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Feast Week ends as we speak for Illinois basketball, and, boy, have the Illini feasted to begin the 2020-21 season. First there was the 62-point win in opposition to North Carolina A&T within the opener. Then Thursday’s 59-point drubbing of Chicago State.
These back-to-back victories made Illinois the primary AP High 25 staff to win its first two video games by 55 factors or extra because the 1989-90 Oklahoma Sooners did the identical factor. There’s just one different staff on that listing — the 1972-73 North Carolina State squad.
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That Oklahoma staff went 27-5 that season. The Sooners have been a No. 1 seed, however misplaced to UNC within the second spherical.
You would possibly bear in mind the 1972-73 N.C. State staff a bit of higher. The Wolfpack went 27-0, however sanctions from the recruitment of David Thompson meant they have been ineligible for the postseason. Sanctions lifted the subsequent season, N.C. State went 30-1 and gained a nationwide title.
What this Illinois staff does after walloping its first two opponents stays to be seen. It is unlikely one other 50-point win is within the offing as we speak in opposition to Ohio. The Bobcats are merely a greater staff than both North Carolina A&T or Chicago State.
It is the kind of nonconference problem the Illini want. Ohio claimed the highest spot amongst Illinois’ competitors this week after Wright State needed to pull out due to COVID-19 points. Which is a bummer. Illini-Raiders was going to be the matchup of the week.
Now it is Illini-Bobcats, and it ought to at the least be extra aggressive basketball than the final two days. Ohio went 17-15 final season and completed fifth in its division within the MAC. This 12 months? The Bobcats have been picked to complete second general within the MAC behind Bowling Inexperienced and bought level guard Jason Preston on the preseason All-MAC First Crew.
Preston’s legit. He is the most effective participant the Illini will face this week. The 6-foot-4, 187-pound guard clearly has respectable measurement, he is lengthy and Illinois coach Brad Underwood known as him deceivingly athletic.
There’s additionally this. Preston averaged 16.eight factors, 7.Four assists and 6.Four rebounds final season as a veritable triple-double menace at any second. Know who else averaged at the least 16 factors, seven assists and 6 rebounds final 12 months in all of Division I faculty hoops? No one.
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