As I said in the Penn State pregame thread, we had a number of things working against us before the game even tipped off- First we were coming off a 90+ point performance on the road against a Michigan team we don't like. Second, Wisconsin beat Purdue on an insane ending that basically nuked Illinois' chances of winning the conference. Third, the following game was against a ranked Iowa team that we hate in what will be basically half the team's final game at Assembly Hall on Senior night. Fourth, PSU is a team we hadn't played all season are in the lower half of the standings, and who you're generally apathetic towards. Fifth, that PSU team has lost by double digits a total of only 6 times ALL SEASON (By comparison we're at the top of the B10 and we've had 4)! I know people don't like saying "trap game" but Penn State certainly qualifies. I said we should probably be happy with a win even if it was the pulling your hair out variety. It was and it was.
For similar reasons to the above, I'd have a very hard time seeing Illinois not coming to play against Iowa. If you can't get up to play against a team you have a running feud with, a team ranked in the Top 25, a team who if you beat you have a chance to win the conference, on senior night, with a team full of seniors playing their final home game, then I'm not sure what you can as a player get up for. And I would bet that Trent and Damonte would rather die on the court than lose to Iowa in their final memory of playing in Assembly Hall. Illinois will be ready to go in this one- if anything they might be too amped and playing at a breakneck pace for the first 5 minutes. In the postseason you have to get hot at the right time. May this Iowa game be the start of a 10 game heater for us.
PS: If we do come out flat and disinterested in this one, then yes, I am gravely concerned, but I just can't see it happening.