Illinitalk

The Illinois Fighting Illini beat Ohio State (excuse me--THE Ohio State. By the way, what is up with using THE? Give me a break!) last night 84-65, winning their first Big 10 game of the 2004-2005 season. Here are some thoughts on the game:

The Starters:
--Dee Brown has to be the fastest guy with the ball in college basketball. Not one of the fastest, the fastest. He got the ball on a break with two OSU guys in front of him and one just behind, and he still made it past them to score a layup. He was faster with the ball than they were without!

--James Augustine had an outstanding game with a career high 21 points to go with 10 rebounds. He played with confidence and smart aggressiveness and deserves a lot of credit for this victory. He doesn't have to score 21 points every game but if plays like that, it will take some pressure off of the guards and make it easier to get open outside shots.

--Roger Powell, Jr. (i.e. The Reverend), was in foul trouble much of the night but still managed to score 12 points. He would have had 14 or 15 points if the refs had not waved off a dunk that should have counted and called a foul in which they said it was on the floor rather than when he was in the process of shooting (the shot went in). Both calls were mistakes. Moving on, Illinois missed his toughness and versatility when he was out of the game. His importance to the team may be overlooked at times but shouldn't be.

--Deron Williams had his usual good all-around game. Luther Head had an off-game offensively but played great defense.

The Bench
--Jack Ingram had a nice game off the bench doing the little things when Powell was out.
--Nick Smith needs to get his shot going but had a couple key boards.
--McBride seems like his ankle may still be bothering him slightly but hit a nice 3.

The TV Announcers
--Fair to both teams but here were some gems from their commentary (as I recall them):
1) "He took the bucket to the hole." Um, the bucket? How about the basketball?
2) "That goaltend brought Ohio State within 3." Um, OSU was the team that committed the goal tend. They were within 1 point prior to that. The goaltend boosted the Illini's lead to 3.
3) This one is not a quote, just a comment. QUIT REPLAYING A GOALTEND (separate goaltend from the one in #2) AND CALLING IT A GREAT BLOCK. IT WAS CALLED A GOALTEND BY THE REFS AND WAS CLEARLY A GOALTEND IN THE REPLAYS. THEREFORE IT COULD NOT HAVE BEEN A GREAT BLOCK!

The Refs
--Ed Hightower. For those of you who follow the Illini, enough said.

Random
--Has anyone else noticed how in some games Illinois just pulls away from teams without you even realizing it? Maybe it's just me, but it seems like one minute the game will be close and the next minute, Illinois is up by 20+. Last night, I thought the Buckeyes played well--good, hard-nosed defense and great shooting from 3 point range. And yet, after halftime Illinois just steadily pulled away. It is scary just how good this team is and that they could be even better as the season progresses. By the way, I heard a stat last night that speaks volumes--going into last night, the Illini were averaging 20.6 assists/game and were winning by an average of 20.6 points/game. Think there might be a correlation?

--I have heard a lot of discussion lately about whether the Illini should redshirt Brian Randle for the season since he is still recovering from his hand injury. This is a tough call. While a redshirt would help the Illini in the future by preserving a year of his eligibility, I believe that his athleticism and size could help the Illini during the second half of the conference schedule as well as in the Big 10 and NCAA Tournaments. He could be a nice spark off the bench and add some valuable depth. While I believe it is important to plan for the future, I believe that when you have the opportunity to go for a championship, you don't hold back anything! Coach Weber, Randle, and the trainers need to have a serious discussion on when he could be ready to play by and if he can realistically contribute this season. If he will be ready and can contribute, then don't redshirt him. If you win the title, everything else will take care of itself.

--Nice win by Michigan on the road over #15 Iowa.

--Kansas got its second straight scare AT HOME during their game last night with Texas A&M. It was tied with less then a minute to go before they survived once again. Meanwhile, as discussed above, Illinois won by 19 at home against OSU. DICK VITALE--WERE YOU WATCHING?