Follow along all night from Madison Square Garden with beat writer Scott Richey:
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A few gameday notes to get you up to speed on Illinois and Texas:
– Illinois is playing its fourth ranked team in nine games tonight (and third in the top 10 of KenPom).
– The Illini have won 12 of their last 20 game against ranked opponents but are 1-2 this season.
– Illinois has 10 wins against teams ranked in the top 10 since 2019-20, which is the second most in the NCAA in that span behind Baylor’s 12.
– Illinois guard Terrence Shannon Jr. played two seasons for Texas coach Chris Beard at Texas Tech. Facing his former coach isn’t that big of a deal, though, given they squared off twice last year in the Big 12.
Getting shots up. #Illini pic.twitter.com/EtLxadHBaU
— Scott Richey (@srrichey) December 6, 2022
– Texas is off to its first 6-0 start since the 2014-15 season (when the Longhorns won seven straight to start the year).
– Texas also hasn’t played a game outside of the state of Texas yet this season with four games in Austin and two in Edinburg in the Leon Black Classic at UT Rio Grande Valley.
– The Longhorns take care of the ball. At least they did in last week’s win against Creighton (their last game). Texas had just three turnovers in its 72-67 victory.
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It’s not quite the Las Vegas crowd (and there’s still 30 minutes until tipoff), but there are more Illinois fans in attendance so far mat Madison Square Garden than Texas fans.
At least the shades of orange are different this time. It was a little difficult to distinguish who was who in the Illinois-Virginia game.
Spotted a few notable Illinois fans in the crowd so far. First one I noticed was Illinois golf coach Mike Small. Then there was UI grad and “Hot Ones” host Sean Evans. I also got word that former Illinois guard Brandon Paul is expected to be at the game after a last minute call. Paul had been playing professionally in China.
Of course, Texas is holding four courtside seats for Kevin Durant since the Brooklyn Nets are off tonight. No official word on if he’ll show up or not.
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I’ve got to be honest. When I walked from the concourse into the arena at Madison Square Garden, I came up a little short.
The building itself? Pure basketball arena. Then you think about everything that’s happened here. (And I’m not talking about the Tevian Jones game against Maryland).
You can’t really tell because I’m up top about to go on @wdws1400 but the #Illini are wearing their orange throwbacks tonight vs. Texas. pic.twitter.com/CtuwjFQqdr
— Scott Richey (@srrichey) December 6, 2022
Of course, my first thought was get to the corner where Reggie Miller broke the New York Knicks’ heart. So I did. That’s probably not the history most people think of when they think of the Garden, but it was such a moment when Miller made the choking gesture to Knicks super fan Spike Lee.
Will tonight’s game be that? I’ll be honest. It won’t. But that doesn’t mean it can’t be a terrific night of college basketball. (And now that I’ve said that, I’m counting on the Illini and Longhorns to come through).
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Hello from the Big Apple! We’re about 90 minutes away from arguably the biggest game of the Illinois basketball season. At least for the first month.
Playing UCLA and Virginia (and beating the Bruins) was significant for the Illini. A win tonight at Madison Square Garden against No. 2 Texas? Now that would go down as a statement kind of victory.
This game won’t make or break Illinois’ season, of course. There are still a handful more nonconference games and 19 Big Ten games to play. But beating the Longhorns? That would be huge.
Mostly because it’s the kind of win the Illini haven’t exactly had a lot of in program history. If you read the preview of today’s game, you’ll remember that Illinois is 4-40 all-time against teams ranked No. 1 or No. 2 in the AP Top 25.
Texas jumped into that spot after early wins against Gonzaga and Creighton. But both were at home. The Longhorns should have won at the shiny, brand new Moody Center in Austin, Texas.
It’s a neutral court night. An environment Illinois has already tackled with its two games in Las Vegas and proven it can play at the highest level of the sport. Maybe it’s an advantage for the Illini? Will find out soon in what should be a heck of a matchup at MSG.
Scott Richey is a reporter covering college basketball at The News-Gazette. His email is srichey@news-gazette.com, and you can follow him on Twitter (@srrichey).
