the new system. Partly because he was young and it just takes time, partly because he was pouting about Self leaving town and he didn't *want* to learn. Once he grew up a little he started to catch on. He was on fire down the stretch last year and really carried us. I fully expect him to have the kind of year this year that was expected of him last year when he was the Big Ten preseason player of the year. That's Deron this year, but I look for Dee to really take it to another level. His biggest problem is that he doesn't drive to his left and teams play him that way, and despite his ability to get to the cup, he is so short that he gets an obscene amount of layups rejected. Its kind of wierd but for a guy so fast and electric, he's *not* a great finisher. He just creates so many chances that you forget about that.

Augustine is simply not aggressive enough, similar to Brian Cook. Now he's got nowhere near the game that Cook does, so he can't get away with it. Plays best when he's angry. He really needs to step it up.

Nick is very skilled but very moody and streaky. He's sometimes not worth the hassle.

Powell is streaky as all hell. If he starts off hot, look out, otherwise he's the invisible man.

Luther is great because he can always create his own shot, and he is (pardon me Andy) super clutch, having sparked more rallies than I can count with big-time 3 pointers when the rest of the team looked lost. Super athletic and can play 3 positions.

Those are the key guys. Jack Ingram is a somewhat skilled banger, Rich McBride is a highly touted 3-pt specialist who is still a year away IMO. The rest of the team is comprised of lightly played freshman and sophs who would have to make giant steps in order to meaningfully contribute.

[bugstud]

From what I saw, but mostly heard, before he broke his hand Randle had that kind of improvement

[Clarkmeister]

11/19 Delaware State W 87-67
11/21 Florida A&M W 91-60
11/24 Oakland
11/27 No. 25 Gonzaga
12/1 No. 1 Wake Forest
12/3 at Northwestern St.
12/4 at Arkansas
12/6 Chicago St
12/9 at Georgetown
12/11 Oregon
12/19 Valparaiso
12/22 at Missouri
12/27 Longwood
12/30 Northwestern St.
12/31 Cincinnati
01/5 Ohio State
01/8 at Purdue
01/12 Penn State
01/15 at Northwestern
01/20 Iowa
01/25 at No. 17 Wisconsin
01/29 Minnesota
02/1 at No. 9 Michigan State
02/6 Indiana
02/8 at Michigan
02/12 No. 17 Wisconsin
02/16 at Penn State
02/19 at Iowa
02/23 Northwestern
03/1 Purdue
03/5 at Ohio State

[Clarkmeister]

Any word on whether he'll try for a medical redshirt? They wanted him to redshirt last year and he got stubborn. May work out to our advantage if he ends up getting an extra year of eligibility.

[bugstud]

they said 4-6 weeks, so if he's back early I really doubt it. If it takes a while though I would hope so. Chances are Warren Carter who is suppsoed to fill his spot will underwhelm and the team will need him for Big Ten/postseason play.

[Aces McGee]

Nice scouting report. Your characterization of Dee is similar to what I had in my head, but again, I'd only seen him a handful of times.

Illinois is clearly the class of the Big Ten, but I think the league is going to be pretty competitive this year. Iowa has already beaten Louisville and Texas, and Michigan is an up-and-coming team. I fully expect Indiana and Michigan State to have bounce back years, also. Should be fun.

-McGee

[Clarkmeister]

85-54 Win over Oakland last night. Luther went off for 22 pts, 6 of 10 from 3pt range and 9 assists. That's one of the nice things about this team, there are 5 guys who could go for 20+ on a given night. Big Warren Carter looked decent too, but he's so untested that it's hard to get too excited about that.

http://fightingillini.collegesports.com/sports/m-baskbl/recaps/112404aaa.html

[Ponks]

yeeeehaw, go illini!!!

Ponks

[Clarkmeister]

Our first real game of the year is in about half an hour against Gonzaga. on WGN for those who are interested. This will be a great game to get us ready for Wake Forest in a few days. Let's hope we can carry over our white-hot shooting from the first few games into this one.

[Zeno]

[ QUOTE ]
12/11 Oregon


[/ QUOTE ]

/images/graemlins/shocked.gif

Is Oregon any good? [I guess I better check up on my team, Erine Kent is a great coach so we should be at least a reasonable threat]

I'm starting to smell a friendly wager.

-Zeno

[Zeno]

Holy [censored]. I see that the Illini are ranked # 4 in one poll and are beating the bejesus out of Gonzaga a teamed ranked #25.

-Zeno

[Clarkmeister]

Woodshed.

[nolanfan34]

How about that Adam Morrison though? True soph, he's going to be a player.

[mikeyvegas]

[ QUOTE ]
Our first real game of the year is in about half an hour against Gonzaga. on WGN for those who are interested. This will be a great game to get us ready for Wake Forest in a few days. Let's hope we can carry over our white-hot shooting from the first few games into this one.

[/ QUOTE ]

No offense, but Gonzaga is no real test for any team this year. Also, i hate to say it but I can't see the Illini even making it a game against Wake. The Deac's are a VERY strong team. Chris Paul is sick.

[Tyler Durden]

Chris Paul....gotta root for a guy w/ two first names. In college I used to jam a hot cheerleader named Lindsey Paul. Well not really, but I wanted to do, and that's pretty much the same thing.

[bugstud]

Wait, so thre stud interior guys over 6' 8" is not a tough test for anyone??? /images/graemlins/confused.gif /images/graemlins/confused.gif /images/graemlins/confused.gif

I think you're crazy, and Wake is going to have a real hard time with the Illini when they only beat UIC by a point.

[Clarkmeister]

"Also, i hate to say it but I can't see the Illini even making it a game against Wake. The Deac's are a VERY strong team."

Right, and Illinois isn't? You are vastly underestimating how good this team is. They really started to click at the midpoint of last year's Big Ten season and have been rampaging ever since. The only thing that stopped us was our best player (Deron Williams) being on the bench for most of the Duke game with foul trouble. Wake meanwhile, including last year's NCAA's has been winning squeaker after squeaker. Now, that's great, and it shows they are battle tested and know how to win a close game, but it also should lead one to believe that they will absolutely have their hands full on the road a team as good as the Illini. They may win, but I'll be astounded if it's a Wake blowout.

OTOH I wouldn't be shocked to see Illinois do the blowing out. Assembly Hall is a very underrated home court advantage and it will be absolutely raucus for a #4 vs #1 matchup on national TV. Ask Michigan State how easy it is to win there. They've lost by like 30 there each of the last two years.

And, oh yeah, Chris Paul or no, you are really underestimating the Illini guards if you think Wake has an advantage in the backcourt. Dee, Deron and Lutha are sick.

[Cubswin]

Thanks for starting this thread clark. I cant wait for the WF game... should be a good one.

Are there any Illini fans in the DC area that might be interested in going to the December 9th game vs the Hoyas at the MCI center? I know its a longshot but i thought id ask....

cubs
class of 2000

[MarkL444]

http://media.scout.com/Media/Image/18/184807.jpg

[Clarkmeister]

Hey, we won the Big Ten and went to a BCS game 3 years ago. When was the last time State did that? /images/graemlins/smile.gif

http://graphics.fansonly.com/photos/schools/ill/galleries/m-baskbl-021004/0044Paint-The-Hall-Orange-lg.jpg

http://graphics.fansonly.com/photos/schools/ill/sports/m-baskbl/auto_action/augustine021004.jpg

[Aces McGee]

Another point to be made is that Wake Forest doesn't defend. They just don't guard anybody.

Should be a good one. Wake is good enough to outscore anyone in the country. But I'm with Clark (and I'm not an Illini fan): If anyone does the blowing out (outblowing?), it'll be Illinois.

-McGee

[Aces McGee]

[ QUOTE ]
Is Oregon any good?

[/ QUOTE ]

They've got a decent big man (Ian Crosswhite), and some young guys (two freshman and a sophomore) who are averaging double figures through the first three games, all victories.

Crosswhite is a decent player but I like him a lot more as #2 or #3 offensive option, not a #1.

They'll be up and down like all young teams. Competitive one night, get blown out the next. But the future is bright. I'm not sure it's Freddie Jones/Luke Ridnour/Luke Jackson bright, but bright.

-McGee

[MarkL444]

[ QUOTE ]
Hey, we won the Big Ten and went to a BCS game 3 years ago. When was the last time State did that?

[/ QUOTE ]

Not since 1965. I know, I know, its been awhile...oh wait, did you say won the Big Ten or won the national championship?

And yes I feel its appropriate for me to use a title won long before I was born that I didnt even know about to defend myself.

/images/graemlins/tongue.gif

[CMP]

Absolutely sick performance against Gonzaga.

I'm sure everyone caught the broadcast commentary that the Bulldogs were leading in rebounds while getting blown out because the Illini were not missing!

I hope they can keep it going against Wake.

CMP

[Clarkmeister]

Big game tonight on ESPN. Illini favored by 4.5 points.

[ArchAngel71857]

[ QUOTE ]
Big game tonight on ESPN. Illini favored by 4.5 points.

[/ QUOTE ]

You are going down!

DEMON DEACS 4EVA!

-AA

[Ponks]

[ QUOTE ]
Big game tonight on ESPN. Illini favored by 4.5 points.

[/ QUOTE ]

Yeeehaw, go illini!!! I'll be at the game cheering our boys on. Just about time to start drinking. Hopefully I can win the December open challenge against Alobar so I can keep my beautiful avatar.

