As dominant as the Illini have been through two games, there are always questions to be answered
The last thing Illinois would seem to have at this early and favorable stage are concerns, worries or doubts. But there are always questions – questions surrounding every team, at any given time. And these Illini, although clearly talented, are not perfect.
The exception, of course, is their current record, as Illinois has fired on all cylinders behind lead guard Kasparas Jakucionis' playmaking and fellow freshman Will Riley's scoring . The Illini put it all to the test again when they host Oakland at the State Farm Center on Wednesday at 8 p.m. CT . Despite notching two runaway wins in the first week of college basketball action, the Illini remain outside the AP Top-25 –The Golden Grizzlies are fresh off an 87-43 loss to Boise State, with their lone win coming against Defiance College, an NAIA squad.
As open-and-shut as this case may appear to be, there are questions that need answering as we approach the Illinois-Oakland matchup:After giving up 19 offensive rebounds to SIU-Edwardsville, the Illini are matched up with another solid offensive rebounding squad in the Grizzlies. And with a much bigger and more athletic Alabama coming up next, this will serve as a solid test as to whether any Illini other than Morez Johnson Jr. can consistently rebound on the defensive end..
Forty 3-point attempts per game isn't a ludicrous amount for a team that plays at Illinois' pace. But can the Illini keep15 or more threes every time out? There will undoubtedly be bad shooting nights here and there, but so far, the Illini are hitting 38.8 percent of their attempts beyond the arc – a good but hardly mind-boggling number. If Illinois can maintain it, this team’s ceiling is sky-high.
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