The Chicago Bulls are looking forward to celebrating their second Ring of Honor class, while an Illinois freshman is grabbing the spotlight in the first two weeks of the men’s college basketball season.
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Bulls prepare for second Ring of Honor class
The Bulls will induct their second Ring of Honor class this week with a series of events culminating in a halftime celebration during Saturday’s home game against the Washington Wizards.
This year’s class includes Bill Cartwright, Neil Funk, Horace Grant, John Paxson and the late Johnny Bach and Norm Van Lier. The 1991 championship team also will be inducted. All six honorees will be celebrated at a private gala event Thursday.
The United Center atrium will be open to the public from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday ahead of the Ring of Honor festivities, with a special display including memorabilia from the careers of the new inductees. Cartwright, Funk, Grant and Paxson will be available for a meet-and-greet with fans at 5 p.m.
The Bulls introduced the Ring of Honor in 2023 with a 13-member inaugural class that included Michael Jordan, Scottie Pippen, Dennis Rodman, Jerry Krause and Phil Jackson. The Bulls will induct a new class every other year.
Illini freshman David Mirković responds
Illinois coach Brad Underwood said he challenged 6-foot-9 forward David Mirković in practice for a couple of days after the Illini beat Texas Tech last week. Underwood didn’t think Mirković’s rebounding performance in that game — he had four — was up to par.
Mirković certainly responded well.
The freshman from Montenegro became the first Illinois player in 53 years to post a 20-20 game when he totaled 27 points and 21 rebounds in a win over Colgate on Friday. He set an Illini freshman rebounding record, beating Kofi Cockburn’s 17 (twice) in the 2019-20 season.
Underwood said Mirković takes the coaches’ critiques and “screams and cusses in Serbian,” but it’s all part of responding “in a really good way.”
“He’s wired different now,” Underwood said in his postgame news conference. “I challenged him pretty good this week in practice. He’s better than that. He’s a young man who strives for greatness. He doesn’t settle.
“And he’s maybe (like) Ayo (Dosunmu) — competitive, cheat you, fight you, do whatever to win. He’s like that. Those are pretty good traits.”
Mirković, who was named Big Ten freshman of the week for the second week in a row, entered Monday eighth in the nation with 12.5 rebounds per game and also has averaged 18.5 points and 2.25 assists in No. 8 Illinois’ first four wins. His play has been big as twin centers Tomislav and Zvonimir Ivišić deal with injuries. Tomislav has been out with a knee injury, while Zvonimir has been limited by knee swelling.
Mirković’s next challenge is to produce like that against an elite team. The Illini take on No. 11 Alabama on Wednesday at the United Center. No. 1 Purdue beat Alabama 87-80 on Thursday.
High then low for Hannah Hidalgo
Notre Dame guard Hannah Hidalgo is pressured by Michigan guards Olivia Olson (1) and Syla Swords on Saturday, Nov. 15, 2025, in Detroit. (AP Photo/Al Goldis)
Notre Dame guard Hannah Hidalgo broke multiple records last week with an eye-popping 44 points and 16 steals in a win over Akron. Both were Notre Dame records, while the 16 steals broke the NCAA Division I record of 14 held by multiple players.
It was the performance of a highly decorated career for the two-time All-American, but Michigan stifled the good vibes a few days later.
In a neutral-court game Saturday in Detroit, the No. 6 Wolverines held Hidalgo to 12 points on 4-for-21 shooting in a 93-54 win. She had three rebounds, four assists, three steals and seven turnovers.
Notre Dame coach Niele Ivey said in the postgame news conference her team’s loss stemmed from not setting the tone defensively.
“We did not have any type of fight defensively, and that’s where we have to start,” Ivey said. “Obviously our offense was off a little bit, but it starts on the defensive end. I talked to our team about what we can control. We can control our effort and our discipline, and we didn’t have that.”
No. 24 Notre Dame doesn’t have an easy follow-up. The Irish host No. 11 USC on Friday.
Number of the week: 21.3
The Bulls haven’t presented a particularly strong defensive threat at the rim for years, but this season their restricted-area resistance is at an all-time low. Opposing teams are taking (32.4) and making (21.3) more shots per game inside the restricted area than any other NBA team is allowing. That translates into 42.6 points per game — more than a third of the 121.5 points per game the Bulls allow.
The issue is getting worse, not better. Opponents had shot 70.1% inside the restricted area during the five-game losing streak the Bulls took into Monday night’s game in Denver. And the struggles are exacerbated by opponents beginning to warm up from long range against the Bulls, improving to 35.8% behind the 3-point arc.
Week ahead: Bulls
Wednesday: at Trail Blazers, 9 p.m. (CHSN)
Friday: vs. Heat (NBA Cup), 7 p.m. (CHSN+)
Saturday: vs Wizards, 7 p.m. (CHSN)
Monday: at Pelicans, 7 p.m. (CHSN)
Week ahead: Best college basketball games
Wednesday: No. 11 Alabama vs. No. 8 Illinois at the United Center, 8 p.m. (FS1)
Friday: Northwestern vs. Virginia at The Greenbrier Tip-Off (W.Va.), 4 p.m. (CBSSN)
Friday: No. 11 USC women at No. 24 Notre Dame, 5 p.m. (ESPN)
Sunday: Northwestern vs. South Carolina at The Greenbrier Tip-Off, 4 p.m. (CBSSN)
What we’re reading this morning
Quotable
“He’s had a tough journey. … (His transfer from USC to Cincinnati) didn’t go well for him. He ended up not even being in the rotation at the end of the year. He wasn’t even playing. We did a deep dive with him. He’s got a good spirit and heart. He wants to be about the right things. I thought our situation provided him with what he needed. He needed a place where he was going to have a lot of support around him, people were going to believe in him and also people were going to push him to maximize his talents.
“That size, his ability to run and score in the paint and play above the rim. He can face up and make a shot. He’s a very talented player, and he knows that we need him. And I think that’s been a really good formula.” — Northwestern coach Chris Collins on forward Arrinten Page, a transfer from Cincinnati who’s averaging 16 points and 8.3 rebounds