Ponks

[Cubswin]

This game is all ive been thinking about all day. Just got home from work, put my orange on, ordered myself a pizza and poured myself a cold one. GO ILLINI!!!!

cubs

[bugstud]

should have made chili and wings instead of pizza, imo.

sadly tix are a little expensive tonight, but my buddy tented overnight for his courtside shot.

ILL - INI

[Cubswin]

I would kill for some jimmy johns right now but i think the closest one is some 500 miles away.

Off to a great start.... GO ORANGE!!!!!

cubs

[bugstud]

I'm in the process of figuring out the best post-game watering hole as we speak.

You give me a freezer truck, I'll get you all the JJ bread you can want /images/graemlins/tongue.gif

[mmbt0ne]

This is just brutal. I'm a little ACC biased, but Illinois is a machine right now. More physical, better passing, and Brown is unconcious. I think they will be ranked #1 for a majority of the season, including probably at the end of the season. Their conference schedule is just so much easier than any of the ACC teams, and they're so good, that anything else should be a disappointment. Once they get to the tourney, all bets are off. They seem to have decent depth, and if they can keep shooting like this, it'll make for a LONG March for Illini fans (in a good way). I'd like to see GT play Illinois at some point, two physical teams, and a great offense against a great defense. Unfortunately, it's probably won't be until the final four that such a game is possible.

A few positives for me: Chris Paul, and WF in general being exposed as overrated. I've always said I'd take Jack over Paul any day, and after this game so far, I'd even take Ewing over Paul (sticking with the ACC since they and UK are all I really know).
We'll be back up to #3 after this. /images/graemlins/grin.gif

[Cubswin]

<font color="orange">#1 </font>

[mikeyvegas]

[ QUOTE ]
Also, i hate to say it but I can't see the Illini even making it a game against Wake. The Deac's are a VERY strong team. Chris Paul is sick.

[/ QUOTE ]

I was very, very wrong. Wow, the illini look like the best team in the nation, by a lot. Hope everyone stays healthy this year, Clark.

(this jinx fully endorsed by Mike E. Vegas)

[ArchAngel71857]

This was embarassing. Illinois is [censored] good.

Wake underacheives.

Again.

-AA

[bugstud]

[ QUOTE ]
<font color="orange">#1 </font>

[/ QUOTE ]

You better believe it! /images/graemlins/shocked.gif

[Ponks]

yaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah
gimme some of that ILL - INI baby!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

It's time to go to the bars and celebrateeeeeeeeeee!!!!

Me and my buddy had our whole section cheering like mad!!!!

Ponks

[Clarkmeister]

Any questions left about this team?

BTW, that crappy Gonzaga team we wholloped by like 30 or 40 or whatever just beat #14 Washington by double digits. As Wake found out, maybe they aren't that bad, maybe we are just that freaking good.

Awesome win. Even more awesome is that our fans didn't storm the court. Expect victory. Nice. Goddamn this team plays *hard*.

[rick flair] WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO [/rick flair]

http://zborders.photosite.com/~photos/tn/1_348.ts1101874211612.jpg


http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v98/StepUIUC/PTHO017.jpg

[Jim Kuhn]

Congrats Illini! Now they need to stay focused! The Illini are very tough at home!

Thank you,

Jim Kuhn
Catfish4U
/images/graemlins/spade.gif /images/graemlins/diamond.gif /images/graemlins/club.gif /images/graemlins/heart.gif

[bugstud]

my roomie from last year dressed in UPS outfits at the games... I velieve he was the innovator for that one...

[Clarkmeister]

Good articles:

http://msn.foxsports.com/story/3210762

http://sports.espn.go.com/ncb/bigtenaccchallenge/news/story?id=1936568

Chicago Tribune (http://chicagosports.chicagotribune.com/sports/college/cs-041201downey,1,6696280.column?coll=cs-college-headlines)

[ThaSaltCracka]

Damn, they look really good this year. I think most people can now also say that Gonzaga is not quiet as overrated as people think.

[CMP]

The proper response.

2 in a row, they looked great. No letdowns, now.

You going to the Cincinnati game NYE?

Looking into plans as we speak... /images/graemlins/smile.gif

CMP

[Clarkmeister]

Yeah, I need to get tickets, but I'll be going for sure.

I knew someone would come through with the right reply. /images/graemlins/smile.gif

[Clarkmeister]

Found another great photo of the Chief at halftime.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v132/Nixpix/OrangeWakeChief.jpg

http://graphics.fansonly.com/photos/schools/ill/galleries/m-baskbl-120104/DSC_0058-lg.jpg


BTW, it turns out Illinois plays 2 games out here in Vegas on the 30th and 31st. Hard to find info on, but I did find this link. The games are actually at a local high school.

http://www.bearstatlink.com/news-item-lasvegas-tourney-2004.shtml

[bugstud]

Good one from pregame

http://www.winningonlinepoker.com/bilas.jpg

[Amish Wonder]

As the taker of the previous picture, I do need to clarify that this was actually a post game picture. Bilas also stated that he was absolutely misquoted and did not say that Deron Williams would not be a Top 10 player in the ACC. I do however find it funny that after hearing Bilas say that I found out that he went up to Deron before the game and apologized for his comments.

[sfer]

Is that the actual mascot? I'm surprised it hasn't been changed into something like a tree, a la Stanford.

Also, my eyes are stinging from seeing that blazer.

[Aces McGee]

I waited a day to ask this question, to let you bask in the glory of a super-impressive performance against Wake Forest on Wednesday night.

Does it concern you at all that this early season success is so heavily reliant on jumpshooting? 54 and 46 isn't going to last all season, no matter how well they move the ball (and they do it quite well). The playmaking abilities of Brown and Williams -- and the fact that they run the break well -- may make this less of a concern for this Illinois group, but we've all seen highly-ranked teams lose early in March because they can't compensate for the inevitable poor shooting day.

I'm not trying to be a buzzkill or find flaw where there isn't any; I'm genuinely curious as to what those "in the know" think.

-McGee

[Clarkmeister]

I used to say that about teams like Duke and Kentucky but it didn't stop them from winning.

More important than our outside shooting (which we've had going well in every game this year, leading one to believe that we aren't just "hot") is our defense. We are all over teams from the get-go. Plus, we show perfect willingness to get the ball inside when teams overdefend the perimiter. Because of those two things, I'm not nearly as concerned as I otherwise might be.

[RickDecker]

The most excited I've been since the "Flyin' Illini"! All we have to do now is get Deron to stop dribbling the ball off his foot!!! /images/graemlins/wink.gif

[Aces McGee]

I didn't mean to imply that Illinois was simply "hot." They've got a bunch of great shooters, and the way they move the ball so crisply and so willingly, they are going to continue to get open looks all year. I fully expect that they'll be one of the top shooting teams in the country all year long. But that doesn't mean they are gonna hit half their shots all year long. That just doesn't happen.

You answered my question, though I'd like to hear others opinions, too. Basically, I want to see if people who are familiar with the Illini team are confident in their ability to win a game against a quality opponent when the three pointers aren't falling. The defense is a great point.

-McGee

[RickDecker]

Historically, Illinois has played very good defense. The physical nature of the Big Ten requires good defensive play. You can't win at Wisconsin and at MSU without it.

That being said, you are correct, the hot shooting will not continue. But given that they held Wake to like 40%, I am very positive about our defense.

[Ponks]

They try to change the chief all the time. They just had a vote like 1-2 months ago to try to get it changed but it didn't pass. There are a decent amount of anti-chief people that go here though.

Ponks

[sfer]

When you dudes are ready for a real cartoonish mascot, prepare for Oski:

http://www.dailycal.org/images/art/11.15.Oski.WAGS.jpg

[gvibes]

I didn't know you were an Illinois guy, Clarkmeister - saw the Bilas picture on the illiniboard (same login) and figured I'd chime in here.

[bugstud]

brmp

Illini having a tough game on the road at Arkansas

[Cubswin]

They look a little tired which can be expected this early in the season. Im guessing they will be shooting a lot of free-throws next practice. I also think they need to work on some base-line inbounce plays. Still, a solid win in a game that could have been easily overlooked.

When does the big ten schedule begin.... /images/graemlins/smile.gif

cubs

PS... can you say <font color="orange">#1 </font>

[Cubswin]

Still looking for someone in the DC area to go to the game with on thurday.... anybody??????

[Clarkmeister]

[ QUOTE ]
As the taker of the previous picture, I do need to clarify that this was actually a post game picture. Bilas also stated that he was absolutely misquoted and did not say that Deron Williams would not be a Top 10 player in the ACC. I do however find it funny that after hearing Bilas say that I found out that he went up to Deron before the game and apologized for his comments.

[/ QUOTE ]


This picture is creating quite the stir on the Illiniboard. Words like "classic", "awesome" and "hilarious" are being used repeatedly. I threw it into a thread where Bilas himself posted some comments regarding the Deron quote. Very nice photo!

[Clarkmeister]

[ QUOTE ]
I didn't know you were an Illinois guy, Clarkmeister - saw the Bilas picture on the illiniboard (same login) and figured I'd chime in here.

[/ QUOTE ]

Cool. I post there during hoops season. I used to be a regular on the Deuce but it got pretty stale there after Brumby sold the board and they changed the site.

