Wisconsin vs. Illinois Preview
CHAMPAIGN, IL (AP) – A stellar shooting performance helped Illinois bounce back from consecutive losses and win its Big Ten opener.
That kind of effort could be what it needs to build some confidence heading into an even tougher league test.
The No. 23 Illini hope to build off their latest victory as they try to snap Wisconsin’s seven-game winning streak Sunday at Assembly Hall.
Current college basketball odds and oddsmakers from online sports book SBGGlobal.com have made Illinois -2 point spread favorites for Sunday’s game against Wisconsin. Current college basketball public betting information shows that 59% of more than 140 bets for this game have been placed on Wisconsin +2.
Illinois (11-3, 1-0) went 9-of-35 from 3-point range in back-to-back losses to Illinois-Chicago and No. 10 Missouri before shooting a school record 72.2-percent (13 of 18) from beyond the arc in Wednesday’s league-opening 87-77 win at Iowa.
“When you’re shooting the ball like that, it makes you look good,” coach Bruce Weber said. “We hadn’t been making the plays the past couple of weeks and this time we made them and found a way to win.”
The Illini, who shot 36.0 percent from the field against UIC and Missouri, made a season-high 66.7 percent of their shots versus Iowa to pick themselves up and re-gain some lost confidence.
“It was just a tough stretch for us, but we won our first Big Ten game,” Weber said. “Now we’ve got to go back and see if we can get a couple at home.”
That could be difficult.
Looking to open 2-0 in the Big Ten for the second straight season, the Illini face a pair of stiff challenges against Wisconsin (11-2, 1-0) and Northwestern, two teams which received votes in this week’s Top 25.
Though Illinois beat Wisconsin 58-54 in the quarterfinals of last season’s Big Ten tournament, the Badgers have been particularly tough against the Illini at Assembly Hall of late. Wisconsin has held the hosts to 60.5 points per contest while winning three of four in Champaign.
Jordan Taylor and Jon Leuer each had 20 points in the Badgers’ 72-57 win at Illinois on March 7.
Wisconsin held its opponents to 55.0 points per game on 39.0 percent shooting while going 7-0 in December.
Though Wisconsin shot 41.2 percent Tuesday, it held No. 14 Minnesota to 39.0 percent in a 68-60 home win over the Gophers.
“I reminded the guys we’ve got 17 more left,” said Wisconsin coach Bo Ryan, who will try to guide the Badgers to their sixth straight 2-0 Big Ten start.
Taylor (15.9 points per game) had 22 points and Leuer (19.5 ppg) added 16 as the Badgers won their seventh straight home game against a ranked opponent.
“It was a big game for us, and we’re going to try to use it as momentum into the Big Ten season,” Leuer told the school’s official website. “We have to (focus) on Illinois.”
Leuer has averaged 16.3 points on 19-of-38 shooting his last three games versus Illinois.
Illini guard Demetri McCamey was held to 11 points against Wisconsin at home last season, but had 20 on 7-of-10 shooting and added 10 assists against Iowa.
Illinois senior center Mike Tisdale has totaled a disappointing 17 points in his last three games, but averaged 18.7 on 20-of-27 shooting in three games against Wisconsin in 2009-10.
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