Illinois coach Brad Underwood believes in players pushing each other during practice to improve themselves and the team.That’s why he often pits starting guards Kylan Boswell and Kasparas Jakucionis against each other in practice. Underwood figures if it worked for Ayo Dosunmu and Trent Frazier, why not his newest backcourt?So far, that method appears to be paying off again as Boswell and Jakucionis are keying a strong start for the No. 24 Fighting Illini (8-3). They’ll shoot for a non-conference win Sunday afternoon when Chicago State (0-14) visits Champaign, Ill.Boswell and Jakucionis’ imprints were all over Illinois’ 80-77 Braggin’ Rights win over Missouri in St. Louis on Dec. 22. They combined for 37 points, 11 rebounds and nine assists, with Jakucionis scoring 21 for his sixth straight game with at least 20 points.Underwood said pitting the two against each other in practice is a win-win.”I play them opposite each other so they can just exhaust each other and beat each other up,” the coach said.Jakucionis, who averages a team-high 16.5 points a game on 46.8 percent shooting from the field, co-signs on that philosophy.”We elevate each other,” he said. “In practice, we’re pushing each other by defending and attacking each other. And it makes one another better each day and every day.”Boswell adds 10.6 ppg to go with 3.5 assists, while teammates Tomislav Ivisic (13.9 ppg) and Will Riley (12.5) also are in double figures in scoring.Perhaps the best thing about this team is that it appears to have more ceiling left. Illinois is averaging 83.6 points a game without being efficient from the field (43.3 percent) or the 3-point line (32.3 percent).
No. 24 Illinois pushes guards; next up is winless Chicago State
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