[Clarkmeister]

[ QUOTE ]
brmp

Illini having a tough game on the road at Arkansas

[/ QUOTE ]

Was a dangerous game for us. Stan Heath is awesome, he was a guy I really wanted when Self left, but since he'd only been at Arkansas for a year, it was kind of unrealistic. He can coach and recruit and is a class act.

That said, it was a nice win. We were forced to play our starters for more than 34 minutes for the first time all year, and it gives the coaching staff some ammo on film and some stuff to work on. It's clear that teams with substandial size *and* athleticism will give us fits, especially on their offensive boards.

It also showed that the one thing which has always worked against us, namely, bringing on the ball pressure out about 5 feed beyond the 3pt arc still works very well. Force us to start running our offense that far from the basket and it really messes up our spacing and where our guys end up with the ball. Good win though on the road against a team on the upswing. We should get into conference play with no more than 1 loss now.

Let's hope we get #1 in at least one poll next week. It would send a good message to teams like Kansas who schedule no tough games or road games the entire non conference season.

[Cubswin]

Let's hope we get #1 in at least one poll next week.

Looks like we got #1 in both polls /images/graemlins/grin.gif ... first time since 89. Damn we're good /images/graemlins/tongue.gif

cubs

[Ponks]

Yeeehaw!!! Another one bites the dust!

ILL - 78 CSU - 59

7-0 baby!

Ponks

[mmbt0ne]

</font><blockquote><font class="small">En réponse à:</font><hr />
It would send a good message to teams like Kansas who schedule no tough games or road games the entire non conference season.

[/ QUOTE ]

Ahem, from ramblinwreck.com:
01/01/2005 at No. 2 Kansas

I'd like to think of us as a tough game thank you very much. We're at least as good, if not better than Wake Forest.

[Clarkmeister]

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
It would send a good message to teams like Kansas who schedule no tough games or road games the entire non conference season.

[/ QUOTE ]

Ahem, from ramblinwreck.com:
01/01/2005 at No. 2 Kansas

I'd like to think of us as a tough game thank you very much. We're at least as good, if not better than Wake Forest.

[/ QUOTE ]

I didn't see that one, as I was too busy watching KU be life and death at home against both Vermont and Pacific. Certainly Ga Tech is as good or better than any team in the country.

[Clarkmeister]

[ QUOTE ]
Let's hope we get #1 in at least one poll next week.

Looks like we got #1 in both polls /images/graemlins/grin.gif ... first time since 89. Damn we're good /images/graemlins/tongue.gif

cubs

[/ QUOTE ]

Yup, quite the coup to go from #5 to #1 in the AP poll as well. Of course, it means nothing right now, but it's damn good pub for the program and it is a great reward for the players who have come a long way from this time last year, when they were collapsing against Providence on national TV.

In related Illini news, I Ron Zook is the new football head coach which is a great hire for a mediocre (at best) football program like Illinois. I had begun to think that our Big Ten Championship 3 years ago would be our last for a long long time, but with any luck, Zook can use his magic recruiting powers to get us one in the next decade. Great hire by Gunther.

[Amish Wonder]

[ QUOTE ]
This picture is creating quite the stir on the Illiniboard. Words like "classic", "awesome" and "hilarious" are being used repeatedly. I threw it into a thread where Bilas himself posted some comments regarding the Deron quote. Very nice photo!

[/ QUOTE ]

Do you happen to have a link to that thread on Illiniboard? I'm a member there, but am usually too busy to check that board (or even this one for that matter). I really wanted to see the commentary that the picture was able to stir up.

[Clarkmeister]

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
This picture is creating quite the stir on the Illiniboard. Words like "classic", "awesome" and "hilarious" are being used repeatedly. I threw it into a thread where Bilas himself posted some comments regarding the Deron quote. Very nice photo!

[/ QUOTE ]

Do you happen to have a link to that thread on Illiniboard? I'm a member there, but am usually too busy to check that board (or even this one for that matter). I really wanted to see the commentary that the picture was able to stir up.

[/ QUOTE ]

Two threads.

This one (http://mb9.scout.com/fillinoisinsiderfrm1.showNextMessage?topicID=29778 .topic) was the first thread I posted it in.

This was the second, and it was a thread in which Jay Bilas posted several times and actually mentioned taking the picture (http://mb9.scout.com/fillinoisinsiderfrm1.showMessageRange?topicID=2946 1.topic&amp;start=1&amp;stop=40) .

[Clarkmeister]

Another nice road win for the now 8-0 #1 ranked Fighting Illini, 74-59 over Georgetown. Next up is a decent Oregon team in the United Center on Saturday on national TV.

[Cubswin]

Just got back from the game at the MCI center. A few thoughts for you all.....

1) Buying a ticket at 6:30pm on game day at the box office is so nice... especially when you get 4th row.

2) Yuengling is some good beer.

3) Deron dribbles the ball to high... he really needs to work on that.

4) Luther has mad ups.

5) The Illini are damn good /images/graemlins/smile.gif

cubs

[Jake (The Snake)]

Just was at the game too. A decent win for Illinois, but to be honest I don't think they're the #1 team in the country. First half was pretty shaky to say the least.

[hoyaboy1]

I was at the game as well. You guys didn't play great but we don't have the experience/talent to do anything about it right now.

Jeff Green is very good.

[Aces McGee]

Didn't watch the game, but perusing the box score, it looks like my main queston was answered. Powell and Augustine combine for 34 on 14-21 from the field, and Head, Williams, and Brown have 16 assists among them.

Nice win.

-McGee

[Clarkmeister]

[ QUOTE ]
Just was at the game too. A decent win for Illinois, but to be honest I don't think they're the #1 team in the country. First half was pretty shaky to say the least.

[/ QUOTE ]

OK, who is #1 then?

No team plays perfect ball all the time. They played a bad first 15 minutes on the road, righted the ship and turned a 4 point deficit into a 20 point lead over the next 20 minutes. No one has remotely threatened them for a win. I'm not saying they are definitively the best team in the country, but I'd sure like to know who has looked better.

[Clarkmeister]

"3) Deron dribbles the ball to high... he really needs to work on that."

He's had some bad bad turnovers the last 3 games (not counting Chicago St.) Frankly, he's not playing very well. I hope he gets it straightened out as we will need him to be at his best to make a deep tourney run.

"4) Luther has mad ups."

About the only thing I miss about Self's offense is the 2-3 alley-oops we used to run for Lutha every game.

[Jake (The Snake)]

ok, fair point. I do think OSU is probably pretty darn close to them though. Should be a great tourney this year with so many good teams.

[Clarkmeister]

Looking good vs Oregon right now on ESPN, up 30-20, but Oregon is really scrappy and I don't think this is anywhere near over. They seem to have the firepower to keep it a game. Fun game to watch though, lots of up and down play.

[Clarkmeister]

Cruising to another W, up 18 with 9 mins to go. Our D has been below what I would like and we've turned the ball over a little too much the last few games, but its comforting to know that despite all that, we are still winning handily. I can't wait until we play Misery in the Braggin' Rights game. It'll be sweet to beat them and Quinny-boy 5 years in a row.

[Cubswin]

we've turned the ball over a little too much the last few games

I agree. One plus i saw today was that they hit their free throws. I wish i could make it out to LV for the Illinois game taking place at the high school... would be so cool to see em in a small venue like that.

cubs

[Clarkmeister]

[ QUOTE ]
we've turned the ball over a little too much the last few games

I agree. One plus i saw today was that they hit their free throws. I wish i could make it out to LV for the Illinois game taking place at the high school... would be so cool to see em in a small venue like that.

cubs

[/ QUOTE ]

We actually play two games. One against Northwestern State or some such, and then the Cinci game. My tickets for the games arrive on Monday. /images/graemlins/grin.gif

[Clarkmeister]

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
Our first real game of the year is in about half an hour against Gonzaga. on WGN for those who are interested. This will be a great game to get us ready for Wake Forest in a few days. Let's hope we can carry over our white-hot shooting from the first few games into this one.

[/ QUOTE ]

No offense, but Gonzaga is no real test for any team this year.

[/ QUOTE ]

In addition to beating #15 Washington after getting thumped by the Illini, now Gonzaga went out and beat #3 Ga Tech by 12. Yikes, how good are the Illini??

[GuyOnTilt]

how good are the Illini??

Good question. Maybe if they ever played a half-decent opponent on the road we'd have a chance to find out. /images/graemlins/smirk.gif

GO COWBOYS!!!

PS. And you and I both know that GT was at a very large disadvantage going into their game yesterday against the Zags. It's no surprise Gonzaga won.

GoT

[Cubswin]

Maybe if they ever played a half-decent opponent on the road we'd have a chance to find out.

In due course my friend... in the mean time they'll just continue to run the table on way to a 39-0 season /images/graemlins/grin.gif

[GuyOnTilt]

in the mean time they'll just continue to run the table on way to a 39-0 season

I'll put even money up to $1,000 that Illinois will have at least two losses by the end of January.

GoT

[Cubswin]

Interesting prop bet... i would take it but.....

1) I never bet with 'my' team... i know better then that

2) An injury to a starter is likely given the nature of big ten play.

who do you think the loses are going to come from? Im interested to hear...

cubs

[GuyOnTilt]

who do you think the loses are going to come from? Im interested to hear...

