Debriefing Big Ten Tournament loss to Wisconsin, reacting to NCAA draw

In this episode of the pod, Said is joined by TCR teammate Eliott Casey. Together, they break down the loss to Wisconsin, the urgency that needs to be felt in the locker room ahead of the tournament, and finally, the NCAA tournament draw.

Transcript

SPEAKER_00 0:12

Alright, welcome into the Alni Audible Podcast. My name is Ellie Bravo. Thanks so much for tuning into this episode of the pod. As always, I really, really appreciate it. And today, we are talking alumni basketball as we have throughout a decent portion of this year with this podcast. And today, making his Alni Audible Podcast debut is my good friend Elliot Casey, my good friend and colleague from the champagne room, covers Alni Men's basketball with me. Um we were actually both at the um disappointing Wisconsin uh or quarters quarterfinal game with the Big Ten tournament. And yeah, how are you doing, Elliot?

SPEAKER_01 0:53

I'm good, I'm good. I'm glad to be making my first appearance. Um, I I think it was last month I made my first appearance on um Allian I Drive, WPGU, Cooper O'Kelly's um basketball talk show. Um talked we previewed the Michigan game a bit, but um this is my first time doing uh more of an unpacking podcast talking about what we saw and what we need to see going forward. So I'm excited.

SPEAKER_00 1:16

We we love to see it. Obviously, I've made a couple appearances on that uh on that radio show as well. It's good to see us all convene and just talk about everything that that's been going on. Obviously, a lot to to break down, a lot to talk about with this basketball team and everything and all the turbulence, everything that that has happened ever since the last time I was on the air or I was on this podcast talking about this team. Um, so let's just dive right into it. Obviously, on Sunday, yesterday, we we saw the selection show, we saw where Illinois lands in terms of where it's going to play in the first round of the tournament, and that of course go being the uh they're going to play Penn, you Penn, Fran McCaffrey, the the head coach under uh at over at Penn, and obviously the former Iowa coach uh Brad Underwood has dominated that matchup, you know, when it comes to coach to coach. But obviously, it's tournament time now, it's do or die, and we don't really know like any anything could really happen inside of a tournament and just the the variance of a of a single elimination tournament. So, what was your reaction when you you you got you got news that Illinois would head to Greenville, South Carolina to take on this Penn State team, or excuse me, this Penn team?

SPEAKER_01 2:40

Yeah, so obviously us being a three-seed instead of a two-seed hurts with the fact that we're playing in South Carolina. Um, not gonna see as many Illinois fans as we would have, but um I I thought about it for a second. I mean, our road record was unbelievable this year. So maybe it's not the worst thing in the world that we're playing in South Carolina. Um, as for the draw against Penn, um on Twitter actually, I saw right before selection Sunday, I saw somebody say, Oh, the worst scenario would be if we draw Fran McCaffrey's Penn. Um, and it's not it's not because it's Penn, it's because it's a Fran McCaffrey coach team, a Big Ten team that Underwood has faced off against millions of times in his career. Um, and um Underwood knows that Fran's gonna come into this game with with some competitive spirit, and he's gonna bring his star guard TJ Power out to um to try to make something happen. He just finished with 44 points and 14 rebounds in the match in the uh Ivy League championship against Yale the other day. Um so that's definitely gonna be something to watch out for. Um, you know, TJ Power is just an unbelievable player. He has experience uh at the highest level in the ACC at schools like Duke and Virginia. Um and yeah, for Ann McCaffrey, he's got he's got years and years of big tech experience. So he's clearly um he's clearly a great coach, and he's got a good squad um coming to play, some basketball against the alni. Um one one good thing for the alni, not necessarily good, wouldn't say good, but uh fortunate um for the alliani is that Ethan Roberts probably will be out with a concussion. Um so we'll see how much of the load power can take. He shot 14 of 26 from the floor, including seven of fourteen from three-point range and nine of nine from the free throw line against Yale. So we'll see how much he can do. But um, yeah, 14 seed for the alliani, and I think like Underwood has said millions of times, can't can't underestimate any team when it comes to March.

