Illinois Continues to Toy with the Hearts of Fans

What a night it was in Champaign, Illinois on February 7th, 2013. The Fighting Illini welcomed the top-ranked Hoosiers into the Assembly Hall for what would prove to be another remarkable game in this bizarre season. The number one ranked team had fallen each of the last four weeks before last night and, quite frankly, college basketball fans have to wonder if there is a "great" team this year. Sure, there are definitely "good" teams, but none that stand above the rest and are clear-cut title favorites. Last year we were blessed to watch teams like Kentucky, North Carolina, and Kansas enjoy success night in and night out and cement themselves as potential champions. This year however, there doesn't seem to be a team that wants to be ranked number one. Heck, at this point, I wouldn't want to be ranked number one either! No team is safe.

So four straight weeks have resulted in four straight losses for the top-ranked team. This brings us to Thursday night when the Fighting Illini and the Hoosiers faced off for the first and only time this season. Illinois presented a disappointing 2-7 conference record while the Hoosiers were alone at the top, boasting an 8-1 record in the B1G. After taking down the Michigan Wolverines at home last Saturday, the Hoosiers wasted no time in taking control of the game last night. With a twelve point halftime lead and, at one point, a fourteen point lead in the second half, it looked as if the number team was for once going to remain the top dog for more than a week.
                                                                                           
And that's when the House of 'Paign began to erupt in cheers possession after possession, all behind the remarkable performance of DJ Richardson. The senior went on an 8-0 run by himself en route to a 23-point finish. Yet it wasn't just his offense that kept Illinois in the game; with the clock winding down, Victor Oladipo drove to his right and, by some miracle, the potential Player of the Year lost control of the ball. Who was there to record the steal? DJ Richardson. Now, in a perfect world, Richardson goes down and lays the ball in as time expires. Yet Oladipo, as only Oladipo could do, trailed the play and recovered in time to swat Richardson's lay up into the stands on the baseline with .9 left. A play that only a true leader and competitor can make. With that .9 left, the Hoosiers somehow miscommunicated on defense, leaving Tyler Griffey wide open under the basket for the winning bucket. The students stormed the court and Illinois pulled off the upset. What a game to be remembered.

But when you step back and look at this game, should it have really been an unranked Illinois team playing the top-ranked Hoosiers? Illinois had the hype and performance of a true Final Four contender early in the year when they shot Butler straight out of Maui then proceeded to do the impossible by beating Gonzaga on the road. Illinois reached as high as number ten in the rankings before dropping completely out of the top 25 in a heartbeat.

Inconsistency has been a reoccuring theme for Illinois the past few years. They grab big wins in the beginning then just peter out once conference play starts. It's sad, because the past two years have presented above-average teams. Sure Illinois beats Indiana last night, but they lost to a young and inexperienced Purdue team earlier in the year. The Fighting Illini also embarrassed Ohio State by over twenty points in January, but cancelled out that big win with a fourteen point loss to Northwestern at home. The question that has to be asked now is can Illinois really compete should they make the tournament?

I firmly believe they can; I can picture them making an impressive and memorable run. Now the negative of that is I can also see them falling in the first round and going out without putting up a fight. It depends on what Illinois team decides to show up. Will we get the Illinois team from last night where the three seniors (Richardson, Griffey, and Brandon Paul) combine for 58 points? Or will we get the Illinois team that shoots 2-14 from three like they did in their first loss to Wisconsin? This Illinois team is talented without a doubt. They have all the leadership a new coach like John Groce could ask for and they have an offense that, when shots are falling, is darn near impossible to stop. They face possibly the toughest road test yet on Sunday when they will head to Minnesota to visit the Golden Gophers in The Barn. This could prove that Illinois is back, or it could prove that the Indiana game was only a glimmer of hope.

Last year Christian Watford drilled a three to beat the number one team. His shot signified the revival of a program. This year Tyler Griffey laid the ball in to beat the number one team. Could his shot signify the revival of a season?