{"id":121707,"date":"2025-02-03T17:46:39","date_gmt":"2025-02-03T22:46:39","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/?p=121707"},"modified":"2025-02-03T17:46:39","modified_gmt":"2025-02-03T22:46:39","slug":"changes-to-illinois-starting-lineup-has-the-illini-back-on-track","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/2025\/02\/03\/changes-to-illinois-starting-lineup-has-the-illini-back-on-track\/","title":{"rendered":"Changes to Illinois’ Starting Lineup has the Illini Back on Track"},"content":{"rendered":"

Illinois basketball has had some trying games over the past several weeks. It all started when star freshman Kasparas Jakucionis<\/a> missed a few games because of an injury. The Illini could handle Penn State without him, but then they slipped up on their home floor against USC. He made his return in the very next game as Illinois crushed Indiana in Bloomington. That win led to a highly anticipated match-up with Michigan State<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Sure Jakucionis was back, but he was a non-factor in the game with the Spartans, as he quickly fell into foul trouble and only played nine minutes. He eventually fouled out of that game. The struggles in that game started to show a bigger issue, especially with the lineup for Illinois.<\/p>\n

Changes to Illinois’ Starting Lineup has the Illini Back on Track<\/h2>\n

Jakucionis is back to his normal self, but the rest of the lineup for the Illini has struggled in some very tough games. The lineup issues came to a head during four of their last seven games which resulted in losses. There has also been health issues for the Illini’s starting center, Tomislav Ivisic<\/a>. Him not being able to play certainly changed the direction of the team.<\/p>\n

Kylan Boswell<\/a> brought plenty of leadership when he transferred to Illinois from Arizona, but during the Illini’s stretch of four losses in seven games, he hasn\u2019t been up to par. He along with fellow previous starter Ben Humrichous<\/a> have struggled as of late, andCoach Underwood certainly hinted<\/a> at a lineup change following the team’s loss at Nebraska.<\/p>\n

Underwood Stays True to His Word<\/h3>\n

Underwood wasn’t kidding as the Illini rolled out a different lineup in Sunday’s clash with Ohio State. The best part was that Ivisic made his return from dealing with a bout with mono. He missed three games because of it, and his ability was certainly missed. Having him back is going to help, but that wasn’t the biggest dramatic change to the lineup on Sunday.<\/p>\n

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Your starting lineup vs. Ohio State. pic.twitter.com\/rYsAVecL8J<\/a><\/p>\n

— Illinois Men's Basketball (@IlliniMBB) February 2, 2025<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n