The Illinois basketball team has been dominant recently and is playing like one of the best teams in the country. They have won 12 straight games and, most recently, beat their state rival, Northwestern, 84-44, in one of their most dominant wins in program history. In the win, the Fighting Illini dominated on defense, prompting one player to compare himself to Dennis Rodman.
Illinois reporter Jeremy Werner reported that after the game, head coach Brad Underwood said in the postgame press conference that David Mirkovic compared himself to Dennis Rodman after the game. He did so after taking on Nick Martinelli defensively and shutting him down. He held him to 4 points on 2-10 field goal shooting.
“The one thing that Mirk does is he never backs down from a challenge. He wants that thrown upon him,” Underwood said.
One aspect powering Illinois' recent rise is its shift in defensive philosophy. The Illini have placed heavy emphasis on keeping opponents out of the paint and clogging it when they enter. If they are forced to give up a few more looks from deep, so be it, which is a shift from their prior strategy of running teams off the three-point line.
“It’s just math,” Underwood said of Illinois’ decision to channel its defensive efforts on protecting the interior, instead of running opponents off the line. “Layups and close-in shots are a much higher percentage. And then [we] utilize our size and length to just contest. … It’s just been math. We’re going to give up a few more, and teams are going to make a few more, but I think it’s been phenomenal for us not to give up layups.”
The size and length of Illinois allow for its defense to be versatile, but that emphasis shifted. Illinois' offense has been humming all season long, but it’s that defensive adjustment that has truly elevated the program into the national title discussion.
The Fighting Illini are also riding the wave of Keaton Wagler's hot hand and have gotten big win after big win thanks to his emergence on offense, and they are primed to make a big run in March.