SPEAKER_00 4:36

That's right. And you never want to see a player get injured, but obviously when it comes to the single elimination tournament, that's certainly something that's always going to be a factor that you might feel encouraged about when it comes to it being a team that you have a vested interest in. Illinois, of course, eight and two on the road this year, and so that's obviously encouraging. And and the the biggest thing for this team coming in is to clear its head, right? That's something that uh we got um we got insight about in terms of when we get. I went into the locker room after that Wisconsin. We'll we'll we'll talk about that in a bit, but the clearing of the heads, and obviously the time that is it the time that it's gonna take for this team to do it, it's gonna allow it, hopefully, because they played on Friday. The next time they play is gonna be this Thursday. That's what six days or six days of break. So then you you do you have certainly time, certainly time to recover yourself. Obviously, you mentioned TJ Powers being a hell of a player, but there's a reason why Penn is you know a lower seed, and you you certainly feel like that Penn team is not gonna have as many bigs and just not the size that Illinois has. So certainly, obviously, first round of the tournament's always gonna feel like a favorable matchup, but specifically Penn, it should be a team that you are able to dominate on the paint.

SPEAKER_01 6:01

Yeah, I mean, I think one of the things that we will see after the first couple rounds unfold is how skilled the Big Ten really is this year. Um, I think maybe even after just the first round, um, we could potentially see a lot of of a lot of Big Ten blowouts um because these Big Ten teams have been playing among the best of the best all season and gotten gotten so used to playing the best of the best all season, having a a competitor with with such a pulse every week. Um but now in March against you know these round of 64 teams, um you can't, like you said, you can't let that mental lapse take over. You can't give them a chance to find that spirit and find that power to come back. Um, and I I think I think they know that. I think Underwood has has kind of instilled that energy into them because losing so many of these tough games to to Big Ten competitors, it's gotta get them in the right mentality to not let that happen against a non-Big Ten competitor. So, I mean, I think the spread opened at something like 20 points. And um, you know, we'll see if that's accurate, but but like you said, I do think that the Allianite, although this is a Fran McCaffrey coach team and it's a great coach team with a great TJ Power guard, I still think the Allianite should should walk away with this one pretty pretty comfortably.

SPEAKER_00 7:23

That's right. Nine, you should talk about the Big Ten being just an absolutely force in basketball, in college basketball, that is. Nine Big Ten teams made the tournament this year. That is certainly something that if you're if you're a team in that conference, especially if you're an upper echelon, part of that conversation in the Big Ten, you certainly feel good about that. And um, you certainly feel like you know, although Illinois hasn't been what it you know felt like it was early in in the season and specifically in January, it still uh speaks to the level of competition that they've had. But with that being said, now let's now dive into what we both of us kind of what both of us really witnessed at the United Center. We were both there on Friday for Illinois just awful, awful loss against Wisconsin. And there were certainly a lot of takeaways to you know things to take away from that game, but in the first in the first crack of postseason play that Illinois had, it was certainly not encouraging to see Illinois now finds itself in the last five quad going games, and 0-4 in the in the last four overtime games, just the four four games that they have played overtime, they've lost all of them. And so I guess what was your reaction? I I'm sure we all had similar reaction as to what we were witnessing, but I what was your biggest takeaway from that game coming uh just the total ending that it had, two different points. Illinois had a 15-point lead and they just couldn't close out the game.

SPEAKER_01 9:10

Yeah, I mean, big picture takeaway from that game probably is that this team is so confident in their ability, but they can't let their confidence levels get that high. I think this is this team knows how good they are on offense. They know that they're the the highest rated offensive efficiency team in Ken Pom history. Um, and and you know, they went up 33 to 10 on UCLA, and right at that point is when they got complacent when they thought it was when they thought it was easy and and they they dropped their guard, they just can't let that happen in March. I think it also, though, is a testament to how good this team really is, because I thought about it from a different perspective after the Wisconsin game. If we had never gotten that 15-point lead, the complacency would have never been a thing. Um, so so if it really was a close game the entire time, you know, there's a chance that the offense and the defense both keeps that fire mentally going, that physical physicality going. Um but but yeah, again, the main takeaway is just that they can't drop their guard at the worst time. They have to stay mentally focused. And um Underwood mentioned how how he also has to do better in those moments to keep them mentally focused, but I think it's a balance of both. I think Underwood has to keep them focused in that way, but I also think these players, a lot of them are are inexperienced. I mean, although they're insanely mature freshmen, you know, you got you got two starting freshmen in the starting five with with Merkovich and Waggler. Um, but yeah, I think as as time goes on, as this roster experiences more and more heartbreak, I think, I think that's something that will become more aware to them, and that's something that Underwood will continue to to um continue to to help them gain that mentality.

