COLUMN: The Tuesday Nightmare That May Not Go Away
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. -- So, ready for more bad news?
No? Yeah, that’s kind of understandable but this is kind of what I do as a journalist so bear with me here.
And no, I don’t have any breaking news on Ayo Dosunmu’s injury.
Here it goes: this losing streak isn’t likely to end anytime soon.
That uneasy, queasy and nauseated feeling you have in the pit of your stomach as an Illini fan, trust it. Whether it’s there because the star player was laying on the floor in a crumpled heap, or the fact the team is going through its toughest stretch of the 2019-20 season, I’m telling you to trust that feeling. It’s not lying to you.
Less than a week after the Illinois basketball program was focused on trying to take over the top spot in the Big Ten Conference all by itself, the Illini are now floundering through its longest losing streak of the 2019-20 season. And there’s no slump buster opponent on deck for this team to feast on to get its confidence right. Add in the fact that the leader, late-game closer and overall best player on the roster may be out for a good stretch of games and things aren’t exactly sunshine and rainbows in Champaign. More like cloudy, dark and quiet - like the State Farm Center was immediately after Dosunmu slipped, immediately grabbed his left leg and the final buzzer sounded Tuesday night.
Following home losses to Maryland and Michigan State, you know - the big bullies always at the top who have historically taken the lunch money of those young kids in orange and blue, Illinois (16-8, 8-5 in Big Ten) must now leave the safe, friendly environment of the State Farm Center without its best scoring option and possibly only All-Big Ten selection. A ‘Throwback Night’ sellout couldn’t save this Illini team from missing perimeter shots. An ‘Orange Out’ night couldn’t protect Illinois from being completely outclassed for 20 minutes and a devastating injury on a national television stage.
Illinois third-year head coach Brad Underwood must now take his team toward the east coast for two games they likely won’t be favored to win. Rutgers (who hosts Illinois on Saturday for a 3:30 p.m. tip) hasn’t lost at home this season - not once. This includes Rutgers defending its home floor (the “RAC” Rutgers Athletic Center) against No. 10 Seton Hall, No. 13 Penn State, Wisconsin, and Indiana. The Scarlet Knights’ zone defense, which Illinois can’t currently do anything against, held the Illini to just 54 points when they played one month ago in Champaign and that was with Dosunmu on the floor.
And that upcoming game in Rutgers could be much easier to steal than trying to go into Penn State to get a win. The Nittany Lions are coming off road wins against Michigan State and Purdue (remember when that felt so good a few weeks ago Illini fans?) and might have the most dynamic scorer in the Big Ten Conference in Lamar Stevens. Stevens (no relation, of course) is somebody who is a matchup nightmare for the Illini defense that is one of the best in the Big Ten. The simple question must be asked: Who in orange and blue guards Stevens one week from now? Yeah, it’s okay if you can’t answer it because Underwood might not know either.
Lose those pair of games and now the losing streak goes to five games in a row without possible any sign of a return for Dosunmu. Does doubt begin to set in on if this Illini will ever regain its ability to hit key perimeter shots? Has Kofi Cockburn hit a freshman wall? When does Giorgi wake up from this sophomore slump? Wave bye-bye to that national ranking. Say goodbye to the top four spots in the Big Ten Conference and that NCAA Tournament at-large berth insurance. Say hello to the NCAA Tournament bubble at 15-9 overall with a terrible non-conference strength of schedule, a 4-8 record against Quad 1 opponents according to the NCAA Tournament selection process and no star player to lean on.
At that point, the question will then need to be answered how the NCAA Tournament selection committee members will look at an Illinois team without Dosunmu. If they’re not likely to have him back soon, they’ll be evaluated what they look like without him and the wins and moments that occurred with him will pale in comparison to this final month of play.
If all that happens in the coming week, does Illinois need to say goodbye to its dreams of once again dancing in March for the first time since 2013? Maybe, maybe not. But at that point, the margin of error is thinner than laboratory scientists trying to split atoms.
Underwood practically says the same thing before nearly every mid-week media conference: “just another day in the Big Ten”. Except for those supporting the Illini right now, Tuesday wasn’t just another night in the Big Ten. It was far from it. It was a nightmare and Illinois fans now are afraid to have their head hit the pillow again.