After a giant win over Baylor on Friday night time, the No. 16 Virginia males’s basketball crew seems to be to do it once more on Sunday towards No. 19 Illinois, hoping to seize the Continental Tire Important Occasion Championship in Las Vegas. Each the Cavaliers and the Combating Illini knocked off top-10 opponents within the semifinals on Friday (UVA beat No. 5 Baylor, Illinois beat No. 8 UCLA) and now meet in a second-consecutive ranked matchup with the Important Occasion title on the road. 

Learn on for a full preview of Virginia vs. Illinois, together with particulars on the sport, an opponent scouting report, recreation notes, and a rating prediction.

Recreation Particulars

Who: Virginia Cavaliers (3-0) vs. Illinois Combating Illini (4-0)

When: Sunday, November twentieth at 3pm ET

The place: T-Cell Area in Las Vegas, Nevada

Tips on how to watch: ESPN

Tips on how to stream: fuboTV (Begin your free trial)

Tips on how to pay attention: Virginia Sports activities Radio Community – click on right here for associates

All-time collection: That is the first-ever assembly between Virginia and Illinois

Opponent Scouting Report: Illinois

2021-2022: 23-10, 15-5 Massive Ten

2022-2023: 4-0
Wins: Jap Illinois 87-57, Kansas Metropolis 86-48, Monmouth 103-65, UCLA 79-70

Illinois received its first Massive Ten common season championship since 2005 final season, going 15-5 in convention play. However, the Illini couldn’t maintain that success in postseason play, going one-and-done within the Massive Ten Event earlier than shedding to Houston within the second spherical of the NCAA Event. 

From that crew, the Combating Illini return zero starters and only a few rotation gamers, as junior middle Coleman Hawkins is the one returner who averaged double-digit minutes final season. Nonetheless, Illinois has a really proficient roster this 12 months as Brad Underwood had an incredible offseason, signing a highly-touted freshman class and scoring some high quality additions by means of the switch portal. 

Crucial addition has undoubtedly been Texas Tech switch Terrence Shannon, who has seemed like a totally totally different participant since he arrived in Champaign. The 6’6″ senior guard exploded on Friday night time, scoring 29 factors on 8/9 three-point capturing (sure, you learn that proper) and 10 rebounds. That is an unreal statline that hardly conveys how unbelievable Shannon’s efficiency was in Illinois’ 79-70 win over UCLA. There may be some hope that he may have cooled off between Friday night time and Sunday afternoon – he shot like 2019 Elite Eight Carsen Edwards on Friday and the Cavaliers actually needn’t see something like that once more. Will probably be attention-grabbing to see how Tony Bennett tries to include Shannon – my guess is a mix of both Armaan Franklin or Reece Beekman and a few very aggressive hedges on ball-screens – UVA must power the ball out of his arms as typically as attainable. 

Shannon is averaging 24.3 factors per recreation, however he’s hardly a one-man present as Illinois has three different gamers averaging in double figures – Dain Dainja (16.3 ppg), Coleman Hawkins (10.0 ppg), and Jayden Epps (10.0 ppg). Virginia may discover itself at a measurement drawback on the perimeter as all of Illinois’ key guards are 6’2″ or taller. Freshmen Skyy Clark (6’3″), Jayden Epps (6’2″), and Sencire Harris (6’4″) have seemed very promising up to now and sophomore RJ Melendez (6’7″) is a strong defender as effectively. 

6’10” ahead Coleman Hawkins has hit 5 of his 12 three-point makes an attempt up to now this season and possesses an underrated passing means, particularly for a giant man. That is one thing the Cavaliers will want to pay attention to as they ceaselessly double within the put up. Hawkins has the imaginative and prescient, peak, and passing abilities to make UVA pay for hasty double groups. Virginia may contemplate leaning on Kadin Shedrick to deal with Hawkins one-on-one within the put up. 