They have a very small likihood of losing their game at Mizzou coming up. Maybe 20%. Their next two non-conference home games they have maybe a 5% chance of losing each. They play Cinci at home, maybe 30%. OSU at home, maybe 20%. Purdue away, maybe 30%. Penn State, at home, maybe 15%. Northwestern away, maybe 20%. Iowa at home, maybe 30%. Wisconsin away, maybe 40%. Minnesota at home, maybe 15%. I guess I could check with a higher volume book to see what the actually odds would be, but like you said, injuries play a factor and stuff. But the numbers I gave, which are obviously just very rough off the top of my head guesses, put them at 2.2 losses by the end of January, and I think they're most likely loss is at Wisconsin, followed by their home games against Cinci and Iowa. I don't follow the Big Ten as close as the Big 12 though, so I'm not claiming to be an expert on this. : /


GoT

[Cubswin]

93-56 butt whooping

All 5 starters in double figures with the team shooting 58%. Bring on Cincy!!! /images/graemlins/tongue.gif

cubs

[Cubswin]

The Cincy game is actually at a nuetral court in Vegas. You do realize that IL has the best div 1 home record over the past 4 years... dont ya? The game that really scares me is Wisc... tough place to play

cubs

[GuyOnTilt]

Bring on Cincy!!!

Wow. They beat Valpo at home, a program that plays no D, relies heavily on shooting beyond the arc, has around a .400 FGP year after year (don't know what they're at this year), and averages almost 20 TO's a game religiously. I'd be pumped too. /images/graemlins/tongue.gif

GoT

[GuyOnTilt]

The Cincy game is actually at a nuetral court in Vegas.

Ah, didn't know that. That'll be a tough game for them your boys then.

You do realize that IL has the best div 1 home record over the past 4 years... dont ya?

Yup, and that's definitely very impressive, although their consistent super weak non-conference scheduling makes it a little less so.

The game that really scares me is Wisc... tough place to play

Definitely. Depending on what happens between now and then I wouldn't be surprised if I was favoring Wisconsin going into that game. Not that I would expect the books to, so it might be a good bet. For a guy who makes bets on his team that is. /images/graemlins/tongue.gif

GoT

[Cubswin]

I smell ranking envy!!!!

Which number is smaller... 1 or 3? /images/graemlins/tongue.gif

[Cubswin]

That'll be a tough game for them your boys then.

Nah... it should be like a home game. I hear Clark is buying tickets for any 2+2 who goes to the game and wears orange /images/graemlins/wink.gif

[GuyOnTilt]

Which number is smaller... 1 or 3?

My boys could realistically be ranked #2 come tomorrow. I don't expect them to, but KU did not look good yesterday from the little bit I saw and what I read. OSU on the other hand has been kicking ass, and has actually done it against a solid team in hostile territory. /images/graemlins/tongue.gif

GoT

[GuyOnTilt]

I hear Clark is buying tickets for any 2+2 who goes to the game and wears orange

If you're not joking, I would actually consider coming into town a couple days earlier for that. I might be going to a UW game that day though against Cal. : /

GoT

[Cubswin]

Glad to see SMU and UNLV qualify as 'solid' teams. BOOOHAHA. Got to love it... mid-December and the smack talk has already begun.

[GuyOnTilt]

Perhaps you missed the 'Cuse game at the Garden, where my boys had a solid double digit victory even with our star player only scoring 5 points. /images/graemlins/smirk.gif They looked scary good.

GoT

[Cubswin]

Yes... i hear he was paying the pregame bar tab too /images/graemlins/wink.gif Damn... if tickets out to vegas werent $600 bucks for new years i might be out there... off to orbitz to see what i can find /images/graemlins/smile.gif

[Cubswin]

5 points... are u sure that wasnt his ACT score???

[GuyOnTilt]

5 points... are u sure that wasnt his ACT score???

Um, before I answer that I'll have to know what an ACT is... I'm not exactly enrolled in a "college" per se... /images/graemlins/wink.gif

GoT

[Cubswin]

I'm not exactly enrolled in a "college" per se

youve got something in common with the OSU basketball team then... and i guess the IL team as well.....

[Jim Kuhn]

[ QUOTE ]
Yup, and that's definitely very impressive, although their consistent super weak non-conference scheduling makes it a little less so.


[/ QUOTE ]

Can you please pass some of that stuff you are smoking around? Weak non conference schedule? Wake Forest was number one, Cincy is ranked 17th and Gonzaga was about 12th. Missouri is every year on a neutral court and last year they were ranked as high as third I think.

Thank you,

Jim Kuhn
Catfish4u

[Clarkmeister]

[ QUOTE ]
I'll put even money up to $1,000 that Illinois will have at least two losses by the end of January.

GoT

[/ QUOTE ]

Done for the $1k. I have IL under 1.5 losses by 1/31/05

Shall we give the money to a neutral party up front, or make a paypal transfer upon the end of the bet?

[GuyOnTilt]

Despite your past history, I trust you to keep your end. /images/graemlins/smirk.gif Paypal's fine. Cash would be fine too, as I'm sure I'll be in LV semi-frequently.

GoT

[Clarkmeister]

[ QUOTE ]
Despite your past history, I trust you to keep your end. /images/graemlins/smirk.gif Paypal's fine. Cash would be fine too, as I'm sure I'll be in LV semi-frequently.

GoT

[/ QUOTE ]

ok. I'm in LA about once a quarter too.

[Cubswin]

GoT

can i get $50 just for shiets and giggles?

cubs

[MarkL444]

I already know where one of those losses are coming from.

http://www.breslincenter.com/images/newfloor.jpg

[Cubswin]

too bad that game is feb 1 /images/graemlins/smile.gif

[Clarkmeister]

[ QUOTE ]
too bad that game is feb 1 /images/graemlins/smile.gif

[/ QUOTE ]

I wouldn't have made it if the MSU road game had fallen in the timeframe.

[MarkL444]

[ QUOTE ]
too bad that game is feb 1 /images/graemlins/smile.gif

[/ QUOTE ]

oh, didnt read the bet close enough. i thought it was just till the end of the big ten season. it seemed a little ballsy, makes more sense now.

[Clarkmeister]

[ QUOTE ]
how good are the Illini??

Good question. Maybe if they ever played a half-decent opponent on the road we'd have a chance to find out. /images/graemlins/smirk.gif


[/ QUOTE ]

C'mon. Compare the following non-conference schedules:

OSU
11/19 Northwestern St.
11/23 Arkansas LR
11/27 Sam Houston St.
11/29 at SMU
12/4 Washington State
12/7 at No. 4 Syracuse
12/10 UAB
12/18 at UNLV
12/21 NW Oklahoma St
12/28 Gonzaga
01/3 at TX A&amp;M Corp Chris

UofI

11/19 Delaware State
11/21 Florida A&amp;M
11/24 Oakland
11/27 No. 25 Gonzaga
12/1 No. 1 Wake Forest
12/4 at Arkansas
12/6 Chicago St
12/9 at Georgetown
12/11 Oregon
12/19 Valparaiso
12/22 at Missouri
12/27 Longwood
12/30 Northwestern St.
12/31 No. 17 Cincinnati

[GuyOnTilt]

can i get $50 just for shiets and giggles?

Sure, why not. /images/graemlins/smile.gif

GoT

[Clarkmeister]

[ QUOTE ]
The Cincy game is actually at a nuetral court in Vegas.

Ah, didn't know that. That'll be a tough game for them your boys then.

[/ QUOTE ]

I'll be at the game. This is the same Cinci team that we absolutely humiliated on basically their home court in the 2nd round of the NCAA tourney. And oh by the way, we are a lot better now than we were then.

It's the key game for you though. I think we will definitely lose at Wisconsin and have very little chance of losing any other conference game in January. If Cinci wins, you have a great shot and are a big favorite. If you need us to lose twice against that January schedule, you are screwed.

[MarkL444]

any chance i can get some action on the MSU game?

[Clarkmeister]

Let's talk then.

[bugstud]

Illini will own the Kohl Center

[Cubswin]

We are on GoT... should i just send you my preferred payment method now? /images/graemlins/grin.gif

[Clarkmeister]

Braggin' Rights game tonight on the Deuce. For those who don't know, this is a big time bitter rivalry and I'd love nothing more than to see Bruce run it up on Misery to make it 5 in a row in this series.

[bugstud]

um, Longwood?

not good, folks...not good at all

[Clarkmeister]

We didn't schedule them though. It's all part of the screwup that is this Las Vegas Holiday Tournament, which got doubly screwed up. First, they ended up without a venue when the NCAA wouldn't let them host it at a casino and UNLV wouldn't let them play there. Then, the NCAA changed the rules for the non-exempt tournaments, which forced Oklahoma State and Arizona State to withdraw. The tourney promoter was stuck finding last minute replacements and one of them was.....Longwood. Ugh. At least Cincinati is still in it.

[smurph]

making an appearance in this thread

&lt;--------in Krush

[Clarkmeister]

[ QUOTE ]
making an appearance in this thread

&lt;--------in Krush

[/ QUOTE ]

Alright!

Welcome to the forums. /images/graemlins/smile.gif

[mikeyvegas]

[ QUOTE ]
No offense, but Gonzaga is no real test for any team this year....

[/ QUOTE ]

Truly some of my best work.

[bugstud]

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
No offense, but Gonzaga is no real test for any team this year....

[/ QUOTE ]

Truly some of my best work.

[/ QUOTE ]

No doubt /images/graemlins/grin.gif /images/graemlins/grin.gif /images/graemlins/grin.gif

[nolanfan34]

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
No offense, but Gonzaga is no real test for any team this year....

