close. The Illini's 18 made free throws to the Bruins 10 and the rebound margin Illinois had pretty much made the difference. But no shame though as Illinois is a good team, and young too. And as with most Big 10 games, playing on the road is always tough. Scoring 83 points against the Bruin's defense says a lot about their ability.
At least my Michigan wife is happy as Michigan took down Purdue this evening in a close one 75 to 73. Michigan trailed for most of the game but stepped up when it counted.
I'm counting on the Bruins beating Indiana on Friday but like this one, it could be a "barnburner" as Indiana can be tough at times. Even though they have lost their last 5 games, 4 were close losses. 79-78 to Maryland, 81-76 to Purdue, 79-70 to Northwestern, and almost beat Michigan on Saturday before going down late, 70-67. The only double digit loss of the 5 was by 12 points at Wisconsin.
Can't take them lightly. Both Ballo and Rice are with Indiana and a few of the Bruins certainly should be familiar with them. They are big too as their three top double digit scorers go 7', 6'9, and 6'9. They primarily play 9 players who each average over 17 minutes a game. Good rebounding team too as they average 41 boards a game.