2. The Badgers still have no answer for Kofi Cockburn; other B1G bigs
Kofi Cockburn, like many big men in the Big Ten over the past couple of years, has been a problem for the Wisconsin basketball team since he has been a part of the Illinois basketball program. As the Big Ten Network commentators frequently referenced last night, Cockburn has enjoyed a lot of success against Wisconsin. Entering the game last night, Cockburn was 3-0 against the Badgers in games he played in. He’s consistently bullied the Badgers’ big men in the post in the past and last night was no different.
Each Illini possession felt like it was the exact same thing. A dribble or pass to the wing and they’d feed it into Kofi in the post and he’d do the rest. Kofi would just back Steven Crowl or Chris Vogt down and even when the Badgers would send a second defender from the backside, he’d shoot a little jump hook or just spin and lay it in or even throw down a vicious dunk.
Unless you get a guy that big and physical to match him in the post, there just isn’t a whole lot you can do about it. The best you can do is bother him enough and hope for a miss or foul him and make him shoot free throws, which leads to a whole other problem.
Cockburn finished the game with 37 points on 16-19 shots, shooting a very efficient 84% from the floor. He is now 4-0 in his career against the Badgers and averaged 23.5 points and 9.75 rebounds per game against the Badgers. Not a recipe for success.
The Wisconsin basketball team and fans alike are going to be happy to see Cockburn leave the Illinois basketball program after this season.