5 Illinois basketball observations from the good start against UIS

We finally got to see the women’s Illinois basketball program back in action on Friday night.

It wasn’t a big game for the Illini, as we played Illinois-Springfield, but this was a needed contest to get prepared for the much-anticipated 2026-27 season.

Advertisement

Illinois is starting the year ranked No. 23 in the country. That is a lot of expectations on the shoulders of the Orange and Blue, and in the first exhibition game, they handled things well. Illinois put UIS away early, finishing the game with an 88-44 win.

Here are five Illinois basketball observations from the good start against UIS

1. This is the Illinois rotation we are likely to see

Coming into the exhibition game, I was expecting Illinois to be one of the deepest teams in the country. That proved to be the case on Friday night.

Illinois ended up going 10-deep against UIS. All 10 players played at least 14 minutes. I know that in exhibition games, that can be the case. I don’t think this is the exhibition mirage, though.

Advertisement

I believe what we saw on Friday night will be the case during the 2026-27 season. All 10 players are going to get good minutes, and each player will have their role.

On both the men’s and women’s sides of the basketball program, I have never seen a deeper team. Illinois could have a big season in 2026-27, and depth will carry us to heights we haven’t seen before.

2. It was good to see Gretchen Dolan playing

Gretchen Dolan’s career has been so promising, but injuries have derailed her progress. She has spent three seasons in Champaign, and in the last two campaigns, she has played a combined 26 games due to injuries.

Advertisement

Illinois needed Dolan last season, but we didn’t have her down the stretch. The fact that we got to see her on the court against UIS was exciting.

Dolan led Illinois in scoring, going for 14 points on 4-of-10 shooting from the field and a perfect 5-of-5 from the free throw line. It is good for her to knock the rust off. Illinois has to have her on the court this…

Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/5-illinois-basketball-observations-good-110341084.html

Author :

Publish date : 2026-10-31 11:03:00

Copyright for syndicated content belongs to the linked Source.