[/ QUOTE ]

Truly some of my best work.

[/ QUOTE ]

At least you admit it. /images/graemlins/grin.gif

[Clarkmeister]

[ QUOTE ]
how good are the Illini??

Good question. Maybe if they ever played a half-decent opponent on the road we'd have a chance to find out. /images/graemlins/smirk.gif

GO COWBOYS!!!

PS. And you and I both know that GT was at a very large disadvantage going into their game yesterday against the Zags. It's no surprise Gonzaga won.

GoT

[/ QUOTE ]

Ahem. /images/graemlins/cool.gif

[bugstud]

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
how good are the Illini??

Good question. Maybe if they ever played a half-decent opponent on the road we'd have a chance to find out. /images/graemlins/smirk.gif

GO COWBOYS!!!

PS. And you and I both know that GT was at a very large disadvantage going into their game yesterday against the Zags. It's no surprise Gonzaga won.

GoT

[/ QUOTE ]

Ahem. /images/graemlins/cool.gif

[/ QUOTE ]

Too bad you didn't put another wager on the gonzaga - osu game /images/graemlins/shocked.gif /images/graemlins/shocked.gif /images/graemlins/shocked.gif

[GuyOnTilt]

Too bad you didn't put another wager on the gonzaga - osu game

Clark actually did. I won't say for which side, but let's just say he thinks I owe him some money. /images/graemlins/wink.gif

As for today's game, I will give no excuses for the loss. There is just no excuse for dropping this game to Gonzaga. It was a truly POORLY played game by the Cowboys. I am saddened.

GoT

[Clarkmeister]

Thank god for the over!

[Clarkmeister]

BTW, in case you forgot, Illinois put that team away at the half, leading 58-27 going into the locker room and 77-39 when we pulled the starters with 12:00 to go in the 2nd half.

[GuyOnTilt]

It's a shame we won't be facing each other in the regular season. Weren't we supposed to be in the tourney in LV this week? What ever happened to that?

GoT

[Clarkmeister]

[ QUOTE ]
It's a shame we won't be facing each other in the regular season. Weren't we supposed to be in the tourney in LV this week? What ever happened to that?

GoT

[/ QUOTE ]

The whole thing is a disaster. You and Arizona St. were supposed to be in it, but then IIRC the NCAA changed the rules for the non-exempt tournaments which forced the last minute changes to the teams. The whole thing is a clusterfuck.

[GuyOnTilt]

Heh. Well, it would've been nice for our boys to be able to put up a W against you guys before conference play starts, but I guess I'll just have to settle for watching you guys drop to Cincy in a couple days and beating you in the Final Four. /images/graemlins/wink.gif

GoT

[Clarkmeister]

[ QUOTE ]
Heh. Well, it would've been nice for our boys to be able to put up a W against you guys before conference play starts, but I guess I'll just have to settle for watching you guys drop to Cincy in a couple days and beating you in the Final Four. /images/graemlins/wink.gif

GoT

[/ QUOTE ]

Big words for a fan of a team that just lost at home to a team that we paddled by 40.

[GuyOnTilt]

Big words for a fan of a team that just lost at home to a team that we paddled by 40.

Yeah, about that...I'm getting sick of your teams one-upping mine.

GoT

[Clarkmeister]

A couple of nice postgame comments by Gonzaga Head Coach Mark Few after their game against Illinois this year:

"We were thoroughly dominated today, in every phase of the game," Bulldogs coach Mark Few said. "There were times it didn't appear we belonged out there on the court."

"That's a really, really good basketball team," Few said. "Everybody is back. They're hungry. I don't think they have any weaknesses at all."

[bugstud]

the last one is not true, though...we can be hurt inside. Easily.

[CMP]

[ QUOTE ]
...and beating you in the Final Four. /images/graemlins/wink.gif

GoT

[/ QUOTE ]

I'm about to buy my air ticket for Final Four weekend. $178 RT from Chicago.

Any other Illini (besides Clark) or Illini-haters :-) going to be in Vegas for the FF weekend?

CMP

[Clarkmeister]

On my way to the Illinois game here in Vegas. Should be fun.

[Clarkmeister]

Trip Report from Day 1:

Stayed for all 3 games.

The court is 10 ft shorter than NCAA regs. This is a big advantage to Cinci tomorrow with their size advantage.

The refs in our game weren't great. At one point, the fans counted to EIGHT on a NW St. player in the lane and they simply refused to call 3 seconds. This continued on all game. In the Cincy game, I moved to directly behind Huggins which was pretty cool. He clearly intimidated the refs early and got calls late because of it. The refs in the last game were horribly inconsistent. I wasn't impressed with any of the crews.

Deron just seems just a little out of synch to me. Had one particular sequence where he missed a three and while he sat their watching it, his man beat him down the court for a cherry-pick bucket.

Luther is so confident right now, mugging for the crowd after hitting one of his 3's. The stat sheet from the scorers table had him at 5-9 from 3pt and Dee and Deron at a combined 3-13.

It will be a huge home court tomorrow, with well over 90% of the crowd being draped in orange. Small gym can get real loud. Only bad thing is that it's an older crowd and they didn't get that loud except in a few brief stretches.

Sitting behind the Cinci bench was super entertaining. A few choice Huggins quotes:

After I believe it was Kirkland got beat on a backdoor cut by the Longwood SF and got pulled: "did you like that? Better get used to it because Roger Powell is going to do that to you all day tomorrow"

To the entire team after the 4 minute TV timeout: "I've been telling you to pass the ball all week and you've thrown two passes in the first 4 minutes. Pass the @#%$ basketball." The team then has about 2 passes over the next 4 minutes too.

Good exchange with a ref on a goaltend:
BH: That was below the rim
Ref: No it wasn't, it was a goaltend, I've been doing this 18 years, I know one when I see it.
BH: Yeah, well I've been doing this 20 years.
Ref: I'm surprised you don't know the rule then.

They run no offense. None. It's either a drive to the bucket by the ballhandler, a pass to Maxiel, or simple passing around the horn for someone to chuck up a three. If we can stop Maxiel, and don't allow second chance shots we shut this team down. Period.

The problem with that is Maxiel is a beast. He jumps out of the gym. Had one sequence with 4 blocks on 3 Longwood possessions in the 2nd half. He is a freaking man and will give our bigs all kinds of trouble.

Couple of good Illini encounters as we sat in the front row behind Huggins and the players went back and forth to the cafeteria for some grub.

To Roger: "Bring the pain tomorrow Roger", he smiles broadly and says "You know it."

To Dee, who had the socks down today (I was later informed by a neighbor this is for circulation reasons) "Dee, we need much higher socks tomorrow, big game." Dee laughed, smiled broadly and gave me a playful slap on the chest.

Good guys, great young men.

Longwood played well, but never *really* threatened. Huggins kept Maxiel benched for the last 7 mins of the first half and as soon as he turned him loose in the 2nd half, the game was over.

Valpo has an absolutely TERRIBLE offense. I mean atrocious. They had a great group of fans that were outnumbered about 100-15 by UNI fans, that were super loud and supportive, but they couldn't get an open look to save their life. I think Longwood is going to take them out tomorrow.

I look forward to tomorrow's game and hope the Illinois fans turn this into a raucus home court advantage. I can't wait.

[SinCityGuy]

Dave,

Why do they hold this in a high school gym? What's the capacity there? Seems like they would make a lot more money at the T&amp;M.

[Cubswin]

Great trip report clark.

Im really liking cincy and the +5.5. Illinois seemed to struggle early against two sub-par teams this week... then again.... maybe i was just expecting 40 point blow outs. The 2 games were not on tv this week out here so maybe im just getting worried for nothing.

cubs

[Jim Kuhn]

Illini are tough! Great game beating Cincy! There is not doubt who is #1 right now.

Thank you,

Jim Kuhn
Catfish4u
/images/graemlins/spade.gif /images/graemlins/diamond.gif /images/graemlins/club.gif /images/graemlins/heart.gif

[Clarkmeister]

Day 2:

Valpo played much better and beat Jefferson and Longwood. The difference was that their big man, #42 wasn't taken out of the game by the UNI zone all day. The outstanding Valpo cheering section was back...all 15 of them, but they were loud. a 17-3 run got them back in the game in the first half and they won from there. I spent the game talking with the cheering section who were the parents of some of the players. Talked with the father of #3 and had a great talk about Homer Drew, coaching, etc. Good people.

UNI looked real good in game 2. They have a good inside-outside combo and play tough D. Refs continued to be awful, just as in game 1.

Halfway through this game the Illini fans started streaming in. The promoter got on the PA letting the fans know which bench would be the Illini bench. Had some great conversation with some Illini fans from Cinci, Decatur and Phoenix.

Pregame was like a heavyweight title fight (yes, I've been to one). Music cranking, fans screaming, players jumping up and down. Intense. Then Illinois spurts out to a quick 10-2 lead and the roof almost comes down. Awesome.

As with yesterdays games, the refs are bad early and often. Totally overmatched. In one instance, they called a foul on Augie guarding Maxiel, and when we come back from the TV timeout, they give Maxiel 2 shots even though they called the foul on the ground. Coach Weber is livid, red, and halfway on the court yelling at the refs. Another incident later with a blatant offensive goaltend missed by the refs almost got Wayne T'd up. The ref actually grabbed his whistle and Wayne went back to the huddle, then returned to talk to the ref some more once the ref put the whistle down.

