1+ hour, 58+ min ago  (742+ words) Illinois fans, certain college basketball experts " and, yes, Illinois on SI, too " have spent chunks of the season treating Brad Underwood like the remote control when the TV stops working. The lineup didn't click?What's wrong with this thing?A…...

11+ hour, 11+ min ago  (102+ words) The Illini (22-5, 13-3 Big Ten) may be peaking, but they still have to get it done on the floor against a talented, desperate Bruins squad (17-9, 9-6) ... Mick Cronin keeps losing his cool on Big Ten road trips that are so far from…...

3+ day, 11+ min ago  (469+ words) A healthy number of high-major recruits played high school basketball at a prestigious academy (Montverde Academy, IMG Academy, Prolific Prep, Brewster Academy, etc.). Those who didn't almost always played for a shoe-circuit AAU program (Nike EYBL, Adidas 3SSB, etc.).But not…...

5+ day, 20+ hour ago  (473+ words) For two straight games, Illinois" (21-5, 12-3 Big Ten) defense didn"t just struggle. It too often allowed opponents to play in comfort. The season-long numbers reinforce a grim tale: Even after the Indiana game is factored in, Illinois ranks 365th nationally in…...

1+ week, 5+ day ago  (561+ words) Once a college basketball team enters the top five of any rankings, upward movement " even incremental movement " becomes incredibly tough to come by. Not only does a club have to keep winning, but it very likely needs a squad (or…...

1+ week, 5+ day ago  (232+ words) At 6-foot-9 and 250 pounds, Illinois freshman David Mirkovic has been described at times as a point forward. A point guard in his younger days, Mirkovic clearly has (some) of the skills and instincts that usually come with the package. But…...

2+ week, 1+ day ago  (431+ words) Two drastically different worlds are set to collide on Saturday night in East Lansing, Michigan (7 p.m. CT, FOX). Illinois, at the highest of highs, is riding a 12-game win streak and playing better basketball than arguably any squad in Division I…...

3+ week, 13+ hour ago  (451+ words) If you win the rebounding battle, you win the game. That's what practically every coach in basketball will tell you. Although the notion tends to hold true, it's not an iron-clad rule. In Illinois' previous defeat " which feels like ages…...

3+ week, 14+ hour ago  (469+ words) Exactly 50 days to the minute separates Illinois" first matchup with Nebraska on Dec. 13 " a gut-wrenching three-point loss for the Illini " and the club"s opportunity to exact revenge on the Cornhuskers on Feb. 1 (3 p.m. CT, FS1). In the time since, the two…...

3+ week, 1+ day ago  (307+ words) This isn't a traditional First Look at Nebraska. Illinois has already lived that movie once this season. Consider this the director's cut " with injuries, rotation changes and a much thinner margin for error added in. (For the baseline version of…...