Big Ten Basketball: Week 5 conference power rankings

Illinois is one of the only teams who did not move up or down in the power rankings this week, The Illini have had some promising moments this season, but just haven’t been able to pull out any close quality wins to boost their resume.

In the Illini’s four losses, Brad Underwood’s team has lost by a combined 19 points. So, once the Illini get things together they may be a whole different team in the coming months.

Last week, the Illini played Austin Peay at home, narrowly defeating them 64-57. This was a less-than-impressive performance by the Illini, as they committed 25 turnovers in the win.

The Illini then traveled to Las Vegas to take on the Runnin’ Rebels of UNLV. This was a game of runs throughout, as the Illini were defeated 89-82. The Illini played pretty well in this game, especially despite an elbow injury to Leron Black forced him to miss the second half.

UNLV is a tournament-caliber team, and the Illini showed that they can play with teams like the Rebels. The Illini actually outrebounded the UNLV squad that ranks in the top-10 in the nation in rebounds per game.

As mentioned, Black is a big key to the Illini’s success. One of the lone veterans of the group, Black leads the team in points (13.6) and is third in rebounds (5.2) per game. He is not expected to miss extended time, but it is definitely something to keep an eye on. Michael Finke (11.7 ppg, 5.7 rpg) and Kipper Nichols (10.1 ppg, 5.8 rpg) also help the Illini strong. Aaron Jordan contributes 11.5 points per game, which is largely due to the fact that he is shooting 62.5% from three-point range.

Schedule for this week:

Longwood (3-5) at Illinois on Dec. 13

New Mexico St. (8-2) vs Illinois in Chicago, IL on Dec. 16