As with yesterday, Cinci has no discernable offense and relies on their 3 pronged playbook.

Play 1. Dribble to the rack and take an off balance shot.
Play 2. Dish to Maxiel and have him draw a foul.
Play 3. Pass around the horn and jack a 3.

Play 2 isn't working that well until late in the half as the Illini are denying the ball rather effectively. For long periods, Cinci inexplicably forgets that Maxiel is even on the floor. Terrible coaching by Huggins, who is too busy yelling at the refs and yelling at his kids for missing free throws to bother telling them to pass it into the block.

Cinci keeps it closer than it should be though for a few reasons:

1. We, like everyone else in the 6 games, have touble shooting in this gym.
2. The refs keep calling fouls late in the half. Fortunately the Bearcats don't convert that well, 10-18 in the first half according to the statsheet that they gave to the media at halftime.
3. Cinci actually played pretty good D, taking away a lot of our offense, rubbing off picks very well, and denying us the kind of looks we have been used to getting.

Cinci fans tried to be loud early, but eventually gave up as it turned into a decided Illini home court advantage. Chants of ILL-INI, D-Fense, Hugg-ins, and at the end of the 2nd half, We're #1 were breaking out all the time.

In the second half, Cinci just couldn't string together 2 scores. We really were in control the entire second half, especially once we weathered the first 6 minutes with no additional key fouls, as 4 of our 5 starters had 2 fouls in the first half. Once foul trouble was no longer a huge concern, the game really felt in hand.

At one point, we were up like 51-34 IIRC with about 10:00 to go. I turn to my friend and say "it's over, they can't score 17 more." They didn't.

Rich looked much better than yesterday or even in pregame where his limp was still noticeable.

We struggled against the periodic Cinci trapping more than we should have.

We pulled away late and the fans really started to savor the win. Very loud, with Augustine egging the croud on.

During a real quiet free throw with about a minute to go where Huggins is still yelling at some players, someone loudly asks Huggins which will happen first, him beating Illinois or having another heart attack.

We obviously won the tourney first place trophy. Dee and Deron were on the All-Tourney team and Luther Head was named the Tourney MVP. Congrats Luther, well deserved!

Great atmosphere and a real treat to see these two powerhouses do battle in such a tiny gym. Let there be zero doubt who the best team in the country is.

The top row of the gym is in this pic. Should give an idea of just how small this place was:

http://www.curtmoss.com/images/IL_LasVegas1.jpg

[Clarkmeister]

[ QUOTE ]
Dave,

Why do they hold this in a high school gym? What's the capacity there? Seems like they would make a lot more money at the T&amp;M.

[/ QUOTE ]

http://www.reviewjournal.com/lvrj_home/2004/Dec-29-Wed-2004/sports/25562207.html

[Cubswin]

Struggling early against Ohio State. RPJ in early foul trouble. Looks like it didnt take long to get a test from a Big Ten foe. I wish this game was on TV out here...

cubs

[Cubswin]

rut roh... down 6 at half to purdue. this will be the first game IL trailed in the 2nd half this year.

[Cubswin]

16-0 /images/graemlins/smile.gif

[Clarkmeister]

Veteran team regrouped and turned up the D big time in the 2nd half. Good win on the road. We are just filthy.

Iowa lost again, this time on the road at tOSU after losing at home to scUM.

[CMP]

This thread has fallen too far down...

I'm going to the Illini-NU game tomorrow for a little revenge from last year (they beat us in Evanston).

/images/graemlins/smile.gif

CMP

[DangerGoodson]

Just wait til you come up to the Kohl Center. You will get murdered.

fuc'em bucky!

[mmbt0ne]

There's talk going around that if UNC stomps Wake tomorrow that they'll be #1. I mean, they've been damn impressive over the last few games, but I don't know if they deserve to jump Illinois. Any thoughts Clark?

[Clarkmeister]

[ QUOTE ]
There's talk going around that if UNC stomps Wake tomorrow that they'll be #1. I mean, they've been damn impressive over the last few games, but I don't know if they deserve to jump Illinois. Any thoughts Clark?

[/ QUOTE ]

"Talk" by whom? It wouldn't happen. They haven't jumped KU, they certainly won't jump a team with 10x the first place votes of KU.

[Clarkmeister]

[ QUOTE ]
Just wait til you come up to the Kohl Center. You will get murdered.

fuc'em bucky!

[/ QUOTE ]

We could lose, I'd guess we'll be a 1-2 point favorite, but *murdered*? C'mon now, be serious.

[JTrout]

[ QUOTE ]
We could lose,....

[/ QUOTE ]

What position do you play? /images/graemlins/blush.gif /images/graemlins/wink.gif

[Clarkmeister]

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
We could lose,....

[/ QUOTE ]

What position do you play? /images/graemlins/blush.gif /images/graemlins/wink.gif

[/ QUOTE ]

Worth it's own thread, but I think that "we" is quite appropriate, especially in collegiate athletics.

[Cubswin]

but I think that "we" is quite appropriate, especially in collegiate athletics.

i agree... it used to piss me off when people talked about sports team using "we" but i think it is quite appropriate with collegiate athletics... especially when you went to the school. that being said... we will break the badgers home win streak.

any plans on how you will spend your money clark?

cubs

[ArchAngel71857]

[ QUOTE ]
There's talk going around that if UNC stomps Wake tomorrow that they'll be #1. I mean, they've been damn impressive over the last few games, but I don't know if they deserve to jump Illinois. Any thoughts Clark?

[/ QUOTE ]

Illinois is #1 until they lose. There should be no talk about UNC being no.1. They lost to Santa Clara, yeah theydidn't have their best player, blah blah blah. When Illinois played Wake, Illinois' best player (arguably) had an off night, yet Wake got bent over and enjoyed a small prison term. Until Illinois (beating Wake, beating Gonzaga, Cincinatti, etc) is hands down #1. Even if UNC beats Wake, Kansas has been playing well and beat a very good Kentucky team.

-AA

[Clarkmeister]

[ QUOTE ]
There's talk going around that if UNC stomps Wake tomorrow that they'll be #1. I mean, they've been damn impressive over the last few games, but I don't know if they deserve to jump Illinois. Any thoughts Clark?

[/ QUOTE ]

Next question? /images/graemlins/cool.gif

[Cubswin]

Next question?

Is there anyone more annoying then Brent Musburger?

[Clarkmeister]

[ QUOTE ]
Next question?

Is there anyone more annoying then Brent Musburger?

[/ QUOTE ]

Yeah, but he loves us, so I can live with him. He took multiple shots at Dookie V during the game of ours I saw him broadcast earlier in the year. It's nice to have someone slobber all over your team once in a while.

In general though, I agree.

[Toro]

WTF! Overtime!!! I want to watch TILT!!!

[MarkL444]

ILL needs to pull this one off. Id rather we get the honor of tarnishing their record. /images/graemlins/grin.gif

[Cubswin]

nice blown call... eh?

[Toro]

Mushberger, shut up about TILT. You're making a fool out of yourself!

[Cubswin]

he doesnt even have to talk about tilt to make a fool of himself

[AngryCola]

[ QUOTE ]
nice blown call... eh?

[/ QUOTE ]

Awful call. The ball changed directions.
How blind can you get?

[Cubswin]

So true. I really think they needed a game like this ater 18 straight cake-walks. Iowa played some tough 'D' and IL was just not on their game tonight. 31% from the field? geeeeeezzz. Glad they have saturday off before the trip up to Kohl on tuesday.

cubs

[Clarkmeister]

One of those games where you wish it hadn't been that close, but once you win it, you are glad that it was so that it can refocus the team and give Coach something to get in their faces about. We should definitely be ready to bring our very best game up to Madison, which is a good thing because we will surely need it.

[DangerGoodson]

in honor of lil jon

When they (Illinois) steps into the kohl center...what they goin do? [censored]
what they goin do? [censored]

[nolanfan34]

[ QUOTE ]
One of those games where you wish it hadn't been that close, but once you win it, you are glad that it was so that it can refocus the team and give Coach something to get in their faces about. We should definitely be ready to bring our very best game up to Madison, which is a good thing because we will surely need it.

[/ QUOTE ]

What's the status of the bet with GoT? I can't remember the specifics, only the amount wagered. I do seem to remember that he needs them to lose, so, um, not going well for GoT so far. Do you have it locked up?

[bugstud]

ILL needs to lose twice before the end of the month


he's in a wee bit of trouble


and yeah, a good buddy of mine getting face time in OT was ...interesting, to say the least.

[Clarkmeister]

Who, the kid that Brent kept pointing out? That would suck.

[GuyOnTilt]

What's the status of the bet with GoT? I can't remember the specifics, only the amount wagered. I do seem to remember that he needs them to lose, so, um, not going well for GoT so far. Do you have it locked up?

Yeah. I called Clark from my 40 game at the Commerce today to congratulate him on his win. I believe I owe him $1,000 and Cubswin $50. Iowa actually had me pretty excited there for a while, enough that I sat out for two orbits to watch the game.

So Illinois winning today which is crappy and then this: Damian (one of the floormen in the mid/high stakes room) told me that this is the last time he'll let me play there without ID. He's carded me a couple times now, resulting in a tip and him letting me play since I just "forgot" my wallet and only brought my money clip. But he made it pretty clear this time that he won't allow me to plaly there any more without ID. Yay go Jack, boo Damian. And of course his shift has to be the prime hours too. TOTALLY sucks.

