Monday, November 6th kicked off the NCAA basketball season for the men. It was also the beginning of what some people would consider to be the best time of the year. Many college basketball fans are excited to see how their favorite team does this year, and to see how far they could possibly advance this year. Some fans believe that the first game of the season will determine how the rest of the season could go. So let’s look at how many of the first games went for several of the men’s teams that are well liked in our area.
To start out, the Fighting Illini played against the EIU Panthers on Monday. The Panthers got an early lead 5 minutes into the game with a score of 11-4. However, the Fighting Illini would close the gap and take their first lead with 7:16 left in the first half with a score of 21-19. At half-time, Illinois had the lead over Eastern Illinois by 37-25. Illinois took that momentum from the first half and ran with it. Illinois would win the game with a score of 80-52. EIU will play against Monmouth at home today. Illinois will play at home again against Oakland on Friday, November 10th.
The Indiana Hoosiers started their season with a close win against the Florida Gulf Coast Eagles on Tuesday. The entire game had a bunch of lead changes, as each team would keep retaliating against made baskets. In the first half of the game, the Hoosiers came out on top with a lead of two points, which put the score at 28-26. In the second half, the Hoosiers managed to get a little bit of a bigger lead that would help them win the game. The final score of the game ended up being 69-63. The Indiana Hoosiers will play against Army West Point at home on Sunday the 12th.
