Do Illini finally have formula to get past first weekend?
There's maybe no team in the country more overdue for an NCAA Tournament run than Illinois.
The Fighting Illini haven't reached the Sweet Sixteen since Deron Williams and Dee Brown led the title game trek in 2005.
But there might be something to this year's version. Illinois spent last weekend winning the Big Ten Tournament after trailing by at least 10 points in the second half of all three games. So there's some resiliency present.
The Illini has a legit star in senior wing Terrence Shannon. He scored 28, 40 and 34 points in the Big Ten tourney games. Over the past 12 contests, he's averaged 26.9 points and is shooting 41.7% from 3-point range in the last seven.
There's also a reliable second option in SIU transfer Marcus Domask, who produced 26 points, 8 rebounds and 7 assists in the conference title game win over Wisconsin.
“I like this team,” coach Brad Underwood said Wednesday in Omaha. “I just think there's a lot of versatility with this group, our bench is productive. I just think we have a lot of ability to do different things.”
But there's been a nagging inability to bring their best game to the Big Dance. Last year as a No. 9 seed, the Illini lost by 10 to Arkansas.
Before that, Illinois was a No. 4 and barely survived in the first round against Chattanooga before a decisive loss to Houston. During Ayo Dosunmu's final season in 2021, there was the painful loss to Loyola as a No. 1 seed.
Senior Coleman Hawkins played in all those games except Loyola and agreed there may be something different about this squad.
“I think last year was kind of embarrassing for me, first-round exit,” Hawkins said Wednesday. “It was definitely a game I felt like was winnable for us, but we just didn't compete hard. I felt like some of the guys gave up.
“But I feel like we've got a really good team this year that's ready to take on any challenge. I feel like the difference between this year's team and last year's team is no one's ready to go home.”
This is the time of year when analysts love to talk about whether a team meets the KenPom criteria to win a championship. In the Illini's case, the answer is yes on offense and no to defense. Illinois is No. 2 in the KenPom adjusted offense criteria, trailing only Connecticut, but 92 in adjusted defense.
The biggest drawback to a Final Four run might be the presence of defending champ UConn in the East regional. But first up is Ohio Valley champ Morehead State (2:10 p.m., truTV).
Morehead is a slow-paced, defensive-minded team. The Eagles are top-10 in the country in scoring defense (62.8 ppg), field-goal percentage defense, 3-point defense and rebounding margin.
As is the trend in college basketball, five of Morehead State's top eight scorers are grad students who transferred within the past two years. Top scorer Riley Minix spent four years dominating the NAIA level at Southeastern University in Lakeland, Fla. This year at Morehead, the 6-7 Minix averaged 20.8 points and 9.8 rebounds. Lowell transfer Kalil Thomas (43.5% from 3-point range) is another player to watch.
The winner of this game faces either BYU or Duquesne on Saturday. Underwood made it clear he's looking for more than just improving on Illinois' recent early exits.
“I'm here to try to win a national championship,” Underwood said. “Illinois is that type of program. That's our goal, not just to get out of the first weekend, but to keep moving on.”
The story of this year's Fighting Illini includes an unpleasant sidebar. Shannon was charged with rape by prosecutors in Kansas on Dec. 5. He was suspended and sat out six games before receiving a temporary restraining order to be reinstated to the team. A preliminary hearing in the case is set for May 10, well after the NCAA Tournament is complete. Shannon's lawyer released a statement asserting his client is innocent of the charges.
Shannon has not been made available for interviews since returning to the team and that doesn't figure to change.
“I'm not going to consume myself with it,” Underwood said Sunday. “I said when he was suspended, I was going to coach the guys in the locker room. He's in the locker room, (so) I'm going to coach him.
“It's a very serious matter. He's got representation. It will be handled accordingly with great sensitivity and respect to everybody.”
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