GoT

[Cubswin]

unanimous number 1??

Tell me i wasnt the only one who had money of Nova today!?!?!?

cubs

[Homer]

[ QUOTE ]
unanimous number 1??

Tell me i wasnt the only one who had money of Nova today!?!?!?

cubs

[/ QUOTE ]

Wow! Nova 70 Kansas 40

[AngryCola]

[ QUOTE ]
Wow! Nova 70 Kansas 40

[/ QUOTE ]


Jesus!

I had no idea that game was on.
I live in KU country (obviously), and I've been expecting a game like this.

[Clarkmeister]

Huge game tonight, definitely the biggest game of the year, slightly behind Wake and slightly ahead of the game at MSU. A win here should ensure at least a share of the Big Ten Championship, with an outright win being likely. National TV game after a piss-poor effort vs Iowa, I hope we regroup and bring the kind of effort that we are capable of.

[Cubswin]

Huge game tonight... i even busted out the orange shirt for work today... got a couple of strange looks from the uniformed.

I think the key to tonights game is Auggie... if he stays out of foul trouble IL will be ok.

I dont know the U/O on this game but im thinking i like the under... whisky plays some tough D and will try to slow the tempo way down... but i dont think it will be enough...

IL by 5

cubs

[tdarko]

no need to worry man, i went to high school with deron williams and he is definately a winner! i will be rooting for them too...gl

[gonores]

Big Wisky rolls tonight. Dee will have his worst game of the season tonight and Wilkinson puts up 22 en route to a 65-58 game where WI leads for 35 minutes.

[Clarkmeister]

I'll take the "Under 35" on Number of minutes Wisconsin leads.

Besides, Dee's our 3rd best player. He can have a terrible game and it won't kill us.

[MEbenhoe]

get ready to cry clarky. Wisco will roll and Duke will assume its rightful spot at the top of the college basketball rankings.

[MEbenhoe]

51-44 UW right now

Watch out Clarknasty

[Cubswin]

Watch out Clarknasty

/images/graemlins/grin.gif

[Cubswin]

Whos is that one AP fugger who voted for Duke???

[bugstud]

1. GOT loses
2. Jack Ingram drinks for free, rest of his life here
3. WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

[MEbenhoe]

[ QUOTE ]
Whos is that one AP fugger who voted for Duke???

[/ QUOTE ]

Duke is the better team. They will go farther come tournament time, and they have a better chance of winning the national championship than Illinois.

[bugstud]

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
Whos is that one AP fugger who voted for Duke???

[/ QUOTE ]

Duke is the better team. They will go farther come tournament time, and they have a better chance of winning the national championship than Illinois.

[/ QUOTE ]

two words

Santa Clara

[MEbenhoe]

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
Whos is that one AP fugger who voted for Duke???

[/ QUOTE ]

Duke is the better team. They will go farther come tournament time, and they have a better chance of winning the national championship than Illinois.

[/ QUOTE ]

two words

Santa Clara

[/ QUOTE ]

two words

wrong team

[Cubswin]

Duke is the better team. They will go farther come tournament time, and they have a better chance of winning the national championship than Illinois.

IL is 6-0 vs ranked teams. Duke had played 2 ranked teams. Talk to us after Duke plays a few more games against ranked teams.....

cubs

[bugstud]

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
Whos is that one AP fugger who voted for Duke???

[/ QUOTE ]

Duke is the better team. They will go farther come tournament time, and they have a better chance of winning the national championship than Illinois.

[/ QUOTE ]

two words

Santa Clara

[/ QUOTE ]

two words

wrong team

[/ QUOTE ]

Sorry, I was too dazed from Dickie V talking about UNC all game.

We'll take this up on Feb 10th, after Duke plays @wake, and then home for GT and UNC, ok? If they have less than 2 losses at that point I'll eat my hat.

[smurph]

we win again
ingram is too good

[Cubswin]

Clark

I know there are still tickets left for the Indy NCAA games... is this where IL is most likely going to play? I know there was some talk about it over at illini-nation board, but i just wanted to make sure... maybe a 2+2 illini meet-up in indy might be in order... it seems there are enough of us here...

cubs

[bugstud]

[ QUOTE ]
Clark

I know there are still tickets left for the Indy NCAA games... is this where IL is most likely going to play? I know there was some talk about it over at illini-nation board, but i just wanted to make sure... maybe a 2+2 illini meet-up in indy might be in order... it seems there are enough of us here...

cubs

[/ QUOTE ]

Indy, Rosemont, Saint Louis. Get 'em while you can.

[Clarkmeister]

Do you even watch the games? Illinois is by far and away the best team. Their 4 best games were their 4 biggest games. This team is poised, plays good D, has an incredibly balanced offense and is simply better than anyone else.

Frankly, they have a great shot at running the entire table. How much of a shot? I don't know, but I'd guess it's about 10% which is pretty substantial considering what we are talking about.

Duke has done nothing. Even Vitale can't pimp them over Illinois, which is saying something.

[ClarkNasty]

[ QUOTE ]
51-44 UW right now

Watch out Clarknasty

[/ QUOTE ]

We feel a little silly now, don't we?

[MEbenhoe]

[ QUOTE ]
Do you even watch the games? Illinois is by far and away the best team. Their 4 best games were their 4 biggest games. This team is poised, plays good D, has an incredibly balanced offense and is simply better than anyone else.

Frankly, they have a great shot at running the entire table. How much of a shot? I don't know, but I'd guess it's about 10% which is pretty substantial considering what we are talking about.

Duke has done nothing. Even Vitale can't pimp them over Illinois, which is saying something.

[/ QUOTE ]

Put your money where your mouth is sir. Duke will go farther in the tourney than the Illini. Since you're so confident you should even give me odds.

[Clarkmeister]

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
Do you even watch the games? Illinois is by far and away the best team. Their 4 best games were their 4 biggest games. This team is poised, plays good D, has an incredibly balanced offense and is simply better than anyone else.

Frankly, they have a great shot at running the entire table. How much of a shot? I don't know, but I'd guess it's about 10% which is pretty substantial considering what we are talking about.

Duke has done nothing. Even Vitale can't pimp them over Illinois, which is saying something.

[/ QUOTE ]

Put your money where your mouth is sir. Duke will go farther in the tourney than the Illini. Since you're so confident you should even give me odds.

[/ QUOTE ]

How much? I'll bet you straight up any dollar amount you name up to $5k. I don't know you like I know GoT so we'd have to get a trusted 3rd party to hold the money until the outcome was decided.

[Cubswin]

You got ballz clark... thats why i like ya. If you guys are serious and need a 3rd party let me know...

cubs

[MEbenhoe]

[ QUOTE ]
How much? I'll bet you straight up any dollar amount you name up to $5k.

[/ QUOTE ]

Straight up? I want odds since you're so confident. So lets see how confident ya are?

[pshreck]

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
How much? I'll bet you straight up any dollar amount you name up to $5k.

[/ QUOTE ]

Straight up? I want odds since you're so confident. So lets see how confident ya are?

[/ QUOTE ]

Officially wimped out.

[Clarkmeister]

Nah, I just know the best team in the country when I see it. I'm not a homer at all when it comes to betting. In fact, I'm actually more of a pessimist when it comes to teams I really like than anything. But this team is heads-and-shoulders above anyone else right now. I certainly didn't think we'd be anywhere near this good at the beginning of the season, but here we are.

This was a big-time win that champions get. Taking Bucky's best shot there and then closing out on a 12-1 run to finish the game after being down 63-64 IIRC. On the road, on national TV, after being down 8 twice midway through the 2nd half, that's big time.

[Cubswin]

Taking Bucky's best shot there and then closing out on a 12-1 run to finish the game

14-1 run actually... details details....

clark... are the indy tixs really general admission? if so... thats fugged up... im going to hit the 'buy' button as soon as i hear back from ya....

[MEbenhoe]

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
How much? I'll bet you straight up any dollar amount you name up to $5k.

[/ QUOTE ]

Straight up? I want odds since you're so confident. So lets see how confident ya are?

[/ QUOTE ]

Officially wimped out.

[/ QUOTE ]

Not true at all. Here's the thing. I know Clarkmeister is a smart guy and I would never deny that. So he fires out the fact that he'll take any straight up bet up to $5000 knowing that $5000 would be a much more significant sum to me than it would be to him, so there's no way I'll ever go that high, and the highest he actually expects me to fire back at him with is $100 or so. Either way he looks like he has more faith in his team here.

Now also, Clarkmeister is a professional gambler, so you know he's not going to make a bet unless he thinks it is +EV. Now when I fired out that I thought Duke would go further in the tourney than Illinois, he made claims as to how ridiculous this claim was. If this claim was true, this would mean that the advantage Illinois had over Duke would be a large one such as they had a 80% or higher chance of advancing further than Duke. However, when I noted his high level of confidence and told him he should offer me odds, he fired back with his straight up bet. This shows me that he only has confidence that this is better than a 50/50 wager. If he truly had the confidence he claims to, he'd offer me odds and still have a +EV bet.

[pshreck]

Ok, but you are saying you wouldn't take a 1 to 1 bet on Ill now? Would you have made the bet if a sucker offered you the same odds?

