We are now less than a month out from the NCAA tournament, and Illinois basketball is sitting in a good position.
The Illini are now 22-5 overall and 13-3 in the Big Ten. We are coming off back-to-back wins in which the nation saw a dismantling on the road against USC, where Illinois was within a couple of buckets of making it a 40-point game. Not to mention, that is an NCAA tournament Trojans program.
With the NCAA tournament right around the corner, bracket predictions are constantly being put out and updated almost daily. The predictions I saw on Friday morning really had me excited for what could be this March.
When I look at NCAA tournament predictions, I am looking to avoid certain teams. The programs that I want to avoid are UConn and Houston. They always give us the most trouble.
ESPN NCAA tournament bracket prediction
For some reason, Joe Lunardi didn’t update the website, but he did post a picture on social media of what the updated NCAA tournament bracket could look like after Thursday’s games.
Like all bracket predictions, Lunardi has Illinois as a No. 2 seed. The first round matchup is against No. 15 UT Martin, so that shouldn’t be a problem.
— Joe Lunardi (@ESPNLunardi) February 20, 2026
A second round matchup would then either feature No. 7 Clemson or No. 10 USC. You saw what Illinois just did to the Trojans. A game against the Tigers wouldn’t be bad either. They have dropped three straight games and are sub-150 in both scoring and three-point shooting.
Illinois then enters the second weekend and will go up against either No. 3 Florida or No. 6 Texas Tech in the Sweet 16. The Red Raiders just lost one of their best players for the season, so I doubt they stay on this line. But Illinois has already beaten them this season. I wouldn’t mind playing Florida. They are beating up on a bad SEC right now.
If Illinois can get past Florida, then we will likely have a matchup in the Elite 8 against…Houston. I feel like this Cougars program doesn’t have as many NBA players as in the past, but they always seem to be a thorn in our side. This would be a great matchup, though. Get past Houston, and the No. 1 seed that we could play in the Final 4 would be Michigan.
CBS NCAA tournament bracket prediction
The CBS bracket prediction isn’t too dissimilar to that of ESPN as far as scary is concerned. Illinois is still a No. 2 seed, and the matchup in the first round is against No. 15 Navy. Thank you for your service.
Illinois then has a potential matchup of either No. 7 Villanova or No. 10 Georgia. This could be a sneaky tough matchup if the Wildcats get through, as they are a top-70 three-point shooting program. But Villanova has been beating up on a bunch of mid-level Big East teams.
If we get past the Wildcats, a Sweet 16 matchup between Illinois and either No. 3 Vanderbilt or No. 6 St. John’s would await. Whichever program gets through, it would be a high-scoring game against the Illini. Both teams can put up points, but I would welcome this matchup regardless of which team advances.
And then the Elite 8 is going to be tough, but the opponent would likely be No. 1 Arizona. They can shoot and score, and this would be a fun up and down the court type of game. It would likely be another high-scoring affair for the Orange and Blue. If Illinois got past the Wildcats, No. 1 Duke could be waiting in the Final 4.
Either one of these NCAA bracket predictions would be great for the Illini. I see a path to at least the Elite 8, and if we can get rid of the old demons, maybe a Final 4 or better could be in our future.