SPEAKER_00 10:59

That's uh interesting. That is an interesting perspective that you have because the thing with this kind of for me is the concerning thing is that this is now uh total like it is totally a pattern, and so yeah, you you could you could sit there and say that while maybe if the game unfolded differently, Illinois would have been able to, you know, and maybe you just can't design that kind of game plan is the is the the biggest thing about that, and that that's you know, you would hope that maybe in that scenario, then you maybe you would hope that Illinois plays it really close, it's always really close, and then until the final two, three minutes where Illinois offense just separates itself from Wisconsin or from whatever team it's playing for that matter. The biggest thing though is that they haven't been able to do that, they haven't been able to close out games really since I don't I don't really know when, but I I would have to say maybe even the the Purdue game when they totally and that was on the back of a historic performance that they had with from Keaton Wobbler. So that to me is is my biggest takeaway is the lack of focus that this team seems to have it is uh very concerning because obviously the young guys like maybe they get a little bit more leeway when it comes to that. But when you don't, when you when you have your leaders who are supposed to be there to be the leading voices and for uh for Illinois, that's supposed to be a guy like Jake Davis, a guy like Highland Boswell, a guy like uh Thomas Lob Ivasic, who's supposed to be the vocal leader, even Ben Hummerkell is supposed to be considered that vocal leader to kind of calm everyone and put everyone in their place. But so far, you just haven't seen enough of that in these high-leverage games, in these quad one games, specifically the last the five quad one games that they've had in the last five, sorry, excuse me, the last five quad one games. That is a concerning trend. And a lot of that, which we can also talk about, is because of the defense. Just how bad the defense has been, especially against guards that have been playing them really well, like Nick Void, like like Nick Void and um and John John Blackwell, who have just been tearing up the allianni, which is the concerning part to me, and I don't know how you feel about this, Elliot, but if you get a bad matchup in the NCAA tournament that where you have a couple guards that can put up a lot of points on on that kind of defense, and that's where the concerns grow for me.

SPEAKER_01 13:37

Yeah, I mean uh you brought up a good point there, but I did want to say something because I did think this Illinois defense in the first half was capable of taking care of those two guys, and they were. I think um Boyd, I think, finished with nine points. Blackwell had ten at the end of the first half, and that's that's 20 minutes of basketball that you just took care of two insanely talented guards. Um, but but the change wasn't the change wasn't Boyd and Blackwell becoming all of a sudden uh becoming having that and finding that energy to spark a comeback. I think it was it maybe a little bit of that it was, but most of it was was Illinois becoming complacent on defense, like you said. And I wanted to to highlight a stat. Wisconsin shot 10 of 41 from field goal range, or sorry, 10 of 41 from three-point land in the win over Illinois. That's 24% in the win over Illinois. That's the only game Wisconsin has won all year versus a team above 500 where they shot under 33% from deep. Um, so it's not like Boyd and Blackwell were making it rain. Both of them were having their struggles from three-point land. And as most people know, that's where most of their game lives. I felt like it was more once they realized that their shots weren't going down, that's when they started taking it to the hoop. And and combined with us being a little too complacent, playing a little bit too loose at that point in time, Boyd finished with sorry, he fin in the two matchups that Boyd played Illinois, one in Champagne, one at the United Center. He has 69 points combined on 37 shots. Um, and in the in in just the game in Chicago, Wisconsin outscored Illinois 25 to 9 on free throws, 18 free throws in the second half, 10 in overtime for Wisconsin. So all of those stats point to number one, the second half complacency and the defensive lapses, um, lack of focus. Um, and number two, it it points to self-inflicted losses. I think this was yet another self-inflicted loss for the Alana. I I go through all of the what eight games it is that the Alana have lost, and I can find two where I think they didn't have a chance. I think I think six losses were self-inflicted out of the Alana, it's eight losses. I think they they had no chance in the Michigan game and they had no chance in the Yukon game. Every other loss, every other loss, the Alabama one lost because it didn't make the free throws. Um Michigan State, I think it was one rebound. We needed one defensive stop. UCLA, obviously a complete collapse. Wisconsin back in Champaign, another complete collapse. Um, what else we got?

SPEAKER_00 16:12

Um UCLA.

SPEAKER_01 16:15

UCLA, uh, yeah, we said that. Maryland. I missed missed a couple, but but you get the big picture here. It's the picture is that when they start succeeding on offense, they start getting lazy on the other side. And then once they get lazy on the other other side, they allow the other team to build momentum. Once the other team builds momentum, they start becoming stagnant on the offensive side and continue to be stagnant on every other side of the court. So because it felt like when we're making shots, the energy is there, but at the same time, it feels like when we're making shots to a certain extent, the energy, the energy dies at a point when they feel like they have won the game. Um, and and I just there there has to be a solution, whether it's Brad in a timeout, whether it's the players um huddling up and talking to each other saying, All right, guys, we gotta keep this going. We gotta, we can't let this happen. I mean, I felt like at the United Center, there should have been a point, maybe when the lead got cut down to to single digits, there should have been a timeout called, there should have been a game plan change, something had to change because it felt like that run that Wisconsin just started, it just kept on going and never ended. And I feel like there has to have been something that they could have done to halt that run from Wisconsin.

