Completely happy Saturday, Illini Nation!

Brad Underwood and Illinois basketball became appointment tv lengthy earlier than the 2023 Large Ten Event got here to Chicago.

Circumstances that make this a actuality are for all of the improper causes — wild swings of feelings, 5 airballs on missed threes within the first half alone, the middle inadvertently headbutting an opponent for a technical foul ending an enormous run and going from down 10 to up six to down 10 to dropping by 3 — all occurred in a single sport.

What occurred in Chicago on Thursday was not an outlier. It is a typical Illinois basketball sport. Snatching defeat from the jaws of victory.

Disjointed. Disingenuous. Disappointing.

Watching Illinois Basketball is like watching every other TV program that you just’ve seen one million instances. You understand how it’s going to prove, however can’t assist however watch to see the way it occurs this time. It feels completely different with this group and this teaching workers this season.

The one present that has made each lady in America need to cozy as much as Rip within the bunkhouse and each man drink espresso from a copper mug overlooking the expanse of the Western sky, stars Kevin Costner as John Dutton. The writing is unimaginable, and the appearing is even higher.

Nobody — and actually imply on one — is aware of what’s going to occur scene to scene, let alongside present to indicate. Twists, turns and travesty reveal themself round each nook. The plot is thick and sophisticated. Leisure at its greatest.

Sound acquainted? In fact it does. It feels like each Illinois basketball sport, significantly when Underwood & Co. come out on the dropping finish.

Right here’s the distinction. It’s ALWAYS one thing you don’t see approaching “Yellowstone.”

Briefly, 6-foot-10 Coleman Hawkins went down on the precise block and did harm to the smaller Penn State guards defending him.

Hawkins simply scored on an array of straightforward strikes to knock down a number of pictures. Is that this the plot twist that Illini nation has craved on this season of “Illinois Basketball?”

Everybody is aware of the plot of each Scooby Doo episode.

A thriller occurs within the city sq., and the group should determine whodunnit earlier than the tip of the half-hour episode. Intelligent writing and animation make it seem to be a ghost or a spectral determine is the perpetrator. To the shock of nobody, it by no means is the Lavatory Monster or an Ichabod Crane Wannabe.

On the finish of the present, the gang pulls off a masks to disclose that’s it’s poor shot choice, low basketball IQ and missed defensive assignments on key gamers AGAIN.

Advertisement

Kamil Krzaczynski-USA TODAY Sports activities

My dangerous. That was really the plot of the latest episode of “Illinois Basketball” in 2023. A thrill trip a minute, with shiny objects within the nook solely to divert your consideration from truthful actuality quickly.

It was Outdated Man Foster underneath the masks all alongside.

The identical plot as final week, with completely different names and faces arising because the evil doer. Luke Goode is pictured above. That’s coincidental. I preferred the best way that photograph seemed, and it match properly into the column.

“Scooby Doo” is an leisure present written largely for teenagers. The plot is simplistic by design. Make the youngsters really feel the hazard, however not really expertise it. Innocent enjoyable for the entire household.

It is sensible the huge enchantment of that present ranges throughout all age ranges and demographics. Anybody can determine the ending earlier than the present reaches its conclusion.

That begs the query: “Why can’t Underwood and his workers determine it out?”

What the hell is occurring over there on the sideline? Underwood at all times appears to be like confused, glancing backwards and forwards on the courtroom and the big scoreboard hanging overhead.

Is he really stunned that his workforce can’t shoot? That can not be the fact. I’ve heard Underwood discuss. He’s an especially clever man.

Underwood led this very Illinois program to a No. 1 Seed within the NCAA Event not way back. The Illini received the Large Ten Convention on their dwelling courtroom nearly precisely one yr in the past.

The top is nigh. One final likelihood for this proficient roster to win something of consequence, apart from just a few impartial website non-conference wins final calendar yr.

Perhaps Underwood and his workers will take a web page out of the “Yellowstone” playbook and make the most of some precise stress and thriller of their gameplan. One thing has to alter, or the NCAA Event will look quite a bit just like the Large Ten Event.

Will probably be brief lived and nondescript.

Illinois comes into the Tourney successful simply seven of its final 14 contests. Nothing evokes confidence that this workforce can attain the second weekend, or something past that. Hope is the lone, official technique.

Until Underwood pulls a rabbit out of his hat in Spherical 1 and will get his workforce to go to the rim and get to the road, the following episode will appear like half of the final fourteen video games.

Outdated Man Foster underneath the masks, but once more.

For outdated time’s sake, and to maintain the custom alive. Let’s take a look at 2p% and 3p% towards Penn State on offense, and the effectivity distinction.

• Two-point FG: 23-43 (53.1%), good for 1.06 factors per shot
• Three-point FG: 6-21 (28.6%), good for 0.86 factors per shot
• Illinois was 23.2% extra environment friendly contained in the arc
• Illinois was 12-19 (63.2%) from the road, and missed a entrance finish of a 1-and-1

What a time to be alive!

That is Illinois basketball.