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Illinois Basketball: Top 5 Illini 1st round performances of the last 20 seasons

By Rees Woodcock

CHAMPAIGN, IL - JANUARY 02: Ayo Dosunmu #11 of the Illinois Fighting Illini brings the ball up court during the game against the Purdue Boilermakers at State Farm Center on January 2, 2021 in Champaign, Illinois. (Photo by Michael Hickey/Getty Images)
CHAMPAIGN, IL - JANUARY 02: Ayo Dosunmu #11 of the Illinois Fighting Illini brings the ball up court during the game against the Purdue Boilermakers at State Farm Center on January 2, 2021 in Champaign, Illinois. (Photo by Michael Hickey/Getty Images) /
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CHICAGO – MARCH 26: Luther Head #4 of the Illinois Fighting Illini kisses teammate Dee Brown #11, L, as they celebrate victory over the Arizona Wildcats in the Chicago Regional Final in the NCAA Division I Men’s Basketball Championship at the Allstate Arena on March 26, 2005 in Chicago, Illinois. Illinois defeated Arizona 90-89 in overtime. (Photo by Doug Benc/Getty Images) /

5. 2006 vs No. 13 Air Force (W) – Dee Brown 8 points, 10 assists, 8 rebounds, 4 steals

Illinois basketball just lost three out of the five starters from the national title run the year before. It was going to be difficult to repeat or come even close to repeating what we saw with that special team.

Dee Brown ended up coming back for one more run with James Augustine. Brown was eyeing his chances at the NBA, but an offseason injury forced him to make his return to the college ranks. This return gave the Illini what they needed to be one of the best teams in the country.

The Illini would play well during the 2005-06 campaign. They finished with an overall record of 26-7 and managed to go 11-5 in the Big Ten. This effort landed Illinois on the No. 4 seed line. They were matched up against No. 13 Air Force in the NCAA tournament.

Air Force would keep the game close. Illinois had a seven-point halftime lead and would go on to win 78-69. But this wouldn’t have been possible without Brown’s performance.

While Brown didn’t have a great game from the field – going just 1-of-7 – he did everything the Illini needed him to do to win. Brown would lead Illinois with 10 assists, eight rebounds, and four steals to go along with his eight points. This near triple-double was huge for the program, and a big reason Illinois won the game.

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