[Clarkmeister]

"So he fires out the fact that he'll take any straight up bet up to $5000 knowing that $5000 would be a much more significant sum to me than it would be to him"

Dude, I don't know anything about you. I simply threw out what I'd be willing to bet. Your idea, not mine. By your logic the only bet you'd take is one I wouldn't make. Your team is #2, mine is #1, both are unbeaten, and the wager was your idea.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v121/CoolHandLuke/38_OWNED.gif

[Clarkmeister]

[ QUOTE ]
Taking Bucky's best shot there and then closing out on a 12-1 run to finish the game

14-1 run actually... details details....

clark... are the indy tixs really general admission? if so... thats fugged up... im going to hit the 'buy' button as soon as i hear back from ya....

[/ QUOTE ]

I doubt it. I've been to first round games before and the tix were never GA.

I plan on getting tix to Rosemont. Got family and friends in Chicago so the trip would serve multiple purposes.

[MEbenhoe]

$10 bet straight up? I honestly didn't want to make a huge bet on this so you're $5000 offer was way over my head. Shoot my BR isn't even that big. I didn't even pay that much for my car.

[Cubswin]

the rosemont games are sold out... but im sure you can get some tixs if you got some connections or enough money to buy'em scalped... im sure you can get a nice pair of scalped tickets for around a grand /images/graemlins/grin.gif maybe ill give it a day for this buzz to wear off before i buy anything... want to make sure i know what im buying....

cubs

[Clarkmeister]

[ QUOTE ]
$10 bet straight up? I honestly didn't want to make a huge bet on this so you're $5000 offer was way over my head. Shoot my BR isn't even that big. I didn't even pay that much for my car.

[/ QUOTE ]

OK, I didn't know that. $10 it is. I don't think we need a 3rd party for that one. /images/graemlins/grin.gif

[Clarkmeister]

[ QUOTE ]
the rosemont games are sold out... but im sure you can get some tixs if you got some connections or enough money to buy'em scalped... im sure you can get a nice pair of scalped tickets for around a grand /images/graemlins/grin.gif maybe ill give it a day for this buzz to wear off before i buy anything... want to make sure i know what im buying....

cubs

[/ QUOTE ]

Oh, I know they are sold out. Part of the reason I play poker is so I can blow a few BB's on stuff like scalped tickets to sporting events. I figure it'll run me about $1500 for the 3-game session. That's cool.

[Clarkmeister]

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
It would send a good message to teams like Kansas who schedule no tough games or road games the entire non conference season.

[/ QUOTE ]

Ahem, from ramblinwreck.com:
01/01/2005 at No. 2 Kansas

I'd like to think of us as a tough game thank you very much. We're at least as good, if not better than Wake Forest.

[/ QUOTE ]

Whoops!

[MEbenhoe]

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
$10 bet straight up? I honestly didn't want to make a huge bet on this so you're $5000 offer was way over my head. Shoot my BR isn't even that big. I didn't even pay that much for my car.

[/ QUOTE ]

OK, I didn't know that. $10 it is. I don't think we need a 3rd party for that one. /images/graemlins/grin.gif

[/ QUOTE ]

Deal. PStars transfer work for payment if my Dukies fail me?

[Clarkmeister]

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
I'll put even money up to $1,000 that Illinois will have at least two losses by the end of January.

GoT

[/ QUOTE ]

Done for the $1k. I have IL under 1.5 losses by 1/31/05

Shall we give the money to a neutral party up front, or make a paypal transfer upon the end of the bet?

[/ QUOTE ]

Finally it's official, despite GoT conceding a few days ago. I certainly would have been much more nervous tonight had Iowa pulled it off the other night.

[Clarkmeister]

I don't have any online accounts. Paypal works, or just mail a check. If neither of those are acceptible, I'm sure I can find someone I know who does have a PStars account and I could use him as a facilliatator. We'll work it out.

[Clarkmeister]

[ QUOTE ]
can i get $50 just for shiets and giggles?

Sure, why not. /images/graemlins/smile.gif

GoT

[/ QUOTE ]


wheeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!

[Clarkmeister]

[ QUOTE ]
Just wait til you come up to the Kohl Center. You will get murdered.

fuc'em bucky!

[/ QUOTE ]

/images/graemlins/cool.gif

[Clarkmeister]

[ QUOTE ]
in honor of lil jon

When they (Illinois) steps into the kohl center...what they goin do? [censored]
what they goin do? [censored]

[/ QUOTE ]


Finish, apparently.

[mikeyvegas]

Big game at the Bres on Tuesday...
http://graphics.fansonly.com/photos/schools/msu/galleries/m-baskbl-112103/ATT96108-lg.jpg

[Clarkmeister]

[ QUOTE ]
Big game at the Bres on Tuesday...


[/ QUOTE ]

Yes. Definitely our 3rd biggest game of the year. It's for the outright Big Ten Title since it's the only game between the two schools and since MSU lost at Wisky. Win on Tuesday and we win our 2nd straight outright Big Ten Championship. Lose and it looks like we likely get a split, though honestly I think MSU has a "bad" road loss somewhere down the stretch.

[Cubswin]

wheeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!

Im shitting and giggling.....

OK... no talk about running the regular season until after next tuesday...

[Clarkmeister]

[ QUOTE ]
wheeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!

Im shitting and giggling.....

OK... no talk about running the regular season until after next tuesday...

[/ QUOTE ]

To be fair, I'm talking about running em all, not just the regular season. /images/graemlins/grin.gif

[Cubswin]

19 games is a lot...

of the 10 regular season games, 2 scare me... i think they are easy to pick out...

[Clarkmeister]

Yes, but they can do it. They aren't a favorite to do it, mind you, but it's certainly possible. And the Big Ten Tourney is in Chicago, the regional final in Chicago......any loss the rest of the way is an upset. I'd guess we lose one of the two you are thinking of ( @Iowa, @MSU ) but at this point I really wouldn't be shocked to see this team go 39-0, though frankly I don't care as long as we win the last one of the year.

[DangerGoodson]

hehe /images/graemlins/blush.gif
was at the game.
your boys play goot.

[mikeyvegas]

[ QUOTE ]
To be fair, I'm talking about running em all, not just the regular season. /images/graemlins/grin.gif

[/ QUOTE ]

It's not going to happen. If the 90-91 UNLV team coundn't do it, not team will.

On a side note, do you think that Illini are getting stronger through the season. They seem to me to be playing at the same level, which can be a scary thing.

Still, a very strong team.

[Clarkmeister]

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
To be fair, I'm talking about running em all, not just the regular season. /images/graemlins/grin.gif

[/ QUOTE ]

It's not going to happen. If the 90-91 UNLV team coundn't do it, not team will.

On a side note, do you think that Illini are getting stronger through the season. They seem to me to be playing at the same level, which can be a scary thing.

Still, a very strong team.

[/ QUOTE ]

I think this team isn't really playing their best ball right now. In particular we've been pretty lazy on the offensive end. I think we can play better than we have been since the Big Ten schedule started.

[Clarkmeister]

Thanks. You got to see a great game, at least, though the final 1:30 had to suck.

27-9 run to end the game after being down 8. I wouldn't have dreamed anyone could do that at Kohl.

[Ponks]

What a game. Man I had goosebumps at the start of the game and a lot of the second half! Me and some buddies watched the game at Legends and had some/a lot of beers before and during the game. The place was packed and going nuts the whole game, I love the atmosphere there.

GO ILLINI!!!!

Ponks/John

[nolanfan34]

[ QUOTE ]
What a game. Man I had goosebumps at the start of the game and a lot of the second half! Me and some buddies watched the game at Legends and had some/a lot of beers before and during the game. The place was packed and going nuts the whole game, I love the atmosphere there.

GO ILLINI!!!!

Ponks/John

[/ QUOTE ]

I wish my alma mater was good at basketball. /images/graemlins/frown.gif We couldn't even cover this past weekend getting 16.5 against the Huskies.

At least my de facto Orange(men) are not looking too bad. /images/graemlins/grin.gif

[MarkL444]

Hey Clark- turns out I decided to shell out a few bucks to get myself an Izzone ticket to the game tuesday. I was wondering if you might be willing to help me cover the cost. Interested in a wager?

[Cubswin]

Wisco will roll and Duke will assume its rightful spot at the top of the college basketball rankings.

Duke is the better team.

/images/graemlins/grin.gif

[MEbenhoe]

This loss tonight doesn't phase me at all.

[Cubswin]

Wisco will roll and Duke will assume its rightful spot at the top of the college basketball rankings.

/images/graemlins/shocked.gif

[MEbenhoe]

again I am not phased by the loss tonight.

[Clarkmeister]

Will the next few phase you? Duke will be extremely lucky to get out of February with "only" 3 losses on their overall record.

http://www.cameltoe.org/images/Duke_boohoo.jpg

[Clarkmeister]

I really hate betting on individual Illinois games, especially conference ones like this (and Wisconsin the other day) where I'll be pissed off plenty if we lose without adding lost money on top of it. So I'll pass.

[MEbenhoe]

[ QUOTE ]
Will the next few phase you? Duke will be extremely lucky to get out of February with "only" 3 losses on their overall record.

[/ QUOTE ]

Not at all. I never believed Duke would finish the season with a better record than Illinois. They play in a real conference. Duke is a the type of team that can do very well in a tournament setting, and thats why my bet with you was that they go farther than Illinois in the tournament.

P.S. This seems like the type of battle thats just asking to end with them both dropping out in the same round or something dumb, just so we don't have a winner.