Illinois has one other stretch massive in Baylor switch Matthew Mayer, who shouldn’t be afraid to tug the set off from three (18 makes an attempt by means of 4 video games) and likewise has a variety of expertise enjoying in massive video games as he’s starting his fifth 12 months of school basketball. Dain Dainja, a 6’9″ ahead who additionally transferred from Baylor, provides the Bears a extremely efficient inside presence. He has linked on 30 of his 35 subject aim makes an attempt up to now this season for a shocking 85.7% subject aim proportion. Virginia’s forwards – specifically Jayden Gardner and Ben Vander Plas – may have their arms full towards the Illini bigs. 

Illinois shouldn’t be shy about taking and making three-pointers, capturing over 38% from past the arc. Shannon, Hawkins, Epps, Clark, Mayer, and Harris are all prepared perimeter shooters who even have the athleticism to assault the paint if Virginia will get too aggressive on closeouts. The UVA protection can be challenged laborious simply because it was towards Baylor on Friday. 

The Illini boast a potent offense, averaging 88.8 factors per contest by means of 4 video games. However they have not seen a protection like Virginia’s but. Baylor was a giant first check for UVA on Friday night time and the Bears put up 79 factors thanks largely to some unbelievable particular person scoring efforts. However, Virginia additionally held Baylor to a six-plus minute stretch with no made subject aim that proved to be the distinction within the recreation. It is early, however confidence stays excessive that Tony Bennett may have this crew working as among the best defenses within the nation as he has accomplished time and time once more. Doing sufficient to decelerate Illinois’ offense is the subsequent step in that course of. 

Recreation Notes

• That is the first-ever assembly between the Virginia and Illinois males’s basketball applications
• Virginia is 106-131 all-time towards groups who’re presently members of the Massive Ten convention, with 183 of these video games coming towards Maryland
• UVA holds a 49-41 report towards ranked opponents beneath Tony Bennett
• Tony Bennett is eight wins away from passing Terry Holland (326-173) as Virginia’s all-time winningest coach
• Virginia has made a minimum of 9 three-pointers in every of its first three video games, marking the primary time the Cavaliers have made that many threes in consecutive video games because the 2018-2019 season
• Virginia is aiming for its eighth non-conference November match championship within the final 9 seasons

Prediction

Whatever the end result, each groups have already gotten an excessive amount of worth out of this journey to Las Vegas. They’ve already picked up a win over a top-10 opponent on a impartial courtroom and at the moment are getting pivotal expertise working in a match atmosphere with solely a one-day break between video games. That have will show to be very important in March. 

If the Illini, and specifically Terrence Shannon, get going offensively and shoot in addition to they did towards UCLA (52.9% from the ground, 48.0% from three), then the query can be if Virginia can sustain in a shootout. The Cavaliers are presently capturing 51.6% from three, an astronomical leap from their 32.3% season-long clip from the 2021-2022 season. However that will not final without end – UVA shot 64.3% (9/14) from three towards Baylor and that stage is solely unsustainable. However what’s going to Virginia’s common finally regress to? UVA now has the shooters to knock down open perimeter pictures and with the assorted offensive items Tony Bennett has to work with this season, the Cavaliers have been in a position to persistently manufacture these open pictures, even towards a strong Baylor protection that was in a position to swap on each display screen. 

There’s an opportunity that Armaan Franklin and Terrence Shannon each repeat their lights-out performances from Friday and the group will get an offensive present worthy of Las Vegas within the title recreation. However the extra seemingly state of affairs is that neither crew shoots in addition to it did on Friday and the ensuing recreation turns into a lot lower-scoring and extra impacted by every crew’s execution on each ends of the ground on every possession. In that state of affairs, I consider the benefit goes to Virginia with its myriad veterans, gradual tempo, chemistry and comfortability in a system, and lockdown crew protection. UVA wins in a detailed recreation and brings dwelling one other November match championship.

Prediction: Virginia 72, Illinois 68

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