Before Gonzaga’s Maui opener, Mark Few told anyone who would listen how difficult of a matchup Illinois presented. After the Zags survived by the skin of their teeth, it turns out he wasn’t kidding. Illinois runs a unique high spread offense, which Few identified as difficult to prepare for since he hasn’t seen one like it in all his years as a head coach. Paired with 40 minutes of pressure defense, you get games like last night. Here’s what else I took away from Game 1 in Maui:
- In Year 2, Brad Underwood is beginning to see his system take hold.