Illinois Basketball: Illini roadmap to winning the Big Ten in 2021-22

Section 4: @Michigan, Penn State, Iowa

The ending to the 2021-22 campaign looks extremely generous, as Illinois is probably going to need a few more wins to lock up a top-three seed in the NCAA tournament.

Illinois goes on the road against Michigan in the first matchup in the final section. It is crazy to think that the Wolverines were 14-2 in the previous 16 games against the Illini before Kofi Cockburn arrived on campus. But, since Kofi joined the program, Michigan is 0-3.

I have Illinois taking the first game of the season against Michigan, so that would make the Illini 4-0 with Kofi. I think we can take the second game as well. The only firepower the Wolverines have is Hunter Dickenson, and he hasn’t been nearly as good without the talented guard play from last season. I see Illinois beating Michigan again.

Penn State would be next on the list, and they are bad this season. The Nittany Lions are 5-5 overall and 0-2 in Big Ten play. I don’t see Penn State being in any of the games they play against the Illini this season. I have this as another win for the Orange and Blue.

The final game of the season is home against Iowa. The Hawkeyes aren’t nearly as good without All-American center, Luka Garza. Illinois already beat Iowa on the road this season by four points, so I would assume when the Hawkeyes come to Champaign, this would be a double-digit victory.

Record after Section 4: 24-6 (17-3)

I could, realistically, see this being the Illinois record by season’s end. It is one game better than last year, but I also believe the Big Ten is not as good as last season. If Illinois can get to this record, they should be right there for the Big Ten regular season crown.