CHAMPAIGN — ‘Booty Ball’ was a thorn in Brad Underwood’s backside last season, as his team was in matchup hell against Penn State and All-American guard Jalen Pickett.
It was one, two, three strikes, you’re out for the Illini as the Nittany Lions swept the season series and bounced Illinois from the Big Ten Tournament last March. When Underwood coined the ‘Booty Ball’ term at the United Center podium, it came from a place of being far more stung than sprung.
After giving up 93 points in State College, including a career-high 41 to Pickett, Underwood mentioned that he thinks college basketball should look at adopting the five-second back-down rule that’s in the NBA. Without it, Pickett “literally takes the ball and pounds nails til he gets it where he wants”, as Underwood described, and you either have to send help or live with the result of a one-on-one mismatch.
