Game 8 preview | No. 20 Illinois vs. No. 11 Florida Atlantic; 5:30 p.m., Tuesday
Dec. 5—Beat writer Scott Richey breaks down the Jimmy V Classic matchup between the Illini and Owls
Lineups
No. 20 Illinois (6-1)
Starters
P Name Yr. Ht. PPG Hometown
G/F Ty Rodgers So. 6-6 7.1 Saginaw, Mich.
G Terrence Shannon Jr. Sr. 6-6 20.0 Chicago
G/F Marcus Domask Gr. 6-6 9.1 Waupun, Wis.
F Quincy Guerrier Gr. 6-8 6.6 Montreal
F Coleman Hawkins Sr. 6-10 5.0 Sacramento, Calif.
FYI: Shannon, who has four games of at least 21 points in his last five (the only miss was his 19-point effort against Western Illinois) ranks sixth in the Big Ten in scoring. Purdue center Zach Edey leads the league at 23.5 points per game, with Minnesota forward Dawson Garcia and Michigan State guard Tyson Walker (20.5 points) and Northwestern guard Boo Buie and Michigan guard Dug McDaniel (20.3 points) rounding out the top five.
Off the bench
P Name Yr. Ht. PPG Hometown
G Luke Goode Jr. 6-7 8.9 Fort Wayne, Ind.
G Justin Harmon Gr. 6-4 4.1 Chicago
F/C Dain Dainja R-Jr. 6-9 9.4 Brooklyn Park, Minn.
No. 11 Florida Atlantic (7-1)
Starters
P Name Yr. Ht. PPG Hometown
G Jalen Gaffney Sr. 6-3 7.0 Columbus, N.J.
G Alijah Martin Jr. 6-2 13.5 Summit, Miss.
G Johnell Davis Jr. 6-4 13.6 Gary, Ind.
G Brandon Weatherspoon Sr. 6-4 7.9 Canton, Miss.
C Vladislav Goldin Jr. 7-1 15.4 Nalchick, Russia
FYI: Three of Florida Atlantic's regulars — Gaffney, Goldin and backup guard Bryan Greenlee — got their start at the high-major level at Connecticut, Texas Tech and Minnesota, respectively. While Goldin and Greenlee barely got off the bench in a single season each at their former power conference program, Gaffney was a part-time starter for the Huskies through two seasons before his playing time dipped during the 2021-22 season.
Off the bench
P Name Yr. Ht. PPG Hometown
G Bryan Greenlee Sr. 6-0 9.0 Gainesville, Fla.
F Giancarlo Rosado Jr. 6-8 9.3 West Palm Beach, Fla.
F Brenen Lorient So. 6-9 2.9 Ocala, Fla.
Details
➜ Site: Madison Square Garden (19,812); New York.
➜ Radio: Brian Barnhart (play-by-play) and former Illini Deon Thomas (analysis) will have the call on the Illini Sports Network on WDWS 1400-AM, WDWS 93.9-FM, WHMS 97.5-FM, WPXN 104.9-FM, WDAN-1490-AM and WDNL 102.1-FM.
➜ TV: Dan Shulman (play-by-play), Jay Bilas (analysis) and Angel Gray (sideline reports) will have the call on EPSN.
➜ Series: Florida Atlantic leads 1-0.
➜ Last meeting: Florida Atlantic won 73-71 in overtime on Dec. 29, 2018.
➜ FYI: Losing to Florida Atlantic in Brad Underwood's second season at Illinois could have been more of a disaster than just losing to the Owls, who had 10 newcomers in coach Dusty May's first season. Prized recruit Kofi Cockburn was on his official visit that weekend and in attendance for the loss. Instead of deterring him, the four-star 7-footer saw it as an opportunity. That the Illini needed someone like him. Cockburn, of course, committed a month later — after another loss at Northwestern — and went on to become a two-time All-American at Illinois.
Beat writer Scott Richey's storylines
Big games bring out Domask's best
Something about the way Marcus Domask played in big games popped when Brad Underwood was watching his film this past spring while recruiting the fresh-in-the-portal Southern Illinois transfer. The 6-foot-6 guard just hit a different level. "I love big games," Domask said. "It's why we play. We want to play against the best competition. I think everybody gets up for these games. They're just fun." That sentiment helped Illinois in Saturday's Big Ten opener against Rutgers, with Domask putting up 15 points, seven rebounds and two assists. The stage gets bigger Tuesday against with Florida Atlantic at Madison Square Garden. "He was great in Marquette," Underwood said. Domask had 18 points against the then-No. 4 Golden Eagles. "I think he's starting to find more comfort in everything that we're doing. If Marcus does anything, he works too hard. He lives in the gym. You get rewarded for that, and he's starting to see that."
Crashing the boards is important to Guerrier
The competition to be Illinois' leading rebounds is stiff. Eight different Illini are averaging at least four rebounds through the first seven games of the season. The leader, at least for now, is Quincy Guerrier. The 6-foot-8 forward is pulling down 7.6 rebounds per game and has hit at least 10 in three games with a high of 15 against Western Illinois. "It doesn't matter if the guy is 7-foot or the guy is 6-4, I'm going to crash the boards every time," Guerrier said. "That's something I did back at Syracuse, and I'm really good at it. I play with a high motor and always try to see the angles from where the ball is going to end up going."
Shoring up high-level defense
That Illinois has one of the top-ranked defenses in the country doesn't mean Underwood didn't find areas to nitpick during the team's recent stretch of practice-heavy days. Scouting report mistakes were the Illini coach's biggest issue with his team defensively. They were an ongoing struggle for a young team last season. This year's team is far more experienced, which makes the number of scouting reports Underwood has seen in the first month of the season that more glaring. "This team should have games where they have two to three scouting report mistakes, and we're making twice that or seven, eight, nine or 10," Underwood said. "It's practicing the same stuff over and over and over again until it becomes habit. Most of them are communication-based mistakes. Those are the things that we can avoid and we have to eliminate."
The News-Gazette's pick
No. 20 Illinois 79, No. 11 Florida Atlantic 74
Florida Atlantic gives off real Marquette vibes given the Owls' willingness to push in transition, and they're at least as capable as the Golden Eagles from three-point range with an efficient 7-footer in Vladislav Goldin. The Illini defense traveled to New Jersey in a dominant Big Ten road win at Rutgers. Did it make it across the Hudson River, too? (N-G prediction record — 7-0).
