Author: Jack Culberson
Coming into this season Illinois had found great success in the regular season the past two seasons as they won the Big 10 in 2021 and earned a number 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament. Last year they finished 23-10 and earned a 4 seed in the tournament, but both years Illinois has failed to pass the Round of 32. This year the Fighting Illini are looking to reach new heights and try to earn their first NCAA Tournament Championship win ever.
Eastern Illinois is a D1 school in the Ohio Valley Conference, and last year they went 5-26. This team is obviously looking to have a better season that they did last year and their returning players can help them do this.
This game was not a close one as Illinois won 87-57, and they proved to be too much for Easterm Illinois. The story of this game was definitely the difference in shooting. Illinois shot 30-64 from the field giving them a 46.9% field goal percentage, while Eastern Illinois shot 21-60 on 35% percent from the field. Illinois connected on 9 more shots on almost the same amount of attempts. Illinois’s 3-point percentage was more as well as they shot 34.6% from three, while Eastern Illinois shot 20% from three.
Three other major things that decided the outcome of this game were rebounds, assists, and blocks. Illinois out rebounded Easter Illinois 53 to 30, and Illinois had 10 more offensive rebounds than Eastern Illinois. Illinois also had 7 more assists than Eastern Illinois. Illinois had 9 blocks while Eastern Illinois only had 2. Illinois dominance on the glass, in the paint, and their overall ball movement gave them the edge that caused the blow out.
Illinois’s Terrence Shannon Jr. and Coleman Hawkins both had 20+ points as Shannon had 24 and Hawkins had 23. Shannon shot 5-8 from the field and 13-15 from free throws. Hawkins shot 8-14 from the field which included 5-8 from three. Hawkins also had 12 rebounds. Illinois’s Dain Dainja also had a great game as he had 17 points and 10 rebounds off the bench.
Illinois’s star power was just too much for Easter Illinois in this one. Illinois has a solid team that could make noise in the regular season and can make it far in the tournament in March. Eastern Illinois could surprise some people this year, and it will be interesting to follow their team as the season goes on.