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Illinois Basketball: Illini history against 2018 NCAA tournament teams

By Rees Woodcock

CHAPEL HILL, NC - DECEMBER 20: Two basketballs are stuck in a net prior to the game between the Wofford Terriers and the North Carolina Tar Heels at Dean Smith Center on December 20, 2017 in Chapel Hill, North Carolina. Wofford won 79-75. (Photo by Lance King/Getty Images)
CHAPEL HILL, NC - DECEMBER 20: Two basketballs are stuck in a net prior to the game between the Wofford Terriers and the North Carolina Tar Heels at Dean Smith Center on December 20, 2017 in Chapel Hill, North Carolina. Wofford won 79-75. (Photo by Lance King/Getty Images) /
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The Illinois basketball team didn’t make it to the Big Dance or any tournament for that matter. But, some of the teams they played this season are dancing this year.

In the East Region, there are a few teams the Illini went up against this season. The first team you come to is the Marshall Thundering Herd. They got into the NCAA tournament as a No. 13 seed and will be playing No. 4 seed Wichita State. Illinois actually pounded Marshall by 17 points. They don’t have a ton of depth and this killed them.

Purdue is in that same bracket. The Boilermakers had one of their best seasons in recent memory. They are slotted at the No. 2 seed and will be taking on Cal State Fullerton who is the No. 15 seed. The Illini only played Purdue once this season and actually competed against them. Illinois even had the lead in the second half at one time.

Now we head down to the West Region where North Carolina Central has to compete in the play-in game against Texas Southern. Both of these teams are No. 16 seeds and are playing to see who goes up against No. 1 Xavier. Illinois ended up taking down North Carolina Central this season 86-73. The Illini were actually down at halftime before taking over the game.

Illinois played quite a few teams in this region. The next team is the Missouri Tigers. They are the No. 8 seed going up against the No. 9 seed Florida State Seminoles. This was the best win of the season for Illinois. They beat Missouri in the Braggin’ Rights game 70-64.

Ohio State is also in this region and they are the No. 5 seed. They take on the South Dakota St. Jackrabbits who are the No. 12 seed. The dreaded 5 v 12 matchup is always dangerous but the Buckeyes are a pretty good program this season. Illinois actually played Ohio State pretty close this year. They even had the lead by four points with less than six minutes to go. The Buckeyes ended up pulling away, though.

The Michigan Wolverines are the final team in the West Region. They are the No. 3 seed going up against No. 14 Montana. I really like their draw and think they can make the Sweet 16. Illinois didn’t fare well against the Wolverines this season, though. The only played them once and lost by 10 points.

Illinois went up against two teams in the final section of the bracket, the Midwest Region. The first team to look at is New Mexico State. They are the No. 12 seed against No. 5 Clemson. This was the Lou Henson game up in Chicago. The Illini actually fell to New Mexico State 74-69. At the time this looked like a bad loss, but that Aggies team was pretty good.

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The final team in the bracket that Illinois played was Michigan State. They are the No. 3 seed going up against No. 14 Bucknell. The Spartans are a really good team this year and should be able to make it far in the NCAA tournament.  Illinois didn’t come within single-digits in either of the games they played against the Spartans this season.

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