NCAA Basketball: North Carolina, Gonzaga still sit atop updated top 25 ranking
By Joey Loose
18. Illinois (2-0)
The Fighting Illini have had a revival in recent years, winning the Big Ten regular-season title last year and the tournament title the year before. Brad Underwood has been fantastic in leading this program. However, Kofi Cockburn is now gone, as are many of the contributors from last season’s Big Ten title-winning squad. There are a lot of new faces wearing the orange and blue and so far it’s working according to plan.
In game one, the Illini got an 87-57 win over Eastern Illinois, with Texas Tech transfer Terrence Shannon Jr. leading the way with 24 points. Coleman Hawkins had 23 points of his own, including 5 3-pointers in the win, while Baylor transfer Dain Dainja added 17 points and 10 rebounds off the bench. An 86-48 win over Kansas City followed on Friday night, with Dainja leading the charge with 20 points and 15 rebounds. Jayden Epps had a nice effort off the bench as well with 13 points.
New pieces like Shannon and Dainja look great early, while the Illini are waiting for breakoiut performances from Matthew Mayer and RJ Melendez. All in all, this team looks fine without Cockburn, albeit against some pretty weak opposition. The defense has played very well and the new frontcourt is holding its own early on. Next week poses that bigger challenge, as the Illini get a date with UCLA this upcoming Friday; an early chance to prove themselves.