The last time these two teams faced, it was not pretty for the Illinois Fighting Illini. The Iowa basketball team jumped out to a 10-point lead in the first ten minutes of play and never relinquished the lead from that point forward. Three Hawks scored 20 or more points, and Iowa couldn’t miss from behind the arc shooting a ridiculous 71.4%.
Moreover, their defense showed up that night (for most of the game), Fran’s constantly changing defensive alignment befuddled the young Illinois Fighting Illini. Illinois’ top three scorers shot just 15 of 42 for 38 points including 4 of 17 from three-point.