SPEAKER_00 17:37

No question. And to me, one of the things that I thought should have kept going, a trend that I saw in the first half that did not continue in the second was the usage of Andre Striakovic encouraging him to continue to drive into the rim. Admittedly, he does get plenty of tunnel vision. I mean, there's been times in high leverage situations where specifically comes to mind for me is the Michigan game in Champaign, where the guy just got tunnel vision, and you just didn't see anything, you just didn't see anything that was encouraging from him. Just a a player that you invested a lot from a lot in, and you just get not don't really get much. But right now, it feels like he he's a confidence toyakovic, and a confidence toyakovic that's able to drive into the rim is something that this team certainly needs, specifically when the threes aren't falling. And obviously, the threes did not fall uh in the totality of the game. Uh early on, they were, but later on, as the game continued to unfold, you didn't see that trend continue. And that's when you need your your uh point guards, your guards to drive into the rim, and and you need your your bigs to to be there to to see if they can get a rebound in those situations. And that's another point that Underwood has talked about extensively as well, is a guy who can quote unquote give a damn, a guy who can bring in the nasty, and that's something that we've heard for a couple weeks now. And that to me, again, once again, is another concerning trend that cannot be ignored. Because when you have your coach talking about it, it should feel like at some point someone takes the bull, uh grabs the ball by the horns and decides it's gonna be him. And so far, you just haven't seen that. And I was gonna say, right, the to to my one of my other takeaways is that it felt like specifically in the immediate locker room session, that we were able to, because in the Big Ten, we are able to in the Big Ten tournament, rather, we are able to have locker room access, one of the best parts of postseason play. Uh, one of the best things that you get a wide lens, a wider lens into you know what exactly broke down. And it felt to me like besides AJ Red, oddly enough, besides AJ Red, Underwood, and Kylan Boswell, there were really, really not that many guys who had answers for why there is seems to be a lack of focus in not just this game, but several games that you mentioned, the UCLA game, um, the the game that they lost. Um the uh the in the Michigan, you the Michigan game you wouldn't say, but the earlier Wisconsin loss, the Michigan State loss that they had, um, just all those games where they've lost close ones, and you felt like um they could have they could have had a chance to win those games. And a lot of the guys just felt like they don't know. They don't know why. Uh they don't they wish they knew what they could do differently. Uh, I sensed a lot of frustration from Zovanovir Ivasic because he had a relatively good game, especially in that first half. And he felt just frustrated and not not frustration because they just don't know what it was that led to that lack of focus. He said, Whatever it is, I mean we're gonna have to figure it out and you know see what focus on every detail and see exactly what were the ends. So now they're searching for answers. And yeah, AJ Red told me that you know he echoed your what you your sentiment is, which is they they feel comfortable shooting, they see that basket go and you get it gain a lead and you just get comfortable and you can't let up. And that's something that is once again concerning Evisic. Uh Tomislav Ivasic told me that he just he doesn't know they're gonna have to go through the game film. I'm sure at this point they do know what exactly uh you would hope that at this point they do know what exactly it was that led to that, whether it be emotional or whatever. Uh Murkovich had the same message, same thing where it was, hey, I don't I I wish I knew if I knew, then I'd I'd want to fix it right now. I'd be able to fix it right now. And you just got that echoed of the message. Jake Davis, another guy that you know felt like maybe it. Wasn't even just that, that maybe just Wisconsin. His theory was that Wisconsin was just really, really good that day. And Nick Void and John Blackwell were just excellent. And when you have a player like that, you just you can't stop him. But I don't I don't I feel like, and obviously I feel like fans would argue that those those really aren't satisfactory enough answers, especially for what the standard has been here in Champaign and how it how things have unfolded specifically in the last couple couple of uh couple of weeks in the quad one games. Yeah, yeah, go ahead.

