While .500 might not seem like it is a good thing, and you are not wrong, the Illini still have a lot of momentum to build upon.
Four games into the season it looked like this team was heading down a black hole extremely fast. They were 1-3 with losses to teams like North Florida and Chattanooga. But after that four game stretch Illinois has been playing better.
The Illini have gotten healthier and the players that make an impact are getting more playing time. The addition of Kendrick Nunn back into the lineup hasn’t hurt either.