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Texas Tech basketball: 4 teams to hope aren’t in Red Raiders’ region

By Matthew Conner

Mar 21, 2019; Salt Lake City, UT, USA; March Madness logo at mid court during the first half in the first round of the 2019 NCAA Tournament between the Baylor Bears and the Syracuse Orange at Vivint Smart Home Arena. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports
Mar 21, 2019; Salt Lake City, UT, USA; March Madness logo at mid court during the first half in the first round of the 2019 NCAA Tournament between the Baylor Bears and the Syracuse Orange at Vivint Smart Home Arena. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports /
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Mar 13, 2021; Indianapolis, Indiana, USA; Illinois Fighting Illini guard Ayo Dosunmu (11) reacts to the crowd after his team defeats the Iowa Hawkeyes at Lucas Oil Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Aaron Doster-USA TODAY Sports
Mar 13, 2021; Indianapolis, Indiana, USA; Illinois Fighting Illini guard Ayo Dosunmu (11) reacts to the crowd after his team defeats the Iowa Hawkeyes at Lucas Oil Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Aaron Doster-USA TODAY Sports /

Illinois

We wrap up our look at the Big 10 trio that we hope Tech avoids by examining how tough it would be to beat the Illinois Fighting Illini.  That’s because they feature perhaps the nation’s best inside-outside combination.

The player who makes the Illini go is guard Ayo Dosunmu, arguably the nation’s best player in crunch time.  The 6-foot-5 junior averages an impressive 21 points, 6.2 rebounds, and 5.3 assists per game.

And it is often late in the game when he’s at his best. For instance, a week ago, he scored the last nine points of the game to lift his team to a 73-68 win over No. 7 Ohio State.  In March, no one wants to deal with a guard like that who refuses to let his team lose.

But what makes the Illini so tough is that they also have a dominant big man in the middle in Kofi Cockburn.  At 7 feet, 285 pounds, he averages 17.3 points and 9.7 rebounds per game.  That’s the type of interior presence that could dominate against a short Texas Tech team that likes to play five guards for lengthy stretches of games.

This tandem gives Illinois a huge margin for error and it is hard to imagine Tech being able to match up.  That’s because it’s been tough for any team in the nation to match up with the 22-6 Illini this year.

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