SPEAKER_01 22:34

Sorry, sorry. I mean you brought up a lot of good points there. Um, but a couple of things kind of sparked my my mind here. Um I think you're entirely right about the the mental focus, the complacency, but a big picture when it when you look at the stats and what that leads to, I think the most important stats that this team lacks when they lack focus um is is rebounding, like we spoke about a little bit, offensive rebounding and defensive rebounding. And um, and secondly, is is defense as a whole. And um here, I pulled a quote from uh Wisconsin head coach Greg Gard uh after the loss. Greg Guard said, a lot of rebounding is what's underneath your hood, meaning inside of you, your grit, your toughness. You can rebound against size if you continue to have the fight in you. And I think that's a very, very important quote here because Alina has the tallest, one of the tallest rosters in the nation, if not the tallest. So that should speak to their rebounding ability. Um and I think Underwood needs to just do it. I don't know if it's underwood. Underwood said, even here's a quote from Underwood. He said, our offensive rebound effort, no matter how much we work on it in practice, somehow it's not carrying over right now. I don't know what they have to do, but somehow, some way that needs to be instilled into the players' minds that rebounding and defense is not an option, no matter how many points you are up. Um and it's a mix of the complacency and the focus leading to that. But you touched on Stoyakovic, um, and I want to talk talk about him real quick, and I also want to talk about um the Evis, the Vishic twins. But Stoyakovic, he acted as a release valve for the Alana in the first half um because we were shooting okay from the three. Okay, you know, nothing too special, but nothing like a number one offense. And and Soyakovic in the first half had the confidence to take it to the hoop against smaller guys and and make it happen. He he finished with 17 points and seven rebounds. Um his his rebounding and and defensive efforts continue to improve. Um, I think the Oregon game was was a wake-up call for him after the Michigan performance. Um, and he just needs to keep that fire going. But but you know what I would have loved to see from Strakovich in the second half is him taking that taking that authority in the team when they were chucking up threes, panicking. I would like to see him taking that authority and driving it to the hoop because he has the athleticism to do that. He has the ability to do that. And when he takes it to the hoop, normally he'll score against against most teams, maybe not against Morez Johnson Jr. He had a bad game then because his number one game is taking it to the rim. And Michigan's best part on the defensive side is with Mara and Morez protecting the rim. So I think that game specifically was more matchup-based, but I would have loved to see Stoyakovic continue taking authority in the second half. And I think the reason why he didn't is because the entirety of the momentum of the game, the way it was going, everybody was starting to get down on themselves and everybody was starting to lose confidence. The entire offense is starting to lose confidence. Um, but I think, like he said in the post-game press press conference, they just need to continue sharing the ball. They can't chuck up threes when it gets hard. Um, and and you know, when they are when they are missing rebounds and not playing defense, I feel like that leads to them chucking up shots. And I think there needs to be more than one or two players on this team who can take initiative and and make the right decision on offense without rushing it, trying to get themselves back in the lead. Um, it feels like whenever a lead starts starts shrinking for the Alana, it's like there's no chance to even come back. It's like there needs to be a point where once the lead starts shrinking, you fix it and you turn that around. But it feels like as soon as the lead starts shrinking, there's nothing the alana can do to save it.

SPEAKER_00 26:27

Yeah, and you you do mention the Andrei Stryakovic point. And in the second half, Illinois was shooting four for eleven for three point, and obviously you you can't you can't just keep, like you said, chucking up shots. Um, I would have liked to have seen more Zvanovir Ivasic in that second half. He only got eight minutes, and then over time he only got one minute. Um and and I think he he was playing pretty well in the first half.

SPEAKER_01 26:59

He was he was playing really well in the first half. I think he had maybe five points, six rebounds in the first half. But for for a guy who normally comes off the bench and and his duty is to block shots. I mean, he he did have a real impact on that game. He was he was snagging boards, he was protecting the rim. Um, and he knocked down one one of his five threes. Uh, that's the next point I was going to talk about. I think the Alani really need to figure out what they are gonna do with the Avisic twins because Tomislav, his main game last year was pick and roll, pop the three. Um, and and he was in he was insanely efficient with that, with that pick and pop. And I think Kasparis did a great job feeding him with that. Um, but for Tomislav this year, I feel like it's a mix of not having not having as much of a role in the offense since we have guys like Keaton Stoyakovic and and Kylan and and whatnot. Now Jake Davis is starting. You know, that's taking his opportunity to to knock down some shots, but also when he gets those those three-point opportunities, he's not knocking them down. I have a couple stats here. Uh Vic, he is six for 33 from three-point range in his last seven games. Now Zvanomir is three for 24 from three in his last nine. So neither of them are shooting well from the triple. Um, but when neither of them are shooting well from the triple, which one has more of an impact on the court? And in my opinion, I would probably say Big Z because of what he does on the defensive side and his ability to flush down a jam. I mean, I feel like every time I see him in the game, he's he's finishing off the end of an alley U and putting it in the rim. Um, I feel Tomislav isn't as aggressive when it comes to scoring down in the low block. Zvanimir doesn't necessarily post up players, but but he'll get you a dunk here and there. Um, I think both of them need to be better at rebounding with their length. Um, you know, I'm sure Fletch, I know Fletch has been in the weight room with both of them. Both of them put on immense amounts of weight, but I think they just need to find that fire within them to kind of do basically exactly what that quote said from Greg Guard, which is you need to have the toughness and the grit to go snag a rebound. I mean, I've played pickup basketball before, and when I try my hardest and I jump as high as I can, I can make it hard for a guy who's way taller than me to snag a rebound. And I think that's just what they need to do.

