CHAMPAIGN, Ill. - Well that just happened.

A season filled with NCAA Tournament expectations from the fans, the media and the team really did just start that way.

Illinois, favored by 22.5 points, squeaked out in overtime against Nicholls State, 78-70, in the season opener.

The game seemed to be in hand for the Illini with roughly five minutes left. Illinois, despite very poor shooting, was plus-30 on the glass and that led to 15 second chance points and a control of the game.

A 14-point lead at the time should have had Underwood wondering if he’s going to be pulling the starters in a couple minutes. Instead, Nicholls State completed the insane and Illinois completed the collapse.

The Colonel’s went on a 16-0 from the minute the clock struck 5:11, taking their first lead of the game in the process at 66-64 with 1:24 left in the game.

Underwood admitted that his team got complacent during regulation’s final stretch, which then caused Illinois to fall short in its defensive assignments.

“There takes a responsibility to engage in terms of what your assignments are and communication. It’s a very easy tell,” Underwood said. “There’s a saying that a lot of NBA teams use and it’s quiet teams lose. We say that every day and when you see us chattering and moving, it creates an energy because everybody knows what we’re doing. We got in that second half and we thought ‘Oh, we’re up 16, 17, whatever it was and this is over,’ and just shut down and quit and that’s not who we are and that’s not who we’re going to be either.”

Guard Ayo Dosunmu - who contributed 21 points, seven rebounds, two assist and five turnovers - said the Illini let the Colonels get hot.

“I don’t think nothing was going wrong for us. I thought defensively we weren’t engaged as much and also, I feel like they were making shots. We let a team on the road get hot. They had nothing to lose. Everyone had a thought that we would win tonight. Nicholls State came here with their fans, what they brought to the game and their team, so they had nothing to lose. They were chucking those threes up, they were shooting it with nothing to lose and 100 percent confidence.”

Clutch free throws from guard Trent Frazier tied the game at 66, and a clutch defensive stop on the other end forced the game into overtime, where the guard Andres Feliz took over the game.

Of the impressive 23 points and 11 rebounds Feliz recorded, seven of the points came in overtime, and at the most crucial moment of the extra period.

Feliz’s seven overtime points were the first seven Illinois points of overtime and pushed them out in front 73-70. On the other end, Feliz flew to the ball and snagged two crucial defensive rebounds.

Dosunmu sealed the game with a layup and-one, but it was Feliz's scoring stretch in overtime that swung the game in the Illini’s favor.

“I think we’ve all seen that before. He does that. He has a great knack of getting into the paint. He’s strong,” Underwood said. “Late in the game, it’s what he does. He gets the ball into the paint and he makes the right read.”

Underwood is taking this game with a grain of salt. His team won, and he’s “ecstatic” about that. But he didn’t hide the fact that he was disappointed in the way he saw his team perform in certain areas.

For Dosunmu, he knows his team needs to improve, but he also feels they shouldn’t be disappointed that they won.

“Why would it be a disappointment? We got the win. That’s all that matters. We don’t come out here to play and try to win by 20, 25, 30. We come out here and try to win for ourselves and get the W. We’re not worried that we went to overtime. That’s a good team over there. Nicholls State is a great team. They played the game the right way and got shotmakers, so at the end of the day, it’s not about the name in front of the jersey.”

Even though his team won, Underwood felt like his team was outplayed and out-hustled, something he said will be improved upon when the Illini head to the desert for road matchups against Grand Canyon and Arizona.

“I thought we got outplayed tonight. That’s something that I challenge myself with as a coach, to never let our team get out-hustled or outplayed,” Underwood said. “When we’re not mentally tuned in, that’s on me. We will be better in the next one, I can promise you.”