No. 25 Illinois determined to make strides vs. UMES

(Photo credit: Gary Cosby Jr. / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images)
When Illinois coach Brad Underwood lined up non-conference games against the likes of Alabama, Arkansas, Tennessee and Duke, the goal was to find out how his guys stack up and where they need to improve.

Now that the first results are in - No. 25 Illinois lost 100-87 Wednesday night to No. 8 Alabama - the goal shifts to making the actual improvements. Th