Kasparas Jakucionis is dealing with adversity on the court for the first time in his college career.
The talented freshman for No. 23 Illinois has finished with single-digit point totals in back-to-back games for the first time this season. He has missed 12 of his past 16 shots from the field and is 0-for-7 from beyond the arc during that time.
Jakucionis will look to get back on track when Illinois (15-8, 7-6 Big Ten) takes on Minnesota (12-11, 4-8) in a conference clash on Saturday in Minneapolis.
“He’s a hundred percent (healthy),” Illinois coach Brad Underwood said. “He’s top of the scouting report, and he’s going through a moment. Everybody goes through it, and he’s got to keep fighting his way out of it. We’re going to keep supporting him.
“He’s one of the best players in the country, and he’ll be fine. He’ll get his opportunities.”
The Fighting Illini have slumped alongside their standout freshman, who is projected to be a lottery pick in this summer’s NBA draft. Illinois is coming off an 82-73 loss Wednesday at Rutgers, which marked the team’s fourth loss in the past six games.
Turnovers have plagued the star player and the team. Jakucionis has committed 23 turnovers in his past five games.
Underwood reiterated that there was plenty of time for everyone to get back on track.
“I like his aggressive plays,” Underwood said. “He’s going to have some of those (turnovers). I don’t want him thinking about them. He’s a good enough player that he shouldn’t dribble off his foot, he shouldn’t lose the ball. Those are mental carelessness mistakes.
“But I don’t worry about them too much. I really don’t.”
Minnesota hopes to knock off a ranked opponent on its home court for the third time this season. The Golden Gophers beat then-No. 20 Michigan 84-81 in overtime on Jan. 16, and they outlasted then-No. 15 Oregon 77-69 on Jan. 25.
Coach Ben Johnson’s team is coming off a 69-61 win at Penn State on Tuesday. The victory snapped a two-game skid for the Golden Gophers, who have won four of their past six Big 10 games after losing their first six conference games in a row.
“Every win is meaningful,” Johnson said. “… Our guys put in so much time, and we demand so much from them. So when they’re able to pull through, they need to celebrate that. They need to feel good.”
Dawson Garcia leads Minnesota with averages of 20.1 points and 7.4 rebounds per game. Mike Mitchell Jr. and Lu’Cye Patterson are tied for second in scoring with 10.7 points per game.
Illinois is led by Jakucionis, who is averaging 15.2 points, 5.5 rebounds and 5.3 assists a game. Tomislav Ivisic is second with 12.8 points per game, Kylan Boswell is third with 11.9, and Will Riley rounds out the top four with 11.3.
Brennan Rigsby will look to stay hot for Minnesota. After not scoring in four straight games, he scored 14 points on 5-for-5 shooting from the field Tuesday in his most recent performance.
“I just try to stay ready at all points in the game and whenever my name is called,” Rigsby said. “I think that’s when we’re at our best, when we have multiple guys getting it going.”
–Field Level Media
