Feb 26, 2012; Champaign, IL, USA; Illinois Fighting Illini fans during the second half against the Iowa Hawkeyes at Assembly Hall. Illinois won 65-54. Mandatory Credit: Bradley Leeb-US PRESSWIRE

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Michigan Wolverines vs. Illinois Fighting Illini Game Preview: Baby Steps

Story Created: Mar 1, 2012 at 2:18 PM CDT

Story Updated: Mar 14, 2012 at 7:48 AM CDT

By Paul Schmidt
HailtotheOrange.com
SBNation.com

Baby steps are certainly the words of the day.

And not just for the basketball team -- no, fans, they are for you too.

We've taken down the sign off of the Illini bandwagon that said "Abandon All Hope Ye Who Jump On Here," and replaced it with one that says, "Proceed With Caution."

I mean, come on. We've all seen this movie before...the short version is that we all get our hopes up that we can finally start stacking a few wins, only to play our sixteenth game this season where, inevitably, we end up saying afterwards, "That was the worst Illini game of the season."

So yeah. Proceed with caution, y'all...

Color me unimpressed with the Wolverines, though. That's not to say that they aren't better than Illinois; at times this season, the Blessed Sisters of the Poor's co-rec team looked better than the Illini.

But still, I'm left with the nagging feeling that this Wolverines team isn't that great in the post, has an overly large reliance on the three ball and is largely dependant on their point guard, a freshman.

Now, all of these things certainly would be problematic in March, but we aren't filling out our brackets yet. And, more importantly, this gives up something that we can hang our hat on...

The Illini, if they play to their potential, are a TERRIBLE matchup for the Wolverines.

Maybe tomorrow that will be enough. Some think that a win against Michigan would be

enough to get back into the tournament, to which I say, hold on there, partners! Ease up on that kind of talk. There's a long way to go, and a lot of games that Illinois needs to win.

Again, everyone, baby steps. We have to re-learn how to walk before we can run again.

Let's hope we don't get crushed.

 

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