Champaign, IL. Going into Champaign, IU has a target on their back, just like they did to Michigan. Illinois can do the same thing that the Hoosiers did to the Wolverines. Ironically, the two teams have something in common – they both play at Assembly Hall, one is in Bloomington Indiana, and the other one is in Champaign Illinois. It will be interesting to see if Illinois has an answer for Vic. Tonight’s game is on ESPN, and the last time we saw Cody, Vic, and Jeremy they were putting on a master performance, where anything they wanted to try was going in the basket. I’m sure coach Crean has told them to be mindful of what happened the last time the Hoosiers carried the label of being number one. Certainly, you want to take the home crowd out of there right away, and the only way to do that is to make sure you’re firing on all cylinders. Also, they have to forget about the Wolverines! I have a feeling that if IU loses tonight’s game, they will not be ranked. The next time that polls come out, if Indiana were to have a disaster in Champaign, it could be very costly in more ways than one! That would mean the number three loss overall, and it would be their second loss in the Big Ten. Basically what tonight’s game comes down to is their hard nosed defense, and the ability to execute phases of the game! When we have the basketball, Vic should be able to take Illinois and back them down and make sure you communicate with all of your teammates. Because you know that Illinois will come up with “whose your daddy” chants. They will be talking ugly about the Hoosiers, so they better be able to ignore the crowd, and be able to take it to Illinois within the first five minutes, so that the crowd at Assembly Hall shuts up!
