Player of the game
Illinois guard Kasparas Jakucionis
Jakucionis should likely be on a permanent triple-double watch this season. The Illini freshman didn’t quite reach that goal — a few would-be rebounds were picked off by teammates late in the second half — but the projected first-round draft pick was very close in just the second game of his college basketball career. Jakucionis finished with 12 points, 13 assists and eight rebounds. The 13 assists tied Frank Williams’ freshman record in the 1999-2000 season against Loyola Chicago and were three shy of the overall record shared by Demetri McCamey and Tony Wysinger.
Backcourt
Illinois: A-
SIUE: C-
Tre White’s hot start (a pair of early threes set up a barrage of the Illini from deep) and Jakucionis’ near triple-double were certainly highlights. The rest of Illinois’ guards didn’t have much of an impact on the outcome of Friday’s win. (Although walk-on Keaton Kutcher scored his first two career points with the Illini). For the Cougars, former NG All-State First Team selection Ray’Sean Taylor led the way with 14 points and four assists.
Front field
Illinois: A-
SIUE: B-
It took a while for Illinois to recover against SIUE. The Cougars had a clear advantage in the first half when it came to offensive rebounds – and second-chance points – that Morez Johnson Jr. and Will Riley helped compensate after halftime. The Illini still gave up more rebounds than Brad Underwood would like, but leading scorer Tomislav Ivisic was joined in double figures by Riley and Ben Humrichous to make up for that shortfall.
Bank
Illinois: B
SIUE: B-
The depth of this Illinois team means Underwood will always be able to score off his bench, which is his preference. There was simply less of it on Friday than there was in Monday’s season opener. The leader didn’t change, however, with Riley the Illini’s leading scorer coming off the bench. Johnson’s rebound also helped, but SIUE could say the same with Jo Valrie’s eight points and 11 rebounds.
General
Illinois: A-
SIUE: C
Illinois took its first double-digit lead just 5 minutes, 3 seconds into Friday’s game and held a large lead for most of the evening. SIUE certainly never threatened an upset in the second half. But it didn’t quite have the feel of Monday’s big win against EIU, when the Illini just seemed to be rolling. Maybe it was the Cougars’ efforts on the glass. Or the fact that Illinois missed nine free throws. But a 32-point win is a 32-point win. File it down and move on.
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