Magic Johnson, Chris Paul and now Zakai Zeigler?
The first two, Hall of Fame point guards, led No. 1 teams into Illinois — in 1979 and 2004, respectively — only to walk out as losers. Zeigler, an All-America candidate in his own right, gets his turn Saturday as he leads top-ranked Tennessee into Champaign for a highly anticipated nonconference game with the Fighting Illini.
The Volunteers (9-0), ranked No. 1 for the third time in program history, have won every game by at least 13 points. That includes a 15-point win over then-No. 13 Baylor and a 22-point win over Virginia on neutral courts, a 26-point home blowout of Syracuse, and a 22-point triumph at Louisville in their lone road game.
But they really don’t seem impressed with themselves.
“We got ranked No. 1 in the country and, honestly, if you were in the locker room, you wouldn’t have thought that,” Zeigler said, “Everybody came in and we had little smirks on our faces. Like, we were happy about it, but we know our end goal.”
The end goal — for both squads — is why Tennessee’s Rick Barnes and Illinois’ Brad Underwood set up this home-and-home series before last season. The Volunteers claimed an 86-79 win in Knoxville last year, but it’s fair to say both sides benefited because both finished in KenPom’s Top 10 and reached the Elite Eight.
“When Rick and I set this up, I jumped at it,” Underwood said. “I couldn’t wait … because I know how hard he gets his teams to play. I know how demanding he is as a coach. What better way to prepare my team?”
“We always believe that iron sharpens iron,” Barnes said. “Nobody has higher expectations of us than us. We want to play perfect.”
Zeigler (12.1 points per game, 8.1 assists) is Tennessee’s lone returning starter, but Barnes rebuilt swiftly. North Florida transfer Chaz Lanier (19.1 ppg) has inherited Dalton Knecht’s role as the walking bucket on the wing. Igor Milicic (12.9 ppg, team-best 7.3 rpg), who played one season at Virginia and the last two at Charlotte, does a little of everything. Ohio State transfer Felix Okpara protects the rim. Returnees Jahmai Mashack, Jordan Gainey and Cade Phillips round out a dynamic seven-man rotation.
Meanwhile, Illinois (7-2) boasts a higher upside than last year despite retaining no starters (Ty Rodgers has opted to redshirt) and only two scholarship players. Point guard Kasparas Jakucionis, the 18-year-old listed as a lottery pick on every reputable NBA Draft site, has averaged 22 points, seven rebounds and 5.3 assists over the last four games.
Arizona transfer Kylan Boswell, who has slowed high-profile scorers such as Wisconsin’s John Tonje, Alabama’s Mark Sears, Arkansas’ Boogie Fland and Northwestern’s Brooks Barnhizer, tends to step up against brand-name schools. He hit Wisconsin for 19 points Tuesday, Arkansas for 18 points on Thanksgiving and Alabama for 17 on Nov. 20.
“We knew ‘Bam’ (Boswell) was a really, really good defender,” Underwood said. “To be honest, it was the driving force in terms of wanting him out of high school — and wanting him in the portal. He’s just a terrific athlete with terrific strength.”
Illinois will have to decide whether to put Boswell on Lanier or Zeigler, then decide whether Jakucionis or Tre White will guard the other.
Also, Illinois has won three of its last four home games against AP No. 1 teams: On Jan. 11, 1979, when Eddie Johnson’s last-second jumper edged Magic Johnson and Michigan State; on Dec. 1, 2004, when Deron Williams, Dee Brown, Luther Head and Co. overwhelmed Paul-led Wake Forest by 18, and on Feb. 7, 2013, when Tyler Griffey slipped open for a last-second inbounds pass and sank an unguarded layup at the buzzer to knock off Indiana.
–Field Level Media
