Johnson ‘keeping the game very simple’

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Jan. 2—CHAMPAIGN — The way Brad Underwood built his Illinois men’s basketball roster for this season made clear his priority.

Any and all opportunities to play five shooters would be embraced wholeheartedly.

So it’s worth nothing how freshman forward Morez Johnson Jr. has forced Underwood’s hand in the first two months of the season. Because putting the 6-foot-9, 255-pound big man on the court changes the offensive calculus. Johnson isn’t a shooter — not yet, at least — but the Illinois coach is looking for more opportunities to not only play him, but play him with 7-1 sophomore center Tomislav Ivisic.

How could Underwood not?

Johnson’s per-40 numbers jump off the page. Particularly at the rate he rebounds. But even playing just 14.1 minutes per game, the Chicago native is averaging 5.3 points and 6.5 rebounds with No. 22 Illinois (9-3, 1-1 Big Ten) set to resume league play at 9 p.m. Thursday at No. 9 Oregon (12-1, 1-1).

“He’s just done what a freshman should do,” Underwood said. “Learn, listen and keep it simple. … He’s keeping the game very simple. He’s not trying to do too much. He’s just taking what the game gives him, and he’s been just relentless on the glass.

“He’s impacting basketball games just keeping it very simple and playing really hard. His athleticism, his physicality, is impacting opponents — it’s impacting us — and it’s doing that on both ends.”

That wasn’t necessarily the case at the start of November. Johnson said he was thinking too much in the first couple weeks of the season. Trying too hard to make sure The News-Gazette’s All-State Player of the Year after a standout final season of high school basketball at Thornton did everything right with the Illini.

It was only in the past few weeks where Johnson said he felt like he had settled in. Something that stood out during a recent film session with video coordinator Patrick Bittle.

“It looked more natural,” Johnson said about what he saw from himself in that film session. “Now, I feel like I’m…

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Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/johnson-keeping-game-very-simple-154700538.html

Author : The News-Gazette, Champaign-Urbana, Ill.

Publish date : 2025-01-02 15:47:00

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