SPEAKER_00 29:30

Yeah, I mean, that's that, yeah. I'm sure pickup basketball doesn't really translate all too well. This was me yesterday. I I was playing some pickup basketball, totally demolished, really humbled me. But you I mean, despite that, you do bring a good point, like genuinely do. Like Evasic Tomislav Ivasic, only two rebounds. I mean, how is it possible that Andre Stuyakovich had seven in the game, and and the most of them actually came in in through um the first half, which you know just speaks to how good of a first half he was having at that point. But yeah, like Underwood has been talking about the guy who who can you know give give a damn and stuff like that. And it certainly feels like it should be Tommy because he was that guy last year, and obviously things are different this year. But it when you're dealing with a guy with a going through a just a big slump, it's certainly something that you hope that the the switch can flip. But we this tournament is so much about momentum and going into play in this tournament, who's got the momentum, you know, who can go in rattle off wins. If you had to compare this tournament style to the most like if you could you had to compare this tournament style to what it what is the most similar format in any of the other major sports leagues, you would say major league baseball. And we all know that in major league baseball, when you get to the playoffs, it's not about you know the record doesn't matter anymore, unless you're Dodgers. The record doesn't matter anymore. But you what it matters is that you're hot going into October, and then you can rattle off a bunch of series wins, and that's how you win a World Series. It's the same thing here, not maybe not to the best extent because it's 64 teams, but to a certain extent it is the same. And you know, you don't feel all that encouraged when it comes to this this uh particular you know ill I team because they were undefeated in back in January, and it's so difficult to imagine the fact that this this team would end up, you know, we we would having you we would be having these kinds of conversations at this point in the year when it certainly felt like at the start in late January that this was gonna be a team that you would have to look out for, and you would certainly have to feel encouraged about, and that you were talking about this Underwood team, this team being Underwood's probably best team in his whole tenure. I do want to bring up one other guy though. That's Keaton Waggler. Before the Big Ten tournament, we had media availability with him, and he even acknowledged at one point that you know one of his weaknesses is that maybe at some point he's maybe too unselfish, and that's something that is a con against him. That's maybe something that'll go against him in the scoundry report. And there were certainly times in that game where he didn't get called, you know. I thought the refs, I don't know what you you probably would agree, but the the refs just weren't calling all that many, he just wasn't getting all that many calls, even though he was getting fouled, and you saw him struggle uh in the that kind of struggle in the second half. But my question to you is is Keaton Wagler too unselfish? Because I certainly feel like he has been, and you know, maybe not not all, but it's his fault because of the fact that he just does not get calls.

SPEAKER_01 32:53

Yeah, you know, with Keaton, I think it's a mix, it's a mix of things. Um, ever since the Purdue game, teams have been picking him up like crazy because they know what he's capable of. So, you know, he'll get pressed full court, he'll get double teamed here and there. And I think that is something that he is still getting used to. I think, yes, he is still too unselfish at this point in the season, now that he's seen back-to-back-to-back games where teams are are going for him on the scouting report. But I think there has to be a point where he manages to realize that even though he's getting double-teamed and getting pressed full court, there's a reason why he is, because of what he can do on the court for this line eye team. And I think um when he gets double teamed and when he gets pressed full court, he reverts to sharing the ball. Um, you know, he's he is an incredibly intelligent point guard when it comes to finding the next pass. So I think when when in in recent games, when they've pressed him like they have, he's just he's just managed to find the next pass, and his teammates just haven't done the best job of knocking that next shot down. Um so when something like that's happening in March, I think he needs to just realize that, okay, if I find the next pass and Tommy isn't nailing his three, then you know what, I'm just gonna have to find out a way to split the defense and go score, go score a bucket, even though there's two, three guys on me, because he showed what he's capable of in that Purdue game. And that Purdue game was one of the only games this season where he didn't show a single hint of unselfishness. He he said, This is my game, I'm gonna do it now. And and he was pulling up from the logo and hitting threes. But like at the same time, he probably could pull a logo three at the United Center against Wisconsin if he wanted to. You know, he probably did have that opportunity, he just didn't feel the confidence to do it, and the he didn't he didn't take initiative like he did in in many other games. But but again, he's a freshman with with all this talent, and you don't expect him to be the player that makes or breaks your March team. He's a freshman. I mean, coming into this season, people didn't even know his name, you know, and and now it's like, oh, we lost because of him. Like, no, it I don't think it is we lost because of him. I think we are so incredibly lucky to have a freshman with this much talent on our roster. And and like you said, I think I think Alani fans and Underwood and everybody in the program cuts him a little bit more slack because he's a young freshman who's incredibly intelligent. Um, but yeah, I mean, I think with Keaton, he could he could definitely help the Alani make a run in March if he flips a switch and and turns on that I'm him mode.

