Illinois (20-11, 12-8 Big Ten) on Friday put together an impressive come-from-behind victory over No. 20 Purdue (21-10, 13-7 Big Ten), in which the Illini clawed back from a double-digit deficit to escape with an 88-80 win.
After getting sliced and diced by Purdue lead guard Braden Smith and bullied by big man Trey Kaufman-Renn, the Illini were lucky to head into the break down only 42-40.
Yet Illinois seemingly made minimal defensive adjustments to slow that duo's pick-and-roll attack. The result? A near triple-double for Smith, who finished with 18 points, nine rebounds, and 12 assists, and a game-high 29 points and seven boards for Kaufman-Renn.
Although the Illini still pulled out the win, they needed a bit of good fortune to lock it down, and unfortunately, luck is a finite and unpredictable resource. If Illinois and coach Brad Underwood aren't willing to make defensive alterations at any point in any game going into the Big Ten and NCAA tournaments, they risk getting bled dry by a single opponent or single action in what might otherwise be a winnable game.
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