If you told Brad Underwood before the Tennessee game that his team would be out-rebounded by 15 and still win, he probably wouldn’t have believed you.
For a program that prides itself on dominating the
glass, Illinois’ rebounding effort in Nashville was shocking.
It was actually the second straight game that Illinois lost the battle of the boards after winning it in their first seven games of the season. Yet despite a major disadvantage in the rebounding category, the Illini were able to walk off the court with a 13-point win over the No. 13 Tennessee Volunteers.
Illinois has shown that they have the ability to win games in a variety of ways, which is undoubtedly the sign of a good team.
In their season-opener against Jackson State, Illinois buried an astounding 17 threes on 37 attempts. Six different Illini scored 10+ points. They more than tripled Jackson State’s rebounds, with a final tally of 61-19.
Of course, this game was played against lesser competition. However, Illinois’ offensive prowess was on full display.
Against No. 11 Texas Tech, Illinois made just seven three-pointers. The team had a total of five assists on the night as they relied on Andrej Stojakovic getting downhill and creating shots for himself.
Texas Tech big man JT Toppin scored a game-high 35 points and simply could not be contained in the second half.
The Illinois coaching staff likely doesn’t want their box score to look like it did against TTU on a nightly basis, but a ranked win is a ranked win no matter regardless.
Against Tennessee, Illinois lost the rebounding battle 46-31. The Volunteers recorded 23 offensive rebounds compared to the Illini’s 11. They also had the advantage in defensive rebounds, winning 23-20.
So how did Illinois manage to win the game? They gave up just 62 points, the fewest points the program has allowed in a top-25 non-conference win in nearly two decades.
Star transfer Ja’Kobi Gillespie had a team-high 15 points, but it came on a 6-for-20 shooting night. Five-star freshman Nate Ament had 9 points, but that was on an inefficient 14 shots. No other Tennessee player had above 8 points as the team shot just 37% from the field and 30% from beyond the arc.
No player on Tennessee ever got going despite the team’s 23 offensive rebounds which created a number of extra possessions and shots.
On the flip side, Illinois fared pretty well offensively. They knocked down 11 threes on 39% shooting. A number of those makes came in huge second half moments thanks to Keaton Wagler, Zvonimir Ivisic, and David Mirkovic.
The constant in all four of Illinois’ high-major games this season has been Kylan Boswell. 22 points vs Texas Tech. 22 points vs Alabama. 25 points vs UConn. 15 points vs Tennessee. He’s been the focal point of their offense without question, even if Andrej Stojakovic has gone on a few heaters.
In Nashville however, Illinois’ complementary pieces stole the spotlight. Keaton Wagler and Zvonimir Ivisic both had several key threes. David Mirkovic and Ben Humrichous battled hard down low all night. Tomislav Ivisic finally looked like his 2024-25 self offensively.
If Illinois wants to be successful this year, then versatile performances will be a necessity. After incredibly different wins against high-powered teams in Texas Tech and Tennessee, this idea could be coming to fruition.
With Tomislav Ivisic finally healthy and the team’s numerous offseason additions continuing to mesh, the sky could be the limit for Brad Underwood’s dynamic roster.