SPEAKER_00 35:42

He certainly hasn't been what he was like back in January, just simply shooting-wise, he hasn't been as good of a shooter. But this is I think this is a guy that you came in, you know, once you realized what he was, is a guy that raises your ceiling a ton. And so you hope that he can make that flip of a switch. Like I said, the momentum part of it is the most concerning part. Uh, but um that that to me is certainly one thing to know. But yeah, I think you you and me are both in agreement that this is a guy who you do cut a little bit of slack because of the element of him being a freshman first time. Keep in mind, this is the longest season that him that that I mean, probably him and and Murkovich has have ever played. So that's something to take into account. They've this is like this is the longest stretch of basketball that they've been playing when it comes to competitive regular season slash postseason basketball. Because obviously these guys play year-round, but that in this particular stretch, I mean, I can't imagine how much physical, how much of a physical toll that there's been. Obviously, you have trainers and stuff, all the latest technology and all that, but it's still something to keep in mind. Plus, these are 18, 19-year-old guys, like that. That's something to keep in mind as well. Um, I also do think that Wagler needs to put on more muscle, and that's something that'll come for him. You know, it'll it'll be something that he'll probably have to discuss with his, you know, his people on his camp. But yeah, I mean, I do have just kind of a couple couple questions here to to end this episode of this podcast. My and my first question is uh and this is for both of us. I mean, how who do you feel best about going into this tournament? For me, honestly. Okay, then go ahead.

SPEAKER_01 37:35

Um, I mean, I would say Merkovich, just because he is one of the one of the not I wouldn't say only players, but he's one of the most notable players on the roster who who never loses that competitive spirit, who never loses that, who never he doesn't never have a mental lapse, but he has probably the least mental lapses on the team when it comes to mentality of saving a game. I mean, sure, he'll he'll have a turnover here and there, a freshman mistake, but that's not really what I'm talking about. What I'm talking about is he's one of those players who Brad said this in the in the um in the media availability, I think after after the uh selection Sunday yesterday, he said um he's the type of guy that sends Underwood a text after a game and takes the blame for everybody. Um and and his competitive fire burns, hurts him, Underwood quoted. And and I think I think it's something that has been on display with Merck because every game, whether whether he's shooting from well from the three or not, he finds ways to score in the low post. He uses that that Jokic elbow jumper, that hook shot, whatever it may be, he'll find a way to put the ball in the hoop and and help his team. And secondly, I feel like his rebounding efforts are just like that. There's nobody on this team who goes and grabs a rebound as hard as Merck does. Maybe, maybe Keaton is the other guy who goes for rebounds as as much as Merck does. But I feel like it's been game after game after game after game where you check the box score and you see over eight rebounds under Merck's name every single game. And and usually he'll have over 15 points most of the time. And I think that consistency is something that this roster can't take advantage of because I feel like specifically this roster, you have guys who some days they'll go for 15 points, some days they'll go for zero, some days they'll go for 15 rebounds, some days they'll go for zero. Merkovich is he is one of our most consistent players who will take a bullet for anybody and who is on his team in front of him.

