Illinois Basketball: Wright State grad transfer Mark Alstork commits to Fighting Illini

The Illinois Fighting Illini received good news, as Wright State leading scorer Mark Alstork announced his commit to the school as a grad transfer.

Last season, the Illinois Fighting Illini struggled in Big Ten play but were able to make it to the NIT thanks to a fantastic strength of schedule and the ability to avoid bad losses. In fact, Illinois was able to win two blowout games in the NIT over two teams, Boise State and Valparaiso, that many believed had a shot to make the 2017 NCAA Tournament last season.

Heading into 2017-18, however, a trip to the 2018 NCAA Tournament will be all this team can think about. The Fighting Illini got a taste of postseason play, and they want much more.

The good news for Illinois is that that dream became a lot easier, as Wright State grad transfer Mark Alstork announced his commitment to the school.

Alstork, who led the Raiders in scoring and assists with 19 and 3.5 per game respectively, helped take Wright State to 20 wins on the season in 2016-17. When looking for a school to transfer to, he clearly saw that he would get playing time on a rising Big Ten team and that it was only a little over three hours from his hometown, Dayton, OH.

While some may not know Alstork because of his previous school, most Big Ten fans will learn his name by the end of the 2017-18 season. A guard that stands 6’5 and weighs 190 pounds, Alstork will cause some match-up issues that could result in some big wins for the Illini.

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The Big Ten is wide open next season, and Illinois will feel like they have a real shot and finishing close to the top. Alstork’s addition makes this far more likely to happen.