No. 1 The Redeem Team
There isn’t an Illinois fan out there who would say the past half-decade or so hasn’t been rough. Up until this past season, the Illini had failed to make the NCAA tournament the past six campaigns. That has all changed, though.
In year three of the Brad Underwood regime, the Illinois basketball team has awoken, and the hard work this coaching staff and the players have put in is finally paying off. The 2019-20 rendition of the Illinois basketball team is the best group of players to play in Champaign in the 2010s.
The start of the season wasn’t the best for the Illini. They started 6-3 which included a drubbing by No. 21 Arizona by 21 points. But the turnaround of the season was when Illinois took down No. 5 Michigan by nine points at home. This is when things started to change.
From that Michigan win, Illinois would go on a tear that had them sitting with a 16-5 record overall and the No. 19 ranking in the nation. Thanks to some injuries, Illinois came back down to earth with four-straight losses.
A big rebound from the Illini followed as they rattled off five wins out of the final six games of the season. This enabled the Orange and Blue to get back into the rankings at No. 21 in the nation. It was also going to give the Illini a top-four seed in the Big Ten Tournament, which means a coveted double-bye.
On top of all of that, Illinois was easily projected to be in the NCAA tournament. A lot of people were projecting either a No. 6 or No. 7 seed for the Fighting Illini. Sadly, the season couldn’t finish due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
This legendary Illinois team was led by two of, arguably, the best players we have seen suite up in Champaign during the 2010s. Ayo Dosunmu and Kofi Cockburn were sensational for this program. Ayo finished the season averaging 16.6 points, 4.3 rebounds and 3.3 assists, while Kofi came in with 13.3 points and 8.8 rebounds per game.
It is extremely frustrating on a fan level to see this season get canceled. Illinois was poised to do some great things and make a run in the postseason. I will always recognize this team as the best of the 2010s, though.