SPEAKER_00 39:38

It's certainly exciting to think about the prospect of him returning next season. If that is something that is in the cards, obviously we won't know uh until we get there. But I I do I do think that's certainly encouraging. I was actually gonna say the same guy, so I'll kind of flip it on myself. I think the guy they need they're gonna need the most out of going into this tournament is going to be Andre Stoyakovic, simply because, and I was encouraged by what he did in that first half. I just hope that he is going to be put in a position where he can be that guy uh to kind of elevate that team when it needs it. And that's got that's to me, it's the guy that has to go in the rim and also be a defensive presence and hopefully be that defensive presence uh not only when he's the only the really perimeter guard on the floor, but also alongside Calvin Boswell, that's gonna be important. Um, just to end this kind of this podcast. The I'm gonna try to make this short. So, how how how far do you think this team will actually go uh in this tournament? I have my obviously this is a variance tournament, you know, it's a one and done uh do or die situations. I mean, to me, you you do it it is favorable the draw that they they had going uh you know going into this tournament. It ended up being a three-seed when they could have been a two-seed going to St. Louis, instead, they're now in Greenville gonna face Penn. But I do think this is a team specifically because of um North Carolina, uh, that the prospect of playing North Carolina or even VCU, that you could see this team going into the second weekend. What are you what's your take on it?

SPEAKER_01 41:18

Yeah, um North Carolina, I think, like you said, I think we got pretty lucky with that draw simply because since Caleb Wilson's injury, North Carolina have been not playing to their level of caliber basketball. Um, and I think I think honestly, a V if VCU ends up upsetting North Carolina, I think that would be something to watch out for for the Alni. VCU are one of the other teams in the nation, um, including the Alni, who I think have five double-digit scores. Um, could be wrong, might be four, but but I know that they are a team with a lot of depth. So if they somehow end up taking down North Carolina, that could be something to watch out for the for the Alni. But um my predictions, you know, it could go either way. But but if the Alni end up beating Penn and beating North Carolina or VCU, they will most likely get matched up with number two seed Houston. Um, and that game will be I'm not sure, but I think that game might be in Houston. I I could be completely wrong, but I think yeah, so so that that honestly excites me because, like we said, the the this road team is is unbelievable. I mean, like this team, sure, it was a while ago, and this is a completely different Alani roster at this time, but this was a team that nobody thought they could go into Mackey and beat Purdue when they did. So who knows? Maybe the maybe the away crowd will will fuel them. Sorry, or home crowd, maybe the home crowd will fuel them and and give them a reason to to have that competitive spirit and fight. You know, maybe maybe that's what they need to find that mental focus throughout the entire game. Maybe a home crowd that is booing them the entire game. Then they feel like the villain, then they feel like the bad guy, and then they maybe go and make something happen. So if they can beat that Houston team, which I think is very possible, um, they would most likely get matched up against Florida. And um, I think that Florida game would probably be almost identical to the scrimmage earlier in the year. It was a very, very high scoring game. I think we lost by by five or ten to Florida. But um that was an unbelievable scrimmage, and I think I could see the Alini stopping their run right there to Florida, um, and Florida would end up taking the final fourth spot. But yeah, that's that's my predictions for uh Alini and March Menace.

SPEAKER_00 43:45

So certainly an encouraging prediction by you, Elliot. And um I don't necessarily feel the same way. Well, I do think uh in a way crowd could feel uh An Illinois team that has found itself uh playing much better on the road this season. Of course, mentioned earlier 8-2 on the road. I do think that there is that geographical advantage for that home team. Whatever, let's say Houston does end up in that position where they do face Illinois in the second weekend of the tournament. You know, we'll see how that all kind of unfolds. I do think that Illinois, though, can can rattle off at least two wins in this tournament. The Penns, right? Anything can happen. We we already talked. I do think that they can beat Penn. And whoever it is, whether it's North Carolina or VCU, uh, in the following round, I do feel optimistic about them uh being able to win those first two games. And this team is just too talented and has learned so much, is probably much more informed about their weaknesses and their mental lapses over the course of the last couple months. This team is too talented to not reevaluate themselves. And something else that's been encouraging about them is that they did have their meeting, their which we didn't really talk about, but they did have their home meeting or their Talan Boswell got everyone to their their his place, and they all talked about you know what they have to do to get back on track, the player-only meeting, which is something that you kind of have to revert to. You kind of have to lean on those certain things, the intangibles when it comes to that, because uh this is do-or-die now. This is what where the legacy is made. Thomas Lav Ives said to me um a couple a couple days ago in Chicago at the UC, no one's gonna remember the Big Ten tournament and how that all ended if they do play well in the NCAA tournament. And you hope if you're in Illinois, you hope that they do. So we'll see how that all kind of unfolds over the next couple of weeks, over the next really this upcoming weekend. But Coop, uh but Elliot, thank you so much for joining me on this podcast. I know we had kind of a technical difficulty issue here in the last couple minutes of this pod. Uh, we're really looking forward to what how this all unfolds. It'll be fun regardless. Uh, a lot to take away in the next couple of days. So thank you so much for tuning into this episode of the pod as always. I really, really appreciate it. And um, we'll uh talk to you soon.