No Ayo, uh-oh
Illinois suffers offensive outage without star guard
Illinois’ hot streak seems ages ago.
After winning seven straight games, the Illini have lost four in a row against one of the toughest parts of their schedule. Saturday’s 72-57 loss at Rutgers highlighted their rough patch.
The No. 22 Illini (16-9, 8-6 Big Ten), playing without injured guard Ayo Dosunmu, shot only 31.1%, including only 28.6% on 3-pointers, in Piscataway, N.J., where the Scarlet Knights (18-8, 9-6) have not lost at home all season.
The Illini went from tied for first place in the Big Ten two weeks ago to tied for fifth in the logjam that is the middle of the conference standings.
Here are three takeaways from Illinois’ loss.
1. Illinois’ short-handedness wasn’t its only problem.
Dosunmu traveled to Rutgers but was in his Illini warmups and wasn’t available to play.
Illinois fans sighed with relief when it was announced he hadn’t torn a ligament in his left knee after an awkward fall at the final buzzer in Tuesday’s onepoint loss to Michigan State in Champaign. But the reality of playing without Dosunmu as he recovers is tough.
He is often the player who can spark a run or close games with a clutch shot.
Illinois appeared to be losing stream throughout the game. The offense looked lifeless without Dosunmu.
In Dosunmu’s place Illinois started Andres Feliz, who finished with 10 points, five rebounds and four assists in his typical bulldog fashion.
But without Feliz as a spark off the bench, Illinois had little help from its reserves aside from Giorgi Bezhanishvili.
Tevian Jones shot 2 of 8 from the field, missing 5 of 7 3pointers, for six points in a season-high 20 minutes.
Starting guard Trent Frazier shot only 2 of 13, missing all but one of his nine 3-point attempts. The Illini often go as Frazier goes.
“We can’t shoot it like we shot it there tonight,” coach Brad Underwood told reporters after the game.
Dosunmu’s injury is listed as day-to-day.
“We’re not going to rush anything,” Underwood said.
2. Giorgi Bezhanishvili responded well to his bench role.
For the first time in his Illini career, the sophomore forward came off the bench.
He had struggled mightily lately, especially during the previous two games when he shot 2 of 11 and occasionally appeared frustrated.
Bezhanishvili looked more comfortable Saturday and handled the demotion well.
He scored six points with seven rebounds, his most boards since grabbing eight against Michigan on Dec. 11.
He had nine turnovers in the previous three games but turned it over only once against Rutgers in 23 minutes.
Alan Griffin started in Bezhanishvili’s place to give the Illini a four-guard lineup around center Kofi Cockburn, who had 10 points and 10 rebounds. Griffin’s strong play needs to continue if the Illini are to turn things around.
Starting in place of Bezhanishvili, Griffin scored a teamhigh 14 points, shooting 3 of 6 on 3-pointers and making all five free throws. He added six rebounds in 35 minutes.
3. The Illini have another tough game up next.
The Illini play at No. 13 Penn State on Tuesday.
Dosunmu’s return is unknown. The offense has looked weak. And the Nittany Lions are tough.
They’ve won eight in a row and sit only a game behind first-place Maryland.
The Illini struggled with Rutgers’ Ron Harper Jr., who dominated with 27 points, making all five of his 3-point shots.
Expect an even more intimidating challenge against Lamar Stevens.
The senior forward averages 17.5 points and 6.8 rebounds per game. He’s coming off a 23-point performance Saturday against Northwestern.