Saturday was a rubber-hits-the-road moment for No. 23 Illinois (16-8, 8-6 Big Ten), which burned its Goodyears and did a lap around the school parking lot at Minnesota, authoring one of its best performances of the season in a 95-74 win to begin pulling itself out of a 3-5 tailspin.

But UI fans and the college basketball world at large can be forgiven if they’re slow to believe what their eyes seemed to tell them at Williams Arena in Minneapolis: The Illini are back! We’ve seen that movie several times this season and we’re here to tell you – spoiler alert – they weren’t. Never for long, anyway.

Illinois can convince a lot of skeptics by handling its business at home Tuesday against UCLA, winners of seven straight and now tied for fourth in the Big Ten. But before we get ahead of ourselves, let’s take stock and consider what could be learned from the gutting of the Gophers:

When meeting with the media Friday, Underwood cast doubt on whether Tomislav Ivisic (ankle) would be ready to play against Minnesota, and he seemed to definitively declare Dra Gibbs-Lawhorn “out” because of the flu. Ivisic didn’t just play – he balled out, posting an 18-point, 11-rebound double-double and a 2-for-2 showing from three-point range. Gibbs-Lawhorn played only four minutes and clearly wasn’t himself (three quick fouls) but did make an appearance.

Look, there was nothing underhanded about Underwood’s injury and illness offerings. He is generally as transparent about such things as he can be, and he’s not going to stand on ceremony and hold back Dra Gibbs-Lawhorn if it turns out he’s healthy enough to go. Just know that previous injury and illness situations (Kasparas Jakucionis, Ivisic and others) were pretty fluid, so maybe stay off the wagering apps and just enjoy the games when there are any “questionables” floating around the Illini.

How about that Illini defense? Sure, Illinois has been very good overall in tamping down opposing offenses (No. 19 in field-goal percentage defense and No. 31 in defensive efficiency in Division I). But the Illini had had more than a little trouble against opposing stars – especially the long, rangy, athletic types. Just ask Rutgers’ Ace Bailey, Nebraska’s Brice Williams and USC’s Desmond Claude, who each went off in Illinois defeats.

But against Minnesota, the Illini threw a number of defenders and looks at Dawson Garcia, who was held to 12 points on 4-for-14 shooting. It was an all-hands-on-deck approach that suits Illinois’ tendency to play well off certain lesser threats and non-shooters. It’s a tougher ask against more balanced offenses, but at least the Illini, who lack a long, mobile one-on-one defender, now have a rough blueprint for taking on similar challenges. (We’re looking at you, Cooper Flagg.)

We can argue the merits of the three-pointer’s place in Illinois’ offense ad nauseam – and many, including us, have. But here’s the bottom line: In the college game, good ball movement, selective shooting and a dynamic mix of actions is always – nearly without fail – going to be a safer bet than force-feeding a single player or a particular action in every game, against every opponent, all the time.

Whether your move is a blitzkrieg of threes or the high pick-and-roll, there will always be an opponent or a defender that has your number, or a day when it just isn’t working. What are you gonna do about it? Playing Jakucionis more off the ball against Minnesota seemed to alleviate some pressure and allow him to get into a rhythm with spot-up jumpers. Initiating the offense through Will Riley was a wrinkle that seemed to take the Gophers by surprise. Moving off the ball and going hard to the rim, rather than bombing without conscience from behind the arc, forced Minnesota to guard – and, wonder of wonders – opened up the perimeter for more quality looks. Deep bags make for deep runs in March.

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