Monday, February 6, 2012

Undersized Illini fall to Northwestern

For those who watch the end of the Illini game against Northwestern, perhaps you noticed this but maybe not.  John Shurna, listed at 6-9 for the Wildcats was guarded by Brandon Paul, the outstanding 6-4 guard for Illinois.  Shurna was basically unstoppable during much of the game, and is quite a player.  Meyers Leonard at 7-1 was guarding Davide Curletti, a 6-9 forward for Northwestern.  Drew Crawford, the 6-5 guard for Northwestern was guarded by Joe Bertrand, who is listed at 6-5 for Illinois.  Reggie Hearn, a 6-4 guard for Northwestern was guarded by DJ Richardson, listed at 6-3 for Illinois, but likely 6-2.

Years ago, Northwestern would frequently be dominated by a larger Illini team, due to their small size.  So it's interesting that Illinois has been unable to put players with size on the floor this year against teams like Northwestern.