Illinois head coach Brad Underwood and junior Jake Davis met with the media before the team’s home game against Rutgers on Thursday.
A much improved Jake Davis
There hasn’t been a major year two jump in Jake Davis’ stats, but it’s clear that Davis is a much better player. Known as a 3-point specialist, the Indiana junior has increased his 3-point percentage from 34.4% to 39% this season.
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“He just does everything right,” Underwood said. “He plays very hard. He does everything we ask of him, whether it’s rebounding or defense. He’s become a good sneaky defender. He’s tougher than a nail. Everyone knows he’s an elite shooter.”
Davis also took on more of a leadership role in his second year in the program.
“I think it’s kind of what Brad says every day,” Jake Davis told the media. “It’s the everyday guy mentality. You just come in every day with the mentality of working harder, getting better, making everyone else better, making your team better. I think if you can do that every day with consistency, it will work in the long run.
A positive update on Ty Rodgers
After starting all 38 of the Illini’s 2023-24 games, Ty Rodgers has not appeared in a game since.
“He’s participating in practice a little bit, but he’s not complete yet,” Underwood said. “I’ve made some positive progress. It’s good to see him in a practice jersey doing certain things. He continues to gain strength. Obviously, there was atrophy in the leg. Nobody is working harder than him. We’ll continue to take it day by day, but right now it’s good to see him participating in practice.”
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Underwood also noted that Rodgers did not travel to Philadelphia for the Penn State game because he was battling the flu.
Rutgers Preview
Even though this is arguably the worst Rutgers team of the Steve Pikiell era, Brad Underwood knows they are no pushovers.
“They’re going to throw body shots all game long. You’ve got to take them,” Brad Underwood said. “There is no quit on any of his teams. You have to keep doing your job every time. You have to match their effort. You have to match their tenacity. That’s the way they play. Steve’s teams have done it year after year. This one is no different.”
Rutgers earned its first conference victory on Monday, beating Oregon in overtime to move to 8-7 and 1-3 in the Big Ten.