Illinois vs. Rutgers: 2020-21 college basketball game preview, TV schedule
It’s a battle of ranked programs when Rutgers and Illinois face off on a Sunday afternoon.
TV schedule: Sunday, December 20, 1:00 pm ET. ESPN2
Arena: Rutgers Athletic Center (The RAC) in Piscataway, New Jersey
With conference play underway in an extremely deep Big Ten, a marquee top-25 showdown is slated between two conference contenders in Illinois and Rutgers – in what is the biggest game of Sunday’s schedule.
Illinois (5-2) enters after an up-and-down stretch of games throughout December, going 2-2 with losses to Baylor and Missouri but impressive wins over Duke and Minnesota. Their most recent outing – a 92-65 romp over the Golden Gophers – was headlined by a career performance by Kofi Cockburn, who recorded a 33-point (12-15 FG, 9-15 FT) and 13-rebound double-double.
The Fighting Illini feature one of the best guard-post tandems in all of college basketball, with Cockburn – who has averaged 16.7 points on a 68.3% shooting clip to go with 9.4 rebounds – and the sensational Ayo Dosunmu. Dosunmu has poured in double-digits in all seven games thus far, averaging 22.7 points – along with 7.6 rebounds and 5.1 assists.
Brad Underwood‘s squad tally 1.03 points per possession – and they rank among the best in numerous offensive categories. They rank sixth in effective FG% (60.1%), eighth in 3P% (43.2%), and 23rd in 2P% (58.1%). They are also relentless on the boards, getting an offensive rebound on a 23rd-best 36.6% of their shots – largely because of Cockburn, who ranks in the top 100 in both offensive rebounding and defensive rebounding percentages.
The Illini will travel to take on an undefeated Rutgers team that has won all five games by double-digits. Their last two have been their strongest yet, taking down Syracuse by ten before dominating Maryland on the road last Monday. In their opening four games, the Scarlet Knights had to operate without star guard Geo Baker, who suffered an ankle injury in their season-opener – but that has created no issues for Rutgers.
The tandem of Ron Harper Jr., Jacob Young, and Montez Mathis has been stellar for the Scarlet Knights. The backcourt of Young and Mathis have supplied a necessary offensive boost in the wake of Baker’s absence, averaging 15.0 and 13.8 points, respectively. Harper Jr., meanwhile, has played like an All-Big Ten First Team talent, averaging 23.2 points and 7.0 rebounds.
Luckily, for Steve Pikiell‘s squad, they will have the services of Baker for their showdown with Illinois. Baker, after playing just a minute against Sacred Heart in the first game of the year, returned for Rutgers’s game at Maryland, playing 28 minutes and pouring in 13 points (5-13 FG, 3-6 3PT). His return led the Scarlet Knights to one of their best team performances yet – which included a 48.8% FG clip and 47.4% tally from beyond the arc.
Like Illinois, Rutgers ranks in the top 100 in the same offensive categories (17th in effective FG% at 56.9%, 95th in 3P% at 35.7%, and 22nd in 2P% at 58.2%) – but they are also stellar on the defensive end, holding teams to 28.3% from beyond the arc (63rd) and 42.6% inside (34th). Their offense is slightly worse than Illinois in that they average 0.98 points per possession – but their defense is better, holding teams to 0.77 points per possession to the Illini’s 0.81.
This is, hands down, the best game on the docket for Sunday – and it comprises of two teams striving to assert themselves as contenders in a competitive – and top-heavy – Big Ten. Illinois has struggled to consistently put away quality competition, while Rutgers has not yet had the opportunity to take on a top-25 program.
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Both teams feature a versatile and efficient group of offensive weapons – as well as tenacious two-man tandems. The battle between Illinois’s Dosunmu and Cockburn and Rutgers’s Baker and Harper Jr. could produce one of the best duels in the opening month of play – and one that could go either way. But between this year and last season, Rutgers has gone 23-1 at home – which includes a 15-point win over Illinois last season, and that could be replicated again.
Prediction: Rutgers 79 – Illinois 74