Illini Zip

I had the same skepticism when @Hilltopper had rave reviews about Freeman. Next thing I know he’s starting.

Does his playing style remind you of any other Zip player?

An emphatic stufferino at that.

We made plenty of mistakes down the stretch, but that defense with 3.6 left was perfect by everyone. Especially Tribble for contesting the ball handler while making sure he didn’t foul. If Tribble’s shorts had pockets I think he would’ve put his hands in them just to make sure he didn’t get called for reaching. Well done.

Road Kill.

I love the dunk!!!!

No Tavari yet.

High level game thus far. The Zips just look so much better. And Ali is a threat to score at all levels.

Thanks. Yep, let’s hope he’s a late bloomer with a high ceiling and intangibles.

I look forward to your report on Mahaffey. Good question, what does Groce see that others didn’t.

I'm half Swedish and half German. I'm so offended!! (not really, not even a little bit) Go Zips!!

I'm all of out of likes. I agree with you completely. And with Ali, which was the plan, we probably have a couple more wins. Something else I believe you have mentioned recently. That said, I still support shortening the roster up for right now.

I didn't foresee having this much trouble with our guards settling into their roles. So I'm for shortening the rotation to 7 players. I am starting Tribble, Ali, Freeman and who ever practiced well without constantly turning the ball over. There is still the time and talent to mature into that deep team that rotates 9 regularly and maybe all 11 occasionally. And if that day comes, maybe we can get cute with a starter or 2 anchoring the second wave coming off the bench. I keep hoping to see 40 minutes of that fast pace style I love so much about Groce's teams. But we are not getting consistent, quality minutes from much of the team right now.

So you're telling me there's a chance. Yeah!!

I really thought we would be getting more out of Tavari by now.

I have my towel. Let's go!!

Happy Thanksgiving Zips Nation!!

When was the last time Enrique had only 3 rebounds? Ever?

What do you say we don’t pee on the electric fence today. End the trip with a win. Go Zips!!

I’m listening to the game. So we are getting some good looks and just not hitting them?

I agree. We got their best effort yesterday. And I can’t imagine that style holds up well with 3 games in 3 days unless they have tons of depth.

That would be Awesome!!

Maybe I missed this along the way. But this MAC-SBC Challenge is something new. Is it possible that if we lead the MAC come February we might get a shot at the current AP #22 James Madison University?

Good points. To answer my own question, Groce said he has the luxury of having 8 starters with 3 coming off the bench. On any given night each of these guys could get hot and help carry the team. Ali would make that 9 starters, better odds. Could you see Ali playing starters minutes, but coming in with the second wave off the bench?

There is nothing we can do about it, but I have to wonder how Ali’s presence would have affected these games.