On Women's Basketball

Make sense of this -- please

Posted by: Tony Bleill

Friday, December 12, 2008 4:58 PM

So... if you've missed a night or two of the women's college basketball scoreboard, have I got some news for you. Check this out: Missouri 83, Bradley 54. The same Missouri team that Illinois handled in Champaign. The same Bradley team that whipped Illinois in Chicago.

I watched the game on FSN Midwest (guess who was doing the color analysis ... Anne O'Neil. Yes, that Anne O'Neil.) Mizzou shot well from three-point range and played much harder than Illinois did against Bradley. If I'm looking at the three games involving these teams and trying to figure out which one was the fluke, I'd pick Illinois-Bradley. Don't think the Illini are as poor as they played on Saturday. If Illinois played with a bit more fire, I think you'd see a much closer game.

And then there's this: Valparaiso 71, Purdue 60. The national landscape has been littered with upsets during the young season, none more ming-boggling than Wisconsin beating Baylor. But Valpo-Purdue ranks right up there. You'll see the Boilers soon -- Dec. 22 when they open the Big Ten season at the Assembly Hall -- and that game has to give Illinois some reason for hope heading into that game. And they'll need it, too, because that game arrives about 53 hours after the Illini take on No. 2 North Carolina, a likely bludgeoning.

--If you missed it, here are the latest updates on Jolette Law's Super Six recruits for next season. Our Troy Gentle will be offering regular updates on how they're faring during their final seasons in high school.

--And now, your latest Kelsey Bone Fix: Here's the piece that appeared in the current issue of ESPN the magazine on the prospective Illini. That's a college-ready body. And, as Steve from Champaign noted in our latest chat, Bone's accompanying comments sound encouraging if you're an Illini fan.

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