Preview: Illinois
Vitals:
Wisconsin Badgers (12-9, 4-4) at Illinois Fighting Illini (10-11, 2-6)
Sunday, January 31, 2016 • Champaign, Ill. • State Farm Center • 6:30 p.m. CT • BTN
Wisconsin Badgers • 9th in B1G • Streak: W3
Roster • Schedule • Statistics
Fr • F • Ethan Happ • 6-9 • 235 • 12.6 ppg
Happ has recorded back-to-back career-highs in Wisconsin's previous two games with his 20 points against Penn State and his 25 points against Indiana. In addition to scoring, Happ is also making his presence felt on the defensive end of the floor with his team-leading 31 steals, including a career-high 4 steals against Indiana.
Jr • F • Nigel Hayes • 6-8 • 240 • 17.0 ppg
Hayes has made a living at the foul line this season, making a conference-leading 126 free throws on the season as a result of his conference-leading 170 free-throw attempts. Hayes tied a Wisconsin single-game record with his 17 made free throws against Indiana on Tuesday night en route to 31 points. Over his previous 3 games, Hayes is averaging 23.7 ppg.
Jr • G • Bronson Koenig • 6-4 • 193 • 13.5 ppg
Koenig continues to struggle, yet he ranks 2nd on the team in scoring (13.5 ppg) and is in the midst of a streak that has seen him hit at least one three pointer in 32 consecutive games. More on Koenig and his struggles as of late below.
So • G • Jordan Hill • 6-3 • 178 • 2.7 ppg
Hill has yet to start a game in his collegiate career, but with Vitto Brown suffering from an upper-body that has sidelined him since the Indiana game, Hill is expected to get some run with the starters against a small Illinois lineup. The Badgers are hoping Hill can expand upon his 13-point performance against Indiana in which he shot a perfect 5-for-5 from the field, including 2-for-2 from three-point range.
Jr • G • Zak Showalter • 6-2 • 184 • 7.5 ppg
Showalter's lingering ankle injury against Indiana held him scoreless for the first time this season. Showalter went 0-for-2 from the field, but managed to reach his average of 4 rebounds before fouling out after 20 minutes. Showalter will likely be tasked with having to chase down Kendrick Nunn on Sunday evening.
Illinois Fighting Illini • 12th in B1G • Streak: L1
Roster • Schedule • Statistics
Fr • F • Michael Finke • 6-10 • 220 • 9.4 ppg
Jr • G • Malcolm Hill • 6-6 • 220 • 18.7 ppg
Jr • G • Kendrick Nunn • 6-3 • 190 • 17.5 ppg
So • G • Jalen Coleman-Lands • 6-3 • 180 • 8.9 ppg
Sr • G • Jaylon Tate • 6-3 • 170 • 2.6 ppg
Paint Touches
Wisconsin is coming off one of its best paint-performances of the season after scoring 36 points in the paint against Indiana - its highest output of conference play thus far. Wisconsin has scored at least 30 points in the paint in eight of its 21 games this season, going a perfect 8-0 in those games.
Illinois is allowing its opponents to score an average of 33.5 points in the paint per game, which is more than 43 percent of its opponents points in Big Ten play.
Ethan Happ is of course a key component to Wisconsin's success in the paint this season, as the redshirt freshman is shooting 55.2 percent from the field and over the previous seven games he is averaging 16.1 ppg. During Big Ten play, Happ is shooting 56.5 percent from the field and is averaging 14.4 ppg.
Bronson Koenig
There were countless times during Wisconsin's victory over Indiana in which one had to look closely to make certain that Bronson Koenig was still on the floor. Koenig went a porous 1-for-9 (.111) from the field en route to a season-low four points in 39 minutes of playing time. The struggles were nothing new for Koenig, however, as he has shot above 33.3 percent from the field just once over the previous six games. During that stretch, Koenig is averaging 12.7 points per game on 34.9 percent shooting from the field. But when removing Koenig's 27 points on 8-for-15 (.533) shooting against Michigan State, he is averaging 9.8 points on 29.2 percent shooting.
For a player with the wealth of experience that Koenig has, his home and away splits are quite surprising. In home games this season, Koenig is averaging 14.3 points on 42.7 percent shooting from the field. He is also turning the ball over just 1.7 times per game at the Kohl Center. On the road, however, Koenig is averaging 12.0 points on 32.5 percent shooting from the field and is turning the ball over 1.9 times per game.
In road games in Big Ten play, Koenig is averaging 10.7 points on 9-for-27 (.333) shooting from the field. He has six turnovers in his three Big Ten road games.
A Helping Hand
Malcolm Hill (18.3 ppg) and Kendrick Nunn (17.9 ppg) are one of only two pairs of teammates among the six major conferences to both be averaging at least 17.0 ppg. The duo is combining for 36.2 points per game this season, which ranks as the fifth-highest scoring duo among the six major conferences.
Hill leads the team in total points, rebounds, assists, steals and blocks this season, making him one of just three players in the nation to be his team leader in all of those categories (Ben Simmons, LSU; Malcolm Bernard, Florida A&M).
Due to Nunn's injury this season, the Fighting Illini have been forced to start 12 different lineups, but when Nunn has been in the starting group he has performed admirably. In all 15 games in which he has played, Nunn has scored in double figures. Of those 15 games, five have seen him score 20 points or more, with three of those occurring during Big Ten play with his 23 points against Michigan, his 22 points against Purdue, and his 24 points against Ohio State.
Hill and Nunn complement each other nicely, with each player taking different approaches to getting points on the board. Hill does most of his damage inside the arc, where he is shooting 48.5 percent. From outside the three-point arc, Hill is shooting just 31.6 percent as he has made 25-of-79 attempts.
Nunn has 46 made three pointers in 15 games this season, averaging 3.1 made threes per game, which currently ranks third in the conference. The Illinois school record for most three pointers made in a single season is 3.00, which was set by Cory Bradford in 2000.
Prediction
Wisconsin 74, Illinois 69
Prediction record: 14-7 (6-2)
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