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Behind the Mic

The Race Is On

Posted by: Brian Barnhart

Friday, January 16, 2009 11:54 AM

Win at Purdue?....CHECK

Take care of business at home against Indiana and Michigan? CHECK

Beat Michigan State at the Izzone in East Lansing?.....MAYBE....MAYBE NOT

The surprising Illini have a big hurdle to clear on Saturday afternoon at the Breslin Center. Tom Izzo's Spartans are playing their best basketball so far this year and have really turned things around after their crushing defeat to North Carolina after Thanksgiving.

The Spartans have won in Houston against the Texas Longhorns. They easily routed Bill Self's defending national champion Kansas Jayhawks. They have already won 3 Big Ten games on the road.

But the Illini are playing well also...having won 9 of their last 10 games. They are starting to get the attention of the college basketball world as one of the surprise teams in the country (see Sports Illustrated).

Bruce Weber knows as well as anybody...if his club wants to seriously talk about contending for the Big Ten title...this next stretch of games (At MSU...home to Ohio State and Wisconsin) will determine if the Illini are in the conference race unitl March or will have to settle with hoping to be in postion for an NCAA at-large berth.

Talk to you from the Breslin Center on Saturday afternoon as we broadcast the game